We’ve consulted the author of Wine List Confidential, Douglas Blyde, for his top restaurants that you can visit in London from this Saturday.
In England and Northern Ireland, this weekend marks a major milestone. Restaurants, pubs and bars can reopen for the first time since March, signalling the end of months of enforced closure. In Northern Ireland, venues open today (3 July) while in England, it’s 4 July.
But it’s by no means business as usual. Table service must be employed where possible, and contactless ordering, such as through an app, is encouraged. Tables must be spaced at least one-metre apart, with risk mitigation, and clear social distancing guidelines, access to hand-washing facilities and sanitiser must be provided.
Hospitality venues have also been asked to collect customer data and store it for 21 days in order to help officials track and trace potential outbreaks. UKHospitality and the British Beer and Pub Association have jointly released guidance on this, detailing what data venues should collect and how to store it. This can be read here.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged everyone visiting sites this weekend to act responsibly.
“Just as when we first locked down, we will only succeed in reopening if everyone works together,” he said. “Because we are not out of the woods yet. The virus is still with us and the spike in Leicester has shown that.”
While authorities are expressing caution, for hospitality workers it is the first step in a long road to recovery.
To celebrate the reopening of restaurants in England, we’ve rounded up some top picks from the drinks business‘ sister publication, Wine List Confidential. WLC is a guide to the best wine-focused restaurants in London, rating each venue out of 100 for its service, range, originality, price and list size.
Scroll through the list of restaurants due to open on 4 July and the days that follow as selected by guide author, Douglas Blyde.
