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Spectator
16-07-2025
- Business
- Spectator
Do we really need state-funded restaurants?
Two British cities, Dundee and Nottingham, have been chosen as trial sites for a new government scheme to be piloted next year: state-subsidised restaurants. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has put up £1.5 million for the 12-month trial, initiated by the campaign group Nourish Scotland. If the restaurants are successful, they'll be rolled out across Britain – nourishing us all – with a subsidised meal for £3. Inspired by second world war state-funded canteens, they're going to be called 'Public Diners' – clever branding, with its quasi-American vibe. Their branding matters because – as anyone who ever ate greasy slop from a tray at a state-run stolovaya in Soviet Russia remembers – no-frills, state-funded restaurants are intrinsically drained of glamour. Today's fastidious British public will require a touch of coolness to entice them in. Winston Churchill also understood that branding mattered. When those state-funded canteens got going in 1940, he decreed that their name, 'communal feeding centres', was 'an odious expression, redolent of communism and the workhouse'. At one stroke, he transformed their image by branding them 'British Restaurants'. 'Everyone,' he said, 'associates the word 'restaurant' with a good meal.' The slogan for the new Public Diners on Nourish Scotland's website is 'an idea whose time has come'. 'They are a holistic food system intervention: for public health, climate and the right to food.' (So we're going to be preached at in noun-lumps, as well as fed.) If all goes to plan, we'll soon see these new, climate-friendly, taxpayer-subsidised diners, inspired also by Turkish public restaurants, Mexican public dining rooms and Polish milk bars. Are those countries really now our economic role models? It doesn't give one much confidence in how things are going. Hospitality entrepreneurs and executives are neither pleased nor impressed. These diners are 'a ludicrous idea,' says Hugh Osmond, co-founder of Pizza Express. Luke Johnson, chairman of Gail's, says the idea that state-backed restaurants could operate more efficiently than the private sector is 'beyond a joke'. You can see why they're worried. Life is tough enough for restaurant owners – hit with ballooning, government-enforced overheads – without this new undercutting from state-funded establishments. But you could argue that commercial restaurants have only themselves to blame. Their prices have rocketed far more steeply than people's pay. In the last ten years, the cost of a Pizza Express 'Margherita' pizza has gone up from £7.55 to £14.95. If the British salary had kept pace with the increasing price of a Margherita, it would have risen from £27,600 to £53,000 – whereas in fact it's £37,500. There may well be a need for 'somewhere where all of us can eat without stretching the budget'. 'What could possibly go wrong?' hospitality executives are wondering as they wait for the pilot branches of the diners to open. A contract to run them is expected to be tendered later this year. Though the restaurants themselves will be not-for-profit, the caterers who run them will be expecting to make money – as will the providers of the fittings and the produce. Governments don't have the best reputation when it comes to not being ripped off during the procurement process. The issue of precisely what food to serve is also going to be a minefield. Nourish Scotland's consultation exercise 'showed that there are plenty of challenges ahead when it comes to deciding on what food should be served in a Public Diner'. We're no longer the unfussy wartime population who gratefully scoffed a plateful of boiled cabbage and mashed potato. The food served in those wartime British Restaurants had three chief attributes: it was soft (designed for a nation with a high proportion of false teeth), bland (designed to avoid tummy upsets) and filling (designed to fatten up a thin population). Today's populace won't be so willing to eat up whatever's put in front of them. They'll expect their individual health- and religion-based dietary requirements to be respected. An added complication is that, far from aiming to fatten up the population, this new scheme aims to tackle obesity. The scheme also requires the food to be locally sourced, to fulfil the climate aspect of its brief. As Jeremy Clarkson showed us in the latest series of Clarkson's Farm, locally sourced food is expensive. How will that work, economically, for the taxpayer? It'll be fun seeing what dishes the various branches do decide to serve – and whether the scheme sparks a revival of distinctly British regional food. I hope the Dundee branch offers the local dish Cullen skink (smoked haddock and potato soup with milk), and the Nottingham one Sherwood Forest venison and stilton. Are Public Diners really 'an idea whose time has come', or are they in fact an idea whose time is long gone? The scheme's brochure celebrates, with some nostalgia, those morale-boosting wartime British Restaurants which brought everyone together. There was indeed a great charm about them. Kenneth Clark's wife Elizabeth arranged to borrow paintings from Buckingham Palace to hang on their walls, to cheer everyone up. Today's utopian ideal is that strangers will meet and make friends over their plates of spicy chickpea and potato tagine – and that this will be a new way of falling in love IRL rather than online. But British Restaurants had their moment – and that moment has gone. The government withdrew financial responsibility for them in 1949, and they dwindled away after rationing ended in the mid-1950s. The free market took over, and competitive hospitality businesses survived – or closed down – accordingly. Is this scheme really the best way to spend taxpayers' money? Essentially, those who don't go to the restaurants will be subsidising those who do. Surely our taxes would be better spent teaching schoolchildren how to fry an onion and make a cheap pasta sauce at home. This government is so much better at thinking of new ways of spending our money than of saving it.
