I pay today, I eat tomorrow: the formulas with which we can support restaurants and trattorias in this moment of great difficulty, including vouchers, gift vouchers, dining bonds and the like
It hurts to see our lowered gate valve from afar restaurant of the heart. The unlit signs hurt, as well as the menus of the day that disappeared suddenly, replaced by signs that warn of the temporary obligation to close due to a medical emergency. Yet in our hearts we know: this terrible moment will end, and those tables that today take dust behind the darkened windows will return to host our dinners, our toasts, our "will you let me taste it, please?". Soon, very soon, or so we all hope. According to a recent survey carried out by Nomisma for the Lockdown Observatory, on the other hand, among the very first things that Italians intend to do as soon as the Covid-19 alarm returns, there is precisely the return to eat outside the home. A fact that undoubtedly encourages the restaurateurs of our country, who in recent months have been able to rely substantially only on two forms of income: on the one hand, for some, the conversion of their business into a key food delivery, which made it possible to keep ovens and stoves on to prepare dishes for home delivery; on the other, the presale of vouchers for future dinners, already renamed – winking at the increasingly discussed Eurobonds – such as Ristobond, Restaurant Bond & Co.
I buy today, I have dinner tomorrow
The idea of the voucher for a future dinner is not something particularly upsetting. And anyone who has chosen this option as a gift for birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and the like knows it well. At the time of the global lockdown, however, there were those who saw in this possibility an excellent idea to somehow finance their favorite restaurants in their darkest hour: so, for example, Helen Patrikis, Steven Hall and Alan Aurmont they developed the campaign Dining Bond, left in the United States and also landed here in Italy; through the initiative portal it is possible to discover all the places that have decided to join, and that make available to their customers special vouchers at discounted prices.
A project somewhat similar to that also proposed by TripAdvisor, which in addition to helping the locals convert as easily as possible to food delivery, is also allowing restaurateurs to add to the profile of their restaurant the"gift certificates" option, through which customers can purchase a lunch or dinner in advance. Or to that of Dinnerbond.it, a platform for the purchase of vouchers inaugurated in recent days by Massimo Giannuzzi, Micaela Marcialis, Maurizio Rosazza Prin and Paolo Colapietro who, with the cry of "Love now, enjoy later", involved a team of famous chefs which also includes Cristina Bowerman, Lorenzo Cogo, Filippo La Mantia, Luigi Taglienti and Cristiano Tomei.
Support haute cuisine
To trust in customers' trust and, consequently, in the success of vouchers purchased in advance, are above all the signs dedicated to haute cuisine, which have been less able to continue working in these months by playing the home delivery card. So many star chefs have inaugurated real funding campaigns via gift vouchers: Andrea Berton, for example, has launched the Restaurant Bonds for its restaurant in Milan, in the Porta Nuova area, which allow you to buy a special with 150 euros tasting menu for two people, accompanied by a glass of aperitif. "I thought that with the sale of these vouchers we could reduce the economic impact caused by the necessary prevention measures adopted", explains the chef. "Buying a voucher is not just a matter of investment, but a way to send a message of confidence that this crisis will end and the restaurant sector will recover."
A thought shared also by San Domenico di Imola, two Michelin stars, which thanks to this formula has already sold over 50 dinners for two people. "We did it to stay in touch with our customers and let them know that we are there, and that we are expecting them as soon as possible", underlines the chef Massimiliano Mascia. "Mand also to send a positive and hopeful signal, as if to say that everything will pass sooner or later, and we will meet again to toast together . Among the chefs who have decided to bet on culinary bonds, we also find Massimo Bottura, which however soon had to sanction the stop to bookings: all the vouchers for future dinners at his Osteria Francescana Modena sold out in less than 24 hours.
Restaurants, of course, but also hotels
Then there are all those restaurants somehow embedded within hotels, resorts and so on that they face not only the difficulties due to the temporary closure of the premises, but also those related to a tourist season which from now on promises to be problematic, to say the least. Also in this case, the purchase of vouchers and gift vouchers on trust can constitute an injection of confidence and liquidity for hoteliers and restaurateurs. The excellent proposals, on the other hand, are certainly not lacking, especially when exploring the field of experience packages, ranging from total relaxation to good, delicious food.
La Madernassa di Guarene in the province of Cuneo, for example, offers the romantic formula "Two hearts and a resort": an 8-course menu, with wine pairing, prepared by the chef Michelangelo Mammoliti, fresh from its second Michelin star, combined with a stay for one night in a suite with breakfast included. In this case the gift voucher (Weekend Bond? Hotel & Restaurant Bond? In short, call it as you prefer) could probably support at the same time tourism is Restaurants: two sectors that have always been the undisputed flagships of our country, but which this damned virus risks compromising in a truly brutal way.
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