Coronavirus Shatters One Chef’s Dream of Helping Immigrant Women

(Bloomberg) --

Asma Khan spent years working to create a restaurant business staffed by home-taught female chefs that would celebrate the food of her native Kolkata and provide support to immigrant women and their extended families back home. The last thing she expected was for a deadly virus to bring all of her efforts to a shuddering halt.

Asma started with dinner parties in 2012, progressed to supperclubs, hosted a residency in a London pub, and finally in 2017 she fulfilled her dream and opened the Darjeeling Express restaurant. She and her staff of 22 (21 of them women) served lunch as usual on Monday before Prime Minister Boris Johