Even with many people still working from home, long lunches out in the city of London have come back into fashion. Fortunately for diners and for businesses, new changes marked the next stage of England’s reopening, allowing indoor dining and drinking. And as the rain fell on a recent Monday, some restaurants in the Square Mile could once again offer shelter inside.
But business at the City’s eateries still remains a shadow of pre-pandemic levels. And with worries about the India variant spreading across Britain, the danger is that this is as good as it gets for the hospitality sector.
The next phase of the country’s reopening begins on June 21 when all legal restrictions on social contact are due to end, perhaps even the need to stay at least one meter away from other people. Should this date get pushed back, it would be yet another blow for beleaguered pubs and restaurants, many of which are running below capacity because of social distancing rules.