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
World War II style kitchen selling meals for as little as £3 to open in the UK to help underprivileged areas
World War II style kitchens will open in the UK selling meals for as little as £3 to help disadvantaged areas. The taxpayer-funded project is set to be launched in Nottingham, with a second venue in Dundee, offering cheap and nutritious food. Subsidised communal kitchens were common in the 1940s and would include a cup of tea costing one pence as well as bangers and mash at around sixpence. They were intended as communal spaces for Britons who'd had their homes bombed and needed a hearty meal. The two new not-for-profit sites will be the first of this generation as there are currently no government-subsidised restaurants in the UK after most closed by the 1960s following the end of rationing in 1954. They will focus primarily on feeding children, operating as a normal restaurant for at least five days a week and the cost of a meal will only marginally exceed that of the ingredients. More than £1.5million of taxpayer money is set to be pumped into the 12-month pilot project which aims to tackle food poverty and malnutrition. Anna Chworow, the deputy director of Nourish Scotland, which is conducting the study alongside the University of Sussex, said the meals were expected to cost between £3 and £5. She explained: 'From the customer end, this will feel like an ordinary restaurant – albeit with low prices. The subsidy mostly supports staff costs and overheads, and this in turn keeps the prices low for everyone. 'Each meal is priced slightly above the cost of ingredients used to make it, meaning the more popular the restaurants are, the more economically viable they become.' Countries like Poland and Turkey already run similar schemes and the scientists behind Britain's pilot sites hope they will provide a blueprint for more restaurants to open in the coming years, which would be funded by local authorities. Location, cuisine, meals, and pricing would be decided in talks with the local community though it is unknown how the food would be sourced. However, researchers are hoping to prioritise local produce on the project, for which a contract is expected to be tendered later this year. Ms Chworow explained under the pilot funding would be given to the caterer - the operator of the restaurant. But it is imagined the central government funding would be transferred to the local authority in future, with pilot sites also potentially operating 'slightly differently' to the eventual roll-out. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has announced more than £8 million in funding for six different projects, with one being the subsidised restaurants. The Ministry of Food handbook criticised the "appalling ignorance" of British people when it came to preparing food, advising that more vegetables should be introduced to the diet through national kitchen menus. Kitchen at the height of its popularity in 1918 Another project includes a mobile greengrocer, dubbed the 'Queen of Greens', visiting areas of Liverpool where social housing residents have limited access to nutritious food. Peter Kyle, the Science and Technology Secretary, said: 'No one in this country should be left unable to access the healthy food they need. 'These projects will draw on the power of research to actively explore the best ways to get healthy food into the mouths of those who need it, potentially having a transformational effect on people's lives, and fulfilling the missions set in our Plan for Change.'
