...The business lunch is “definitely alive”. It’s a great way for developing ideas and bringing new business in but it’s certainly not about getting drunk. The boozy lunches of a few years ago did not help businesses, they were more for those who merely wanted to indulge themselves.
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business lunch which lasts for two hours is seen as exceptional. Most last for little more than an hour while some just might stretch to between 75 and 90 minutes. One glass of wine perhaps, but often it will be a non-alcoholic drink for the duration of a one-course meal. As a journalist working in London some 25 years ago it wasn’t unusual to meet a ‘contact’ for an expenses paid lunch at somewhere like the Savoy Grill or Rules in Covent Garden, returning to the office three hours later. It was par for the course, your guest expected to be thoroughly wined and dined and a good story was often the result. The journalist of the 21st century, however, often has little time for the luxury of a lunch break at all, it will be a sandwich at the desk. It is now a decade or more since the ever cordial, invariably corpulent figure of Lunchtime O’Booze ruled supreme. He was supported by his red braceswearing, pin-stripe suited companions and sometimes their lively pulchritudinous female followers. After all, these guys had money from over the top bonuses and it was spend, spend and more spend. They would be responsible for pushing the befuddled and well fed O’Booze into a taxi. If he was travelling by train he would almost certainly fall asleep, miss his station and awake to find himself a hundred or so miles away from his destination. Today’s business lunch is a far cry from the alcohol swilling, so-called working lunch of those far off days. It now has a serious purpose. “Each week I have a lunch with someone with nothing to sell, just to get to know them better as the bridge to a longer term relationship,” says entrepreneur, Courtenay Heading. “Crucially, it can sift/ validate my judgement before I recommend the guest to another trusted contact.” He adds: “Often, I have sparkling water or orange juice, I never have more than
one alcoholic drink, a small lager being my favourite. A lunch lasting 75 minutes is ideal – an hour feels rushed, but at 90 minutes I’m feeling a bit guilt-laden on a working day. At a weekend, two hours minimum with friends/colleagues is much better, with dinner even longer.” One of the Island’s most experienced restaurateurs is Mario Ciappelli, managing director of Portofino. He has been in the catering industry for 37 years, running his own business for 25 years. As for recessions, he has seen at least three and says:
“In this last recession everything changed, somehow people got more worried and it has been the most difficult recession. But as for business lunches, they are definitely back but over soft drinks and mineral water, perhaps one glass of wine. It’s likely to be an older diner who will opt for a bottle of wine to share with his guest.” He adds: “I remember the time when the likes of bank managers came in just after 1.00pm and would order a glass or bottle of champagne or wine and perhaps brandies, there would be a lot laughter and a lot more business was done that way. There is now a different approach and certainly no desire to return to what some might
remember as ‘the good old days’. Overall, things have got a lot better in the last year. As for time spent over lunch? Maybe 90 minutes, or two hours at the very most.” Phil Taylor, a director of Rock Food Concepts which owns both 14 North and Bath & Bottle in Douglas, agrees that the business lunch is “definitely alive”. He adds: “It’s a great way for developing ideas and bringing new business in, but it’s certainly not about getting drunk. The boozy lunches of a few years ago did not help businesses, they were more for those who merely wanted to indulge themselves. It was a time when people were making so much money they didn’t have to worry about getting back to the office by a certain time. Businesses of today are more strict and looking at ways to save money and cut costs. People either come into 14 North with clients they are trying to impress and looking to do business with or are with colleagues in small groups. They will opt for one course and something like a Diet Coke or, if one person has a glass of wine then others at the table may do the same. People like to conform and wine does break down barriers and free people up to talk about what they really want to address during a business lunch.” Clive Parrish, recently elected chairman of the Institute of Directors Isle of Man, agrees that boozy lunches are a thing of the past, but in the right circumstances believes a working lunch, when appropriate, can indirectly benefit a business. Clive said: “It can put people at ease, gets the executive team away from the formality of the office and gives directors an opportunity to look at the bigger picture without being surrounded by the demands of their office environment.”
Lunchtime O’Booze R.I.P. Les Able is head of PR and Media Relations at Home Strategic.
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