Barman in tier 2 shares pictures of binned food as he begs drinkers to only buy pints if hungry
Pub worker tells of scraping entire meals into the bin after customers ‘fancied one pint before catching the train home’
Support truly
independent journalism
Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.
Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.
Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.
![Louise Thomas](https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/support-us/louise-thomas.png)
Louise Thomas
Editor
A barman in a tier 2 area has urged people to only buy pints if they are hungry, after having to bin uneaten food.
Will Dalrymple claimed he had witnessed entire meals being scraped into the bin untouched just so drinkers could enjoy a round of pints.
Under the government’s latest three-tiered system of coronavirus rules, pubs and bars in tier 2 areas must close to the public unless operating as restaurants and can only serve alcohol with “substantial” meals.
Mr Dalrymple, who admitted the new rules were “confusing”, posted images on Twitter showing uneaten sandwiches, salad and chips which he claimed had been binned after people only bought them so they could have a drink.
In a series of tweets, he said: “If you're desperate to go to/support a pub, go when you're hungry.
“Aside from the APALLING food waste I've witnessed over the last two days (scraping whole meals, untouched, into the bin because the people who bought them fancied one pint before catching the train home).
“You really should be actually eating in order to be able to enjoy alcoholic drinks. While I can sort of see the rationale behind the rules, they're horribly vague and put bar staff in a difficult position. Each pub will interpret the rules differently. Accept it.”
He added in another tweet: “DON'T GO TO THE PUB UNLESS YOU ARE HUNGRY. All this food went in the bin because three people wanted two Morettis each. With everything in the news about people relying on food banks and free school meals, this is utterly obscene.”
The pub worker, who does not reveal where he works, also pleaded with drinkers to not put pressure on staff to bend the rules or lose their temper as restrictions are enforced.
The government’s latest set of rules prompted confusion across the country as a debate erupted over whether a scotch egg counted as a substantial meal after environment secretary George Eustice suggested it did.
Pub owners left to interpret what constitutes a substantial meal have come up with inventive menu options.
The Castle Inn, in Tring, Hertfordshire, has launched a “Boris Menu” featuring starters of garlic bread and soup for 99p, main courses of baked beans on toast, hot dog and chips, or tomato and mozzarella pizza bread for £1.99, and 99p desserts.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments