Planning a Cornish staycation this summer? This purpose-designed restaurant is providing foodies with a peace of mind dining experience
The stylish St Moritz Hotel & Spa has launched a new purpose-designed and built hotel restaurant just in time for a Cornish road trip – and it’s ideal for a spot of socially distanced dining.
The brainchild of founders Hugh and Steve Ridgway, and the St Moritz Director of Restaurants Jonathan Domé, the innovative summer restaurant aims to not only surpass the expected Government requirements on safe and socially distanced dining, but optimise them at every turn.
Nicknamed ‘The Anti-Social Club’, the exclusive dining concept will consist of 16 private dining rooms, with a maximum of 96 covers. Blending the elements of private members clubs, private dining rooms, cool beach clubs and summer pop-up restaurants, the Anti-Social Club concept features multiple dining times and precise operating procedures to ensure a chic but COVID-combatting experience.
Guests can be assured that the 2 metre rule and new environmental health requirements will be met at all times, thus ushering in a new ‘bubble’ dining ethos when it comes to meals out.
The summer pop-up restaurant has been specifically designed to ensure that the individual dining rooms can all be accessed from outside, with the service function being provided from a central atrium. All food and drink will be delivered to the private dining rooms via a set of hatches.
With this clever design and complementary operational procedures, the St Moritz service team avoid the need to enter the dining rooms whilst the individual, staggered dining times ensure that guests won’t clash.
Each and every room can also be completely cleared and thoroughly cleaned, then re-set-up, to meet all requirements between each sitting.
With interiors courtesy of multi-award-winning Cornish agency Absolute, who provided the original design for the stylish hotel, The Anti-Social Club will take its inspiration from the clean, white art deco architecture of the hotel – mixing a subtle Miami colour-pop palette with classic coastal stripes, textures and flourishes.
St Moritz Director of Restaurants Jonathan Domé will drive menus that pay tribute to the incredible Cornish food suppliers and producers, all enjoyed in a relaxed, sharing style of service.
St Moritz Hotel & Spa employs at least 65 staff year round, and the Anti-Social Club will require a team of at least 20 to run across the high season – providing vital local jobs for the community.
Co-owner Hugh Ridgway commented: “COVID-19 has stopped the industry in its tracks. Like all hotels, bars and restaurants across the globe, the virus has hit our business like an unbelievable sledgehammer.
However, as ever, we have dusted ourselves off, and risen to this unpredictable challenge in our own creative, St Moritz way.”
Diary dates: St Moritz Hotel & Spa intends to re-open all the hotel rooms, self-catering apartments and villas, as well as launch the initial Anti-Social Club summer ‘pop-up’ restaurant, on 4th July.
Find out more and book your spot via stmoritzhotel.co.uk.
Illustration courtesy of Chris Dove, Gingerhead Design.
