A twice Michelin-starred pub in Marlow has raised the price of its a la carte menu by £20 after being 'hit hard' by the cost of living crisis.
The price of the three-course a la carte menu at Tom Kerridge's flagship Marlow restaurant The Hand and Flowers will rise from £155 to £175 on September 1, according to a notice on the pub's website.
A spokesperson for The Hand and Flowers said the decision to increase the price of the menu had "not been taken lightly" and was a direct result of the increased costs facing the business.
"The cost of living crisis has hit hospitality hard, and we have seen huge rises in the cost of food and ingredients which we are not prepared to compromise on, as well as energy, wage and rent increases.
“Therefore, to ensure the future success of the business we have to make difficult pricing decisions. We have maintained our set lunch menu price at The Hand and Flowers which runs Monday to Thursday and remains at £45 for two courses and £49.50 for three courses as well as continuing to offer our £15 two-course set lunch at The Coach, Wednesday to Friday, offering exceptional value for money across the business.”
READ MORE: 'The industry is fighting for its life': Pub landlord slams alcohol tax increase
It comes after Tom Kerridge told the BBC that the six restaurants he runs around the country were all struggling amid the ongoing economic crisis, sharing that they now buy their energy on a monthly basis and have switched to energy-saving bulbs and motion-sensor lights to save electricity.
Record levels of inflation, the costs of imported ingredients and staffing shortages impacted by Brexit are among the reasons that the UK hospitality industry experienced a 41 per cent rise in businesses forced into involuntary solvency last year, a trend that hit independent tradespeople hardest.
He said that energy bills , in particular, had been subject to a "catastrophically massive" rise in cost, putting hospitality venues in an increasingly difficult position.
"There hasn't been any positivity or good news (in the hospitality industry) for three or four years. Every day feels like you're walking uphill on glass, barefoot."
The TV chef is currently presenting a new BBC series 'The Hidden World of Hospitality with Tom Kerridge' in which he speaks to professionals and entrepreneurs about how they are navigating "some of the toughest economic conditions the industry has ever seen".
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