Greene King pubs plan for beer gardens to open with punters ordering from phones when lockdown measures lift
GREENE King is planning to open beer gardens with punters ordering drinks via phones when the lockdown lifts.
Gardens will most likely be the first areas that will reopen in pubs following easing of coronavirus lockdown measures, according to chief executive Nick Mackenzie.
To help maintain social distancing, this could mean punters will have to order drinks via the free Greene King app on their phone.
Drinks will also be delivered in a way that keeps staff and customers safe.
Mr Mackenzie shared his vision for how pubs could operate in an interview with .
His idea would see customers still able to order drinks, but they won’t be allowed inside pubs.
Today, health secretary Matt Hancock hinted that cafes with outside spaces may be allowed to reopen.
Mr Hancock told Sky News: "There is strong evidence that outdoors the spread is much, much lower, so there may be workarounds that some businesses, for instance cafes, especially over the summer, may be able to put into place."
His comments have fuelled questions over whether pub gardens with customers ordering via phones will be allowed to trade under plans for relaxed lockdown measures.
Greene King, which owns Hungry Horse, temporarily shut all 2,700 of its pubs on March 20 and they won't be allowed to reopen until government advice changes.
Before lockdown, Greene King had also started trialling a home delivery service in a small number of pubs via Deliveroo, although this service has been temporarily paused.
The pub chain could look to continue this trial to include more pubs but there are no definitive plans.
The Greene King app is separate to its trial with Deliveroo.
The app was launched in December 2019 in its 267 Hungry Horse pubs and it allows customers to order food and drinks to their table in the pub.
Its delivery trial with Deliveroo is currently paused due to pubs being shut.
A spokesperson from the pub chain told The Sun it has yet to schedule a timeframe for when pubs will start serving again, or released any concrete plans for how this would work in reality.
The government has also yet to confirm when it'll start easing lockdown restrictions - although Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said measures could be eased as soon as Monday.
The interview with Mr Mackenzie comes after rival Wetherspoon said it wants its pubs and hotels reopened "in or around June".
Spoons said it is working on plans to implement social distancing measures in its pubs but again, there has been no further update on when boozers could reopen their doors.
Pub-goers have also been told they could be limited to three pints per visit once lockdown is lifted, under suggestions by a government adviser.
Meanwhile, Greene King today confirmed staff can apply for cash grants worth up to £400 through a newly set-up fund.
The pub chain has partnered with the Licensed Trade Charity for the new initiative, which has received an initial donation of £300,000 from Greene King.
Subject to meeting certain criteria, all 38,000 Greene King team members will be eligible to access the fund.
We've asked Greene King how staff apply and we'll update this article when we know more.
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Around 36,000 Greene King employees have been furloughed.
Its online store, where customers can buy beers direct the chain's Belhaven Brewery, remains open for orders.