Pied à Terre latest venue to pause lunch service due to staffing issues

David Moore, founder of one of London’s oldest Michelin-starred restaurants, Pied à Terre, has made the “difficult decision” to close for lunch until further notice due to recruitment problems.

From this Saturday the Fitzrovia restaurant, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, will no longer open for lunch “to protect the welfare of the team and maintain the high standards of food and service the restaurant is renowned for”.

Pied à Terre will remain open for dinner service from Tuesdays through to Saturdays.

Earlier this month, Michel Roux Jr was forced to cancel lunch service at his two-Michelin-starred Le Gavroche restaurant in London's Mayfair and go dinner service-only due to staffing shortages.

Numerous hospitality businesses have told The Caterer they are having to cut hours or are unable to even open due to the widespread shortage of staff across the industry.

The EatDrinkSleep group similarly decided to scrap lunch service for its pubs the Felin Fach Griffin in Powys and the Gurnard's Head in Cornwall during the week for the summer, while Luke Garnsworthy told The Caterer he has had to limit opening hours of his Crockers restaurants to reduce pressure on the team. Executive chef of the St Enodoc hotel in Cornwall, Guy Owen, also reported having to cut the opening hours of the hotel's fine dining restaurant and turn down some bookings.

European interest in UK jobs has reportedly plummeted, particularly for the hospitality sector, and while trade body UKHospitality has produced a 12-point plan to tackle the problem, the government has confirmed a coronavirus recovery visa is not on the table for discussion.