A cloud with a real silver lining

No matter where you turn these days, there seems to be bad news for the hospitality industry just around the corner. I won't go over the difficulties that restaurateurs, in particular, have had to contend with over the past few years - they've been written about extensively in our pages already - but it we all know it hasn't been easy.

Then, just as things look like settling down (a few US tourists spotted in the country, plus glorious weather bringing boom times to our tourist spots), Harden's brings out a report telling us that the rate of restaurant closures in London has rocketed by 70% over the past 12 months. It hasn't been this bad, apparently, since the recession of the early 1990s.

And yet, closer inspection of the report tells another story. While 112 closures were recorded in the past 12 months, 135 restaurants have opened, an increase of 10% and evidence that, tough times or not, London is still home to a vibrant restaurant market.

The fact is that more people are dining out now than ever before, as a new report from Mintel tells us, with the UK market valued at £24.4b and still growing. Eating out has now become a way of life, we are told, but at the same time expectation is higher than ever when it comes to standards, pricing and quality.

Survival is about adapting constantly to the market, as a look at Harden‘s closure list will tell you. A good few of the named closures are restaurants that have shut down only to be reopened by the same management but for a new audience. So, Coffee Republic becomes Republic Deli, and P‚trus relocates while Marcus Wareing opens Fleur in its place.

It is tough out there for restaurateurs, there's no doubt about that, but this report is far from sounding the death knell for restaurants in the capital.

What it does show is that we have a dynamic and exciting market, with an increasingly sophisticated audience with ever-changing needs. The businesses that can't meet those needs are punished instantly, it seems, but as Peter Harden, co-editor of Harden‘s, says: "There is every sign that the London restaurant ‘revolution' looks set to run and run."

Sweating it out

Marcus Ashenford was earmarked as a chef to watch by Caterer back in 1996, when he won an Acorn Award. At the time, he'd already been recognised by Michelin and he continued to be a star in their eyes. Now, seven years on, he and his wife have launched their own restaurant but, as he reveals, being a chef-restaurateur involves a little more than just sweating it out behind the stove.
Joanna Wood
Deputy Chef Editor

Dishing it out

As populations across Europe get older and older, the provision of meals on wheels services will become an area of increasing interest to food service companies. On page 30, we take a look at how one provider, Apetito, runs its service in both France and Britain. Despite the cultural differences, the operational similarities are surprising: how to provide a consistent, cost-effective, safe service to a growing client base.
Ben Walker
Deputy Contract Catering Editor