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THE END IS IN SIGHT…
BY PAUL ASKEW, CHEF PATRON OF
THE ART SCHOOL RESTAURANT
With our industry being one of the first sectors to shut down,
this says to me that we will probably be one of the last to re-open.
At this stage we can only speculate as to the many restrictions
that may be in place at first, with social distancing meaning
we can only have perhaps half as many tables and seats, no bar
area and so on. It’s difficult to plan for as we don’t know what
the government will say or put in place, there are still lots of
guidance points to be considered.
But firstly, we have to plan to survive this as a team, which is very
much phase 1: business survival.
In doing this I have spent countless hours on Zoom calls nationally
within my role on the Tourism Industry council, and locally with
my role as joint Chair of the Liverpool Hospitality Association.
Working with national and local governments to champion the
cause of the hospitality sector and its importance to the economy.
I’m encouraged that there seems to be a recognition locally and
nationally that businesses like The Art School are the lifeblood of
the economy.
I have a brigade of 34+ people to support and that’s been the priority
from day one. Some of the schemes that have been announced
we’ve been able to access, others, unfortunately we haven’t. But for
now it’s about battening down the hatches and looking after our
brigade so that when our doors can be reopened, they are ready to
engage again.
The second phase, of course, is recovery. The plan for that is very
much underway. I would normally think about what I wanted to
provide and set my stall out, then build the blocks around that and
cost everything accordingly. In the future, much of that will be
dictated to me.
What won’t change is our commitment to offering the very best in
local and seasonal produce, and as we move through late Spring
to early Summer, we continue to develop new recipes with the
changes in seasons at the forefront of our minds. We may miss
the asparagus from Claremont farm but you can rest assured we
will return with beautiful produce at our disposal for you and your
loved ones to savour.
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Operationally, following closure, all of the areas of the restaurant
and indeed the soft furnishings have undergone a full deep clean,
we will repeat this prior to opening and, as usual, continue to
uphold our impeccable hygiene standards.
There are of course many other things we can do now, firstly being
a show of appreciation to our NHS workers by accompanying any
gift vouchers purchased for them from now until the end of July
with a complimentary bottle of Castorani wine, a small gesture of
our gratitude for their service.
In addition, there are some other practical steps that we are taking
here at the restaurant, mainly being a plan to extend the time limit
on all gift vouchers that may have expired during the closure by the
same number of weeks that we are closed for, from the date we re-
open. So if you didn't get a chance to use your voucher due to the
closure, it will be valid once we reopen.
Whilst we are unable to serve our culinary delights for you to enjoy
in the comfort and safety of your home, we have implemented a
new program with one of our wine suppliers, Berkmann Wine
Cellars, to offer you something to enjoy in these challenging times.
In partnership with Berkmann, we have introduced a programme
where our loyal guests can access special wines at discounted retail
prices, and The Art School receives a donation from each sale
through the ‘Help 4 Hospitality’ website. This is a selection of wines
you can normally find in restaurants and bars, which you can now
enjoy at home for special retail prices.
Please visit www.berkmann.co.uk/H4Hshop to order wine for
home delivery. Use our code H4H345 to activate a 5% discount for
yourself, and a small portion of the order value will be donated by
Berkmann Wine Cellars to support our business.
I would like to reassure guests that we will continue to work
tirelessly over the weeks and months ahead to ensure that the
brigade are back stronger than ever, and finally show appreciation
to Captain Tom Moore for reaching his milestone 100th birthday
in addition to his inspirational fundraising efforts.
Until next time stay safe, Chef Askew