 This may come as a bit of a surprise, but a recent survey, in the Wall Street Journal, revealed that people living in the United Kingdom are leading the world when it comes to enjoying themselves, with a whopping 32 percent of British bons viveurs expending more energy on their private lives than their working lives! This percentage was the highest across the 21 countries surveyed, with the Swiss trailing behind, at a miserable 16 percent, the Greeks at 14 percent and the Portuguese at 12 percent. The only country that gave us a run for our money was the USA, where a respectable 28 percent claimed to place greater emphasis on private life than on work life.
Significantly, the survey also concluded that the favourite British form of entertainment is dining out at restaurants and visiting pubs and clubs. In fact, as many as 71 percent of Brits eat out with friends, at a restaurant, pub or snack bar, several times a month. And, of the 21 countries that took part in this survey, the British preference for dining out, on a regular basis, was second only to the United States where figures are as high as 87 percent.
So, here we have it – people in the UK, more than any other European country, enjoy visiting restaurants, pubs, cafés and fast food outlets, on a regular basis.
According to another Mintel survey, Britons eat out, on average, once a week, with people under the age of 24 eating out at least twice a week. What’s more, a recent article in Restaurant magazine, predicted that by the year 2020, around half of all our meals will be eaten outside the home.
Now who, with even the remotest notion of the inspirational nosh available on today’s restaurant scene, can argue with these statistics! Convenience, great value-for-money, a chance to unwind and socialise, all the ingredients are there to encourage us to whip off our chef’s aprons and head for our local eaterie! We’re now quite happy to let someone else do the cooking!
This casual approach to spur-of-the-moment dining has had a dramatic effect on the way in which restaurants entice us through their doors. The fact of the matter is that dining establishments have had to abandon formality in favour of a more relaxed approach, simply to stay ahead of the competition.
The modern diner has few social anxieties when it comes to eating out; consequently, restaurant ambience is far more relaxed, the whole experience more of a leisurely affair - an opportunity to unwind and redress the balance of our hectic lifestyles. Menus too, are simpler; we enjoy picking and choosing dishes, in no set order, depending on how hungry we are and whatever happens to take our fancy. Modern consumers prefer to create their own combinations of starters, main courses and desserts; and restaurateurs are happy to oblige.
An interesting spin off, from this customer-centred approach to eating out, is the growing trend for providing diners with some form of entertainment, as well as food on their plates. Live music, dramatic décor that forms a talking point, or stunning location and panoramas are great crowd-pullers. And, what about those feats of culinary skill where food is prepared with a flourish, before your very eyes: Mongolian Grills, Armenian delicacies cooked in a Yerevan oven, on full display, robotic sushi, Cantonese cooking; all feast the eyes as well the stomach.
The point I wish to make, however, is that we are the first generation to eat out regularly, not just on special occasions.
Dining out is de rigueur; it is part of the very fabric of modern society, in Britain. Today, we eat what we like, when we like and in whatever combination; we do it our way.
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