¶ … London restaurant might change over the next ten years?
Background of recent changes
To appreciate the amount of change that can occur within the London restaurant industry over the next ten years and into the future, one must take a brief breath and pause to consider how far the industry has come in the past ten years. Ten years ago today, would anyone have thought that London restaurants would be exporting chefs to America to star in their own series on the American Food Network? Jamie Oliver's success alone as a brand name is testimony to how much the food industry has changed, shifted, and grown. Moreover, the Naked Chef's success as a television empire and reality TV show guru points to the increasing sexiness of food, specifically British food in the eyes of the world as well as the average British patron of the hospitality industry within London itself. British chefs and food experts are becoming known for their food exports, from everything to Nigella Lawson...
As British food industry trademarks are exported abroad, theoretically more people should come to London to sample, rather than joke about the food.
How much have things really changed?
Yet one could argue that British food critics are still better known for their wit rather than incisive commentary about the cuisine they partake. British food in London has become more expansive in its definition, spanning the international landscape of the old empire from curry to peanut noodles to fusion cuisine. Yet the actual standbys defined as British remain fairly stalwart in their nature -- the much-maligned beef, beer, potatoes, and vegetables remain 'British' while the other, new ethnic incorporations to the menu remain that, incorporations the general cuisine, rather than something with truly British connotations.
British food has yet to evolve as an entity. Although ethnic eating…
