Honest Burgers to gradually re-open estate for delivery

By Joe Lutrario

- Last updated on GMT

Honest Burgers to gradually re-open its restaurants for delivery

Related tags Casual dining UnitedWeStand Burgers Coronavirus

National restaurant group Honest Burgers is planning to re-open some of its sites for delivery-only as early next month.

The 38-strong group switched to a delivery-only model in the early days of the Coronavirus pandemic but - in common with many other restaurant groups - fully closed its restaurants towards the end of March.

A wide range of safety measures will be introduced to protect both customers and staff including pre-shift temperature checks, social distancing where possible and the wearing of PPE.

Staff will not be obliged to work, with the group in the process of contacting its work force to see whether they want to return to work.

“As soon as we closed we started thinking about when and how we could open again,” says co-founder Tom Barton.

“There’s a massive concern about mental health right now. And as commercial and capitalist as it sounds the economy too."

"We want to keep hold of our guys and as employers we have a responsibility to start greasing the wheels of the economy too. For all we know we could still be in this situation in 12 months time.”

Which restaurants will re-open has yet to be confirmed but they are likely to be the sites that have the strongest presence on Deliveroo.

“We will re-open the sites that will generate the most profit. But profit for us right now is about getting revenue into the business to ensure we don’t have to do anything drastic when the Government support falls away,” says co-founder Philip Eeles.

“We’re trying to protect the business and the people that make up our business. We need to get back open as quickly and as safely as we can.”

Other groups that had previously closed all of their sites and are now starting to re-open for off premises sales include MEATliquor,Five Guys​ and Paul.

A full podcast interview with Tom Barton and Phillip Eeles will be available next week.

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