The Government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme starts today and thousands of restaurants, cafes and pubs in the South West are taking part.

Diners visiting participating establishments on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday through August will receive a 50% discount on food and non-alcoholic drinks.

In the South West, more than 5,000 smaller and independent outlets have signed up to the scheme with hundreds more of the bigger chains such as Pizza Express and Costa also involved.

To check which outlets are taking part use the the online restaurant finder using a postcode:  

The Eat Out to Help Out scheme is part of the government’s Plan for Jobs to help the country’s economic recovery from coronavirus.

A maximum discount of £10 per person applies.

There have already been over 3.3 million hits on the Eat Out to Help Out restaurant finder since it launched last week, which shows what businesses are participating in local areas, and many restaurants have since seen a boost in bookings.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said:

“Our Eat Out to Help Out scheme’s number one aim is to help protect the jobs of 1.8 million chefs, waiters and restaurateurs by boosting demand and getting customers through the door.

“More than 72,000 establishments will be serving discounted meals across the country, with the government paying half the bill. The industry is a vital ingredient to our economy and it’s been hit hard by coronavirus, so enjoy summer safely by showing your favourite places your support – we’ll pay half.”

Around 80% of hospitality firms stopped trading in April, with 1.4 million workers furloughed, the highest of any sector.

People may be worried about returning to eat out. To address these concerns, businesses have prepared to become Covid-secure through, for example, protective screens, contactless payments, social distancing, one way walking systems, online bookings and reduced capacity.