LONDON Facing wipeout from the coronavirus outbreak, many British cafes, bars and restaurants have reinvented themselves as delivery services and mobile greengrocers to survive. “Love Shack”, a vegan restaurant in Hackney, east London, explained on its website that “in these tough times we need to look at new ways of keeping the good ship love afloat”. Rather than let its stock go to waste, the restaurant now delivers ingredients to local homes. “Former restaurant, now accidental greengrocers,” quips its Instagram page. “We’ve somehow turned into vegan grocers and food delivery service.” For community food market Mercato Metropolitano, the reinvention “was an inevitable business change”, spokeswoman Nezahat Sevim told AFP. Before the outbreak, diners would buy their meals from one of its food vans and eat it at large communal tables. Now they deliver to members of their “loyal community” but also to new customers, “sincethe essentials have become harder to find, in shops and also online”. “If the supermarkets can’t do it we can!” says NonnaTonda’s Instagram page. “Wearedeliveringour freshpasta and sauces to your door.” The Italian restaurant in West London now delivers fresh pasta across the city, a highly prized delicacy often missing from supermarket shelves since the virus took hold. What started out as isolated initiatives quickly became widespread, with an Instagram account opening this weekend under the name “Shop local London”. The site lists projects cooked up by businesses across the catering sector, from food vans to wholesalers — many of whom have lost their main customers since the restaurants closed.—AFP
