Editor’s comment: The agony of train strikes could soon be over

This week, the entire country must have let out a sigh of relief as we received word that more than two years of train strikes could be at an end following a “major breakthrough” in discussions between union Aslef and the Department of Transport.

UKHospitality estimates hospitality businesses have lost more than £3.5b in sales throughout the period, from cancelled bookings or forced closures when staff were prevented from being able to travel to their place of work.

The timing of that first wave of train strikes straight off the back of Covid has always stung that little bit more for an industry that suffered so much during the pandemic. And the frequency combined with the unpredictable nature of the strikes resulted in changing customer behaviour, with guests become much more last-minute in their bookings, and increasingly fickle when it comes to committing to plans.

The last couple of Christmases have hit particularly hard, with hospitality operators reporting parties being booked much later than usual or being cancelled altogether.

And we all remember that shocking trading update from Fuller’s when the pub group estimated that industrial action had cost the business around £4m over the 43 weeks to January 2023. Meanwhile, the managing director of Dishoom Brian Trollip was fearful of losing 3,500 bookings ahead of last Christmas. 

The August bank holiday is on the horizon, and so we are close to approaching the ‘golden quarter’, which means at least there is one less thing for operators to worry about over the next few months.

And with news that the economy seems to be continuing its recovery, with 0.6% growth reported between April and June, perhaps there is a brighter outlook ahead. 

What you might have missed in The Caterer this week

>> Which restaurant dishes have the best profit margin?

We ask top chefs to share which dishes make them the most gross profit, from a grey squirrel snack to banana skin parfait.

>> ‘There are no rules’: how the Broadwick hotel is keeping anarchy alive in Soho

We head over to the maximalist-designed Broadwick hotel to experience a refreshingly different approach to hotelkeeping.

>> ‘Fat, pine and vinegars’: the building blocks of Fallachan, Glasgow

And for this week’s Menuwatch, The Caterer takes a seat at Fallchan in Glasgow to learn more about chef Craig Grozier’s menu which is loosely built around fat, pine and vinegars.