Telegraph
08-07-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Second World War-style restaurants to help feed underprivileged families
Second World War-style restaurants will serve meals for as little as £3 to provide healthy meals to underprivileged areas. A taxpayer-funded project will launch a restaurant in Nottingham and another in Dundee offering cheap and nutritious meals to people in disadvantaged areas. The two not-for-profit sites will resemble the British and civic kitchens of the 1940s when Britons who had their homes bombed went to communal spaces to eat hearty meals. The new incarnation of these subsidised cafes will focus on feeding children and operate as a normal restaurant for at least five days a week. The cost of a meal will only marginally exceed that of the ingredients. More than £1.5 million of taxpayer money is funding the 12-month pilot project, which rekindles the Blitz spirit in an effort to combat food poverty and malnutrition. In the early 1940s, a meal at a subsidised communal kitchen would include a cup of tea costing one pence, and bangers and mash at about sixpence. 'The meals are expected to cost between £3 and £5,' Anna Chworow, the deputy director of Nourish Scotland, which is running the study alongside the University of Sussex, said of the expected menu at the modern civic kitchens. 'From the customer end, this will feel like an ordinary restaurant – albeit with low prices. 'The subsidy mostly supports staff costs and overheads, and this in turn keeps the prices low for everyone. Each meal is priced slightly above the cost of ingredients used to make it, meaning the more popular the restaurants are, the more economically viable they become,' she added. There are currently no government-subsidised restaurants in the UK, with the war-era eateries falling out of favour after rationing ended in 1954. Most closed by the 1960s. Some countries such as Poland and Turkey have similar schemes, but the pilot sites in Nottingham and Dundee will be unique in 21st-century Britain. The scientists running the scheme hope the pilot will provide a blueprint for more restaurants to open in the coming years, which will be funded by local authorities. The exact restaurant locations, cuisine, meals and pricing will be decided in talks with the local community. How the food will be sourced remains unknown, with local produce a priority for the researchers. A contract to run the project is expected to be tendered later this year. 'The project team hopes that the local authorities and the national governments (at the UK and devolved level) would be interested in continuing the two sites after the pilot is over and in rolling them out more widely,' Ms Chworow said. 'The model is for the funding to be given to the operator of the restaurant – in the case of the pilots, it will be the caterer. In the future, we would imagine the local authority receiving funding from the central government. 'It's important to say these two restaurants will be test sites – so may operate slightly differently from how we envisage the eventual roll-out. The important things we're trying to learn are the operations (including the exact financial model) and the impact they have on health and wellbeing.' The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has announced more than £8 million in total funding for six different projects, with one being the subsidised restaurants. Another includes a mobile greengrocer, dubbed the Queen of Greens, visiting areas of Liverpool where social housing residents have limited access to fresh, nutritious food. Peter Kyle, the Science and Technology Secretary, said: 'No one in this country should be left unable to access the healthy food they need. 'These projects will draw on the power of research to actively explore the best ways to get healthy food into the mouths of those who need it, potentially having a transformational effect on people's lives, and fulfilling the missions set in our Plan for Change.'
Scotsman
17-06-2025
- General
- Scotsman
I tried a pop-up public diner - here's why these government-backed restaurants should return
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... I think the last time I was in a church hall around 5pm on a summer's evening, it was probably for a school disco in the mid '90s. But this is where I find myself at a Glasgow pop-up public diner dinner. Hosted by food policy organisation Nourish Scotland, the premise of the event - and meal - was to bring people together to showcase what a modern-day public diner might look like and have a chat about how we can reintroduce these government backed restaurants. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Created by the government of the-then prime minister Winston Churchill in 1940, the British Restaurant chain, which aimed to offer the public affordable, healthy meals, had around 2,000 outlets in its heyday - more than McDonald's does now. These were a national restaurant service before we had a National Health Service. Dhal and aubergine curry being served at the Glasgow pop-up public diner meal | Rosalind Erskine Food policy charity Nourish Scotland says the resurrection of public diners could point people away from crisis and charitable food aid, such as food banks, as well as becoming a key part of the community and to help target societal issues such as loneliness. According to the Scottish Government, it is estimated 20 per cent of Scotland's population - 1,070,000 people each year - were living in relative poverty after housing costs in 2021-24. Before housing costs, 18 per cent of the population (970,000 people) were living in poverty. People in poverty were less likely to experience high food security. Just 67 per cent of those in relative poverty, and 68 per cent of those in severe poverty, lived in high food security households. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad How do these public diners fit into our society now, given the last public diner or civic restaurant as it was known closed in the 1960s? The pop-up dinner, and chat, I attended was hosted in the church hall of the beautiful Kelvinside Hillhead Parish Church. Four long communal tables sat adults of all ages, and some children, with food prepared by the Central and West Integration Network (CWIN) chefs who regularly host community meals and run food hubs. The CWIN works with refugees and asylum seekers and offers services aimed at people's immediate needs. Our dinner was a warming dhal, spicy aubergine sambal balado curry, coconut rice, tomato and onion salad and raita dip followed by a homemade chocolate brownie served with Scottish strawberries. Dhal and aubergine curry from the Glasgow pop-up public diner meal | Rosalind Erskine After chatting to the women around me about the evening and our thoughts on the public diners, we ended up laughing and sharing our favourite TV shows this year so far. Our night also ended in an impromptu tour of the historic church. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I came away feeling uplifted and happy, having met some new people. Right now the world feels like an oppressive, depressing place to be, but getting together over a warm meal and chatting to strangers makes you realise we have more in common than things which separate us. For £5, I had one of the nicest evenings out I've had in a while, and I started it knowing no one. If public diners do return, they'll not only be a vehicle in which to address food insecurity, they'll become a place for people to meet others, chat and forget worries for a while - including loneliness.
