UK restaurants plan more ‘heatwave menus’ of salads and cold meat

Many eateries turned their ovens off last week to save their chefs from the heat

Restaurants and gastro pubs are planning to offer more heatwave menus" in the future amid concerns that soaring temperatures will make it impractical and potentially unsafe for chefs to cook hot food in summer.

Last week, commercial ovens and grills across the UK were switched off and menus offering hot pies, burgers and steaks were ditched in favour of summer salads, open sandwiches and cold soup. We swapped hot cooked fish for chilled octopus mussels and olives, and cold poached skate salad," said Nick Gibson, owner of the Drapers Arms in Islington, north London, which tore up its usual bill of fare to offer an entirely cold menu during the heatwave.