Online travel and leisure retailer Last Minute has announced that starting on 2nd March 2009, its very popular Restaurant Week will begin. This year the event will take place not only in London but Manchester restaurants and restaurants in Birmingham will also take part. The Restaurant Week is based on the New York Restaurant Week, which has been successful for a number of years now.
Last year in London over 100 restaurants took part including a variety of Michelin star establishments including Richard Corrigan’s Lindsay House, Almeida, Tamarind and Quilon. The expansion to include Manchester and Birmingham is a great idea as both of these cities are well known for their fine eating facilities.
The great thing about the event as it benefits both business and consumers. The restaurant week gives visitors to Last Minute.com the chance to experience fine dining at a fraction of the cost, which will no doubt help loosen the purse strings. The cities themselves will benefit from the tourism expenditure and Birmingham and Manchester restaurants will benefit from bums on seats as well as added exposure from the press.
Last Minute.com has once again partnered with Capital 95.8’s Help a London Child for the third year in a row and a percentage from each booking will be donated to the charity. This year they are expecting the participation of over 40 restaurants in Manchester and Birmingham and over 150 in London. Hopefully next year the event will expand to include Liverpool restaurants and possibly some Scottish and North Wales restaurants.