London postcard: The future of food and dining in London

Image courtesy of Nova Victoria 2013.

I was invited last week to the launch of Nova Victoria.  With the title of What's the next best thing (since sliced bread), the aim of the evening was to hear more about the future of food and dining in London. It was an interesting evening for this Antipodean foodie as it confirmed many of the trends that I have noticed over the last 2-3 years in London. 
The assembled food panel included (L-R) Martin Morales (founder of Ceviche); Kate Spicer (journalist); Nicholas Lander (Financial Times restaurant correspondent), Henry Dimbleby (co-founder of Leon) and Bobby Chinn (founder of House of Ho). Here is a summary of the ideas that were digested and discussed somewhat like a good meal:

• London is unparalleled as a food city with its huge diversity and style of eating from supper-clubs, home restaurants, pop-ups to permanent restaurants. 
  
• There is an extraordinary energy to London as more food entrepreneurs launch small start-ups offering great food, new and different food experiences. 
  
• East London shines as the epicentre of London’s latest food culture driven by young food entrepreneurs that are drawn to its low rents. There is a creativity and freedom to what people are doing whether that be street food or temporary residency in a local pub. 
  
• London’s food culture is being influenced by a generation of rave and party goers who are looking for food experiences. In other words, it is not just about what you’re eating but where you are eating it.
  
• Street food continues to influence restaurant culture and the mainstream with companies doing pop-up style events. The grass-roots nature of pop-ups and supper clubs has made food culture very cool. The danger of mainstreaming is that some of this creativity may become stale. 
  
• While the food critics continues to wheel the power of the pen - there are subcultures of diners that turn to local bloggers.  Many focus on small areas or even a single postcode of London and are now the equivalent of word of mouth;
  
• Zoning laws for restaurants need to change - the more freedom that Londoners are given, the more creative our local food scene will be. The cost of setting up a restaurant is London is around £1m. 
  
• And finally, in terms of food trends, the focus on the experiential will remain with the attention on the customer rather than the chef. Digital and social media will continue to connect people and promote events such as street food, pop-ups and even food wagons. 

For us at LFE, it was an interesting evening sponsored by Nova Victoria to promote its redevelopment near Victoria station in the heart of London. Thanks for the invite.

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