KITCHEN ANGELS

From boxing up buckwheat noodles to posting out pies, we’ve been humbled by the restaurant industry’s reaction to the current crisis. Up and down the country, chefs have been digging deep to help those in need, despite the threats to their own industry during this difficult time. In Marlow, Tom Kerridge has set to work producing 1,000 ready meals a day for NHS staff at Stoke Mandeville and Wexham Park hospitals. In Bristol, chef Josh Eggleton of the Pony and Trap has launched Cheers Drive with other city chefs, aiming to feed up to 600 homeless people a day with restaurant-quality meals. Over in Wales, James Sommerin and his family have fed over 1,000

NHS workers with the likes of venison ragù and sticky toffee pudding. Abergavenny’s The Walnut Tree is providing 140 meals a night for on-shift NHS workers at the University Hospital of Wales and Merthyr Tydfil’s Prince Charles Hospital. Up north, Leeds-based Matt Healy has been providing Sunday roasts for key workers at The Foundry. There are similar stories in London, too. A row of ambulances outside The Berkeley would have been cause for concern a few months ago – now, it’s a common sight. The hotel’s drive-through service for London’s emergency services offers free meal boxes and hot drinks to the city’s tired heroes. Another capital grande dame, Claridge’s, is preparing up to 500 meals a day for local hospitals, and providing key workers free beds for the night. Takeaway pots have been zooming out of Quo Vadis, while French bistro Otto’s, is feeding St Thomas’ Hospital’s ICU staff. And Qoot, the group behind Dominique Ansel’s UK spots, is launching free lunchboxes for children normally entitled to free school meals. Finally, Angela Hartnett has teamed up with Lulu Dillon to create Cook-19, providing home-cooked meals to NHS workers self-isolating, and is looking for donations. cook-19.co.uk