Among the growing consumer demands for hotels and restaurants, sustainability is fast rising up the list around the world. The sustainability issue has moved on from low-power lightbulbs and smart heating to encompass water reuse, building and interior design using sustainable materials, and hiring staff who care about the customer experience, and paying them a living wage.
In Newcastle, the new Dakota Hotel highlights this approach as, “Sustainability was a key consideration throughout the development of the scheme, the design promotes sustainability through reusing the majority of the existing building fabric whilst modest extensions / changes ensure the building meets the high environmental standards required for its future use.”
While hotels can apply these goals broadly, for restaurants, more of the focus is on sustainable farming and cleaner supply chains for their produce. That typically means the use of local and seasonal produce to reduce the restaurant’s carbon footprint and improve the quality of food. They can also ensure tips are fairly distributed, avoiding reputational issues that The Ivy now faces.
Eating Out Sustainably in Newcastle
With over 2,000 restaurants in Newcastle, sustainability can act as a powerful marketing benefit, attracting more eco-conscious consumers. Organic produce can add a premium to prices, and treating staff more fairly adds to the positive vibe and sense of fairness. Reducing food waste is another strong sustainability move, either through giving unused food to charities, and uneaten meals or cooked produce to homeless shelters.
For example, Blackfriars Restaurant is highly-positive in promoting its ethos, with a dedicated community and sustainability page. It is strong on sourcing, “We change our menus at least five times per year to reflect food that is in season and continue to source as much local produce as possible – primarily within Tyne & Wear, Durham, Northumberland, North Yorkshire and Cumbria as well as Southern Scotland.”
Blackfriars shows that there can still be plenty of variety and interest in a menu with North Shields fish market catch of the day, summer greens and home-made sorbet currently on the menu. A social approach supported by both Blackfriars and Dobson & Parnell among others, helps the StreetSmart homelessness initiative around Newcastle
Aveika takes up the organic baton, a Japanese restaurant and grill that follows the Izakaya concept of drinks and small meals. The Aveika grill works with a wide range of organic vegetables, locally sourced poultry and meats, and seafood. All prepared and served with in-house sauces and marinades.
Beyond the Sustainable Menu
Newcastle and Tyne-area restaurants launching or redesigning their look can consider low-impact, reused materials for building and interior design. Pop-up restaurants can used shipping containers or other pre-fabricated units, rather than having to design and build their own.
They can also cut back on aggressive frontage lighting, and go for a smarter interior approach, keeping unused areas of the restaurant unlit, and making the best use of natural light, even in Newcastle!
If they offer take-out menus, restaurants and hotels can provide recycled packaging and encourage reuse where possible. And smaller or unlicensed restaurants can also offer corkage to encourage guests to bring their own wine, saving on refrigeration and storage costs.
As demand changes, the highly volatile restaurant market will see customers looking for strong evidence of sustainability in action. From small changes, like getting rid of disposable tableware and napkins to that big redesign that makes your next look less like a cyberpunk video game, proprietors and investors can consider setting sustainability goals as a way to attract customers and better serve the community and farming industry in a better way.