Wine windows: why the historic plague-inspired booze holes are back
Florence’s buchette del vino helped Italians drink through 17th-century epidemics. Now they have re-opened to provide gelato, coffee and alcohol in the time of Covid-19Name: Wine windows.Age: 391, give...
View ArticleCovid halves July sales in UK pub, bar and restaurant chains
Lockdown and customers’ reluctance to resume old habits hit bar sales particularly hardSales at pub, restaurant and bar chains halved in July compared to last summer, as almost two-thirds of...
View Article10 of the best motorway stop-offs: readers' travel tips
Your pick of places to refuel and stretch legs near motorway junctions ranges from pubs and chippies to waffle delights and a llama cafeWe discovered Penllergare Valley Woods off junction 47 of the M4,...
View ArticleTurnips, London: ‘A clever response to challenging times’ – restaurant review
The pandemic has brought a silver lining to one Borough Market trader – he’s opened a restaurantTurnips, 43 Borough Market, London SE1 9AH (020 7357 8356). Small plates (Wednesday-Saturday) £5-£9,...
View ArticleWorkers cancel family trips home amid fears Poland is next on quarantine list
Key staff say they cannot afford to lose two weeks’ work to self-isolateCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageIn many ways things are going very well for Agie & Katie, a...
View ArticleEat out to help out: Britons claim 35m discounted meals
Treasury says figures for first three weeks of restaurant scheme are expected to riseCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageMore than 35m discounted meals were claimed in the first...
View ArticleGrace Dent's guide to post-lockdown eating out: 'I can now emote happy, sad...
For months, our restaurant critic craved a boozy night out with friends. Fifteen attempts later, she’s ready to share her adviceOn the WhatsApp group I used as a life-support system during lockdown, a...
View ArticleLahpet, London: ‘Dishes that demand your attention’ – restaurant review
If you don’t know much about Burmese cuisine, then Lahpet’s menu is a real eye-openerLahpet, 58 Bethnal Green Road, London E1 6JW (020 3883 5629). Small plates £6-£8, large plates £12.50-£16.50,...
View Article'Eat out to help out': 64m meals claimed in UK under scheme
Number of people in restaurants 61% higher than average for Monday to Wednesday last yearCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe “eat out to help out” scheme encouraged more...
View ArticleThe Royal, St Leonards: ‘Extremely encouraging’ – restaurant review
An old boozer on the south coast is the latest branch of a thriving family tree of gastropubsThe Royal, 1 St Johns Road, St Leonards-on-Sea TN37 6HP (01424 547 797). Starters £5-£9, mains £12-£17,...
View ArticleAfter 'eat out to help out', many restaurants will still face disaster | Emma...
A busy August was a welcome boost for many, but the coming months will bring evictions and job lossesCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe government has treated the pandemic...
View ArticleTop 10 new restaurants and pop-ups on the Kent coast
Kent’s culinary revival is spilling on to the streets and beaches – with inventive seafood, tapas and Asian street foodRun by Ben and Sophie Crittenden, this most zeitgeisty of the Michelin-starred...
View ArticleEat out to help out sees diners claim 100m cut-price meals in August
Last-minute rush means Treasury scheme will cost more than the £500m set aside to help hospitality industry in pandemicAt least 100m subsidised meals were eaten by diners in the UK in August following...
View ArticleFrom cool beans to has-beens? The Covid threat to Britain's coffee shops
Why the chains and independents at the heart of Britain’s high streets are in deep troubleThe coffee trade’s rollercoaster rideCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageIt’s the...
View ArticleBlind date: ‘Awkward moment? The temperature gun check’
Francine, 37, broadcast journalist, meets Jack, 35, freelance journalistWhat were you hoping for?A free meal, good company and that my picture wouldn’t show what my sister calls my weird...
View ArticleSmokestak, London: ‘one glorious, considered pose’ – restaurant review
Some might mutter ‘filthy muck’ at the piles of blackened meat, but Jay Rayner sees only lunchSmokestak, 35 Sclater Street, London E1 6LB (020 3873 1733). Small plates £4.50-£9.50, big plates...
View ArticleFood industry in England urged to trim 20% of calories by 2024
Restaurants, takeaways and ready meals all affected, but anti-obesity campaigners say target should be compulsoryThe number of calories found in pizzas, chips, crisps and other unhealthy foods beloved...
View ArticleCoronavirus: ‘rule of six’ to apply in England from Monday
Boris Johnson restricts gatherings in attempt to prevent second national lockdownCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageTough new rules that restrict gatherings to just six people...
View ArticlePizza Hut to close 29 restaurants, putting 450 jobs at risk
See the full list of sites to shut under the company’s planned rescue dealPizza Hut has confirmed a list of 29 restaurants up for closure as part of a rescue deal that could lead to the loss of 450...
View ArticleSir Terence Conran obituary
Designer, entrepreneur and restaurateur who transformed British taste through his passion for the importance of everyday thingsTerence Conran, who has died aged 88, did more than anyone to enhance...
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