Chefs and Restaurateurs
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
“Food waste in restaurants is a massive problem and doggy bags are one excellent way of cutting waste. There’s no need to be shy – any of the chefs in our places would be more than happy to give a doggy bag. I’ll be right behind the SRA’s Too Good to Waste campaign. I’ve eaten in some pretty fancy places – I’ve asked for doggy-bags in Michelin-starred restaurants. Chefs are quite happy with the idea – this isn’t something that is frowned-on. Frankly most of us take it as a compliment!”
Thomasina Miers, Wahaca
“I always ask for a doggy bag. I was brought up to enjoy leftovers and for me cooking leftovers is proper cooking. It saves money and it’s such fun turning one thing into another. As a chef I like people asking to take food home because it shows respect for where the food has come from. Gone is the day when we can take our food for granted. Wasting food is criminal.”
Antony Worrall Thompson
“I wholeheartedly support the ‘Too Good to Waste’ Campaign. We waste a criminal amount of food in this country and my restaurants have always been happy to bag up diners’ leftover food on request. And I as a chef and restaurateur, I don’t want to see my good food go to waste either, so I fully endorse this worthwhile campaign. So diners – don’t be shy; you’re helping the planet as well as your wallet.”
Cyrus Todiwala, Café Spice Namasté
“Food waste is a perennial problem and fortunately, it has started to receive the recognition required for real action to be taken. Sell-by dates on retail products will soon be a thing of the past. That my industry is also taking the matter into its own hands is encouraging. Pervin and I and everyone at Café Spice Namasté are extremely proud of our Three Star Sustainability Champion status from the Sustainable Restaurant Association, and we’re throwing our weight completely behind the SRA’s Too Good to Waste campaign, pledging to make good use of the biodegradable doggy boxes that will be circulated to restaurants like ours. Although happily, not too many of our customers tend to leave food on their plates, knowing that they can take home the food they can’t finish in environmentally-friendly containers is great. It also helps get around what seems to be British restaurant-goers’ collective embarrassment about asking for doggy bags. In Asia we do it all the time. I’m sure this campaign will start a positive cultural shift that helps to minimise food waste!”
Bruno Loubet, Bistrot Bruno loubet
“As a chef I can’t stand good food going to waste. Our portions at Bistrot Bruno Loubet are quite generous so I would always welcome a customer’s request to take home anything they can’t finish.”
Silla Bjerrum, Feng Sushi
“We have taken good care to ensure we serve sustainable sushi and we are delighted with the SRA Too Good to Waste Campaign as this encourages customers to take their leftovers home. It becomes a full circle, from sourcing to end consumption.”
Henry Dimbleby, Leon
“Too Good To Waste is a great campaign that gives consumers a chance to do something about the huge problem of restaurant food waste. Don’t be shy about asking to take leftover food home with you – you’ve paid for it, it’s yours.”
Sam Harrison, Sam’s Brasserie
“When customers do not finish their meals, they often explain that it was delicious but they are too full. We therefore ask our staff to always offer to wrap it up. When people see the Too Good To Waste sticker on the container it always gets a smile or a laugh and I think that helps them to realise that it isn’t such a bad thing for them to take their food home, especially in our financial climate…”
Anna Hansen, The Modern Pantry
“The Sustainable Restaurant Association is a fantastic organisation and this particular project brilliant. No matter how well you plan your portion sizes there will inevitably be leftovers and this is the perfect way to make use of them.”
Sriram Aylur, The Quilon
“The amount of food wasted in London restaurants is a scandal. As restaurateurs it’s in all our interests to do something about it. Too Good to Waste is a great idea because it will not only be good for the environment but also makes real business sense.”
Lisa Drabble, co-owner Squid and Pear
“I think the box is brilliant – I regularly ask to take my food home”