Edinburgh Reporter
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Edinburgh Reporter
City-owned public diners could help fund food insecurity
City-owned public diners should be explored as a solution to help fight food insecurity in Edinburgh, according to a councillor. Councils across the UK used to run public, low-cost diners for residents, but the last of them closed in the 1970s. Now, Green councillor Dan Heap, representing Sighthill/Gorgie, wants to see Edinburgh explore bringing them back through a six month trial run. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: 'The idea is that you have a place where you can access a basic meal. 'It won't be a gourmet meal, but it will be a healthy meal produced with local ingredients. You can get a reasonable price. 'It will be designed to be not for profit, and that will be reflected in the price, It's meant to help people access local, healthy food, which is not always easy at the moment, given the cost of living and given food prices.' In a motion Cllr Heap has put forward to the next full Edinburgh Council meeting, he proposes a six month trial run of one restaurant, providing meals for at least one afternoon and one evening a week. According to the motion, it would involve a 'small range of simple and healthy meals' with locally sourced ingredients, including at least one vegan option. A report by a charity published in 2022 found that an estimated 30,000 people in Edinburgh went hungry due to a lack of money in 2020. And UK government figures published this year showed that 11% of Scottish households struggled with low food security in 2022-23. Public diners in the UK started during the second World War, as a means of helping to keep the public fed. At their height, over 2,100 such public diners existed throughout the country, run mostly by local authorities. Often known as 'British restaurants', the vast majority of them were financially self sustaining, using massive economies of scale to help drive down prices. Hundreds continued running after the war, mostly in council ownership, with the last one in Cambridge closing in the mid 1970s. Some councils today do own restaurants and pubs, but to date no local authority has tried to bring back the concept of a public diner. Heap's motion comes on the heels of a report by food charity Nourish Scotland which encourages councils to bring back public diners. The charity sees public diners as a way of both helping to combat food insecurity across the country and providing places for communities to come together. Heap says that the concept of a public diner already exists in Edinburgh, through canteens in schools and businesses. For him, the idea is worth being made universal, so that everybody in society can benefit from it. Nourish Scotland points to the success of similar schemes in Poland and Singapore, where the state to this day helps to fund low-cost restaurants available to the public. In Poland, 'milk bars' – canteens that provide low-price, mostly vegetarian meals, have existed for over a century. Today, the state subsidises 70% of the price of most meals they offer, providing a low-cost dining option for anyone who wants it. And in Singapore, the state runs over 100 'hawker centres', dining halls where street vendors can sell food. Rents are controlled for vendors, and the state controls prices of some staple foods and provides most of the utilities and amenities needed for them to function. In both countries, the cheap public food options also provide a place for community to flourish, with families and groups of friends often visiting the same milk bars or hawker centres on a weekly or daily basis. Heap believes this would be an important element of any public diner scheme that Edinburgh might eventually roll out. He said: 'Why should people not have the chance to go out once a week for a meal? Lots of people have the ability to do that. Some people don't. 'I think there's something in getting people out to a place where they can socialise, where they don't have to do the washing up after. 'I think it's not just access to food, because you can do that through other means, like food banks. There's something a bit extra that this adds. 'It's an idea whose time has come.' By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
