Smoke ban boost for pub food sales

More pubs are expecting food sales to increase this year compared to last year, according to PubChef's Food Report published this week.

While slightly more than half of the 500 pubs taking part in the survey said that sales had increased for the year 2004 to 2005, 63% were expecting sales growth for 2005 to 2006.

But the trade said that pub food was facing major challenges over the next 12 months, citing Government red tape and the smoking ban as the top two issues.

But the smoking ban could also be one of the biggest opportunities. "The smoking ban will really help us to promote food," said Geronimo Inns operations director Ed Turner. "I think several opportunities exist to grow our food turn-over - this is a chance to make the pub, that great British institution, appeal to a wider range of people including families."

Seven out of 10 pubs in Scotland surveyed for the Food Report said that they had used the smoking ban as an opportunity to sell more food. And a poll of 20 Scottish pubs carried out by PubChef magazine found that food sales had increased in 70% of pubs since the ban was introduced on 26 March. The ban had no impact on sales in the remaining 30%.

Further details to emerge from the Food Report included the fact that 61% of head chefs in pubs earned less that £20,000 a year and that 60% of pubs said that young chefs out of college lacked the skills required to work in a pub kitchen. The top three best selling dishes in Britain's pubs are steak, pies and fish and chips.

l PubChef is published with today's MA