London Restaurant Festival returns for a sixth year
In 2013 over 300 restaurants participated in the London Restaurant Festival, which operates in partnership with American Express. Last year the event generated 25,000 restaurant bookings in a two week period through the Booktable reservation system.
The festival is designed to alert consumers to the diversity of cuisines and restaurants that can be found in the UK’s capital, and includes a range of unique events and special menus from the restaurants that are participating.
Increased revenue and new customers
In 2014 restaurants can sign up to participate in the festival for free. Venues that take part will see new customers visit their establishments from the ‘restaurant-hopping’ tours that are put on, as well as the set-price Festival Menus, the organisers claim.
In previous years chefs such as Jason Atherton, Marianne Lumb, Angela Hartnett, Theo Randall and Atul Kochhar, Gordon Ramsay, Richard Corrigan, Michel Roux Jnr and more have participated in the festival.
Founder of the festival Simon Davis said: “London Restaurant Festival consistently aims to drive business into restaurants and increase their customer base. We encourage all those taking part to experience as many different and new restaurants as possible throughout the festival. It is all about celebrating London’s thriving and electric restaurant scene.”
Along with the 25,000 covers booked through the Bookatable reservation system last year, restaurants saw the benefit of promotion to the American Express Cardmember base, giving the potential to increase revenue and attract new consumers.
Bookatable’s chief executive Joe Steele said: “London Restaurant Festival is the perfect stage for showcasing the diverse range of cuisine on offer in this fabulous city of ours. At its core, the festival is of course a celebration of food, but there are huge opportunities for restaurants wanting to attract new business.
“Participating restaurants will be able to attract an array of diners during the festival who on any other day may not have stepped through their doors. This provides merchants with an opportunity to gain incremental covers, drive new long term customers into their businesses, and boost revenue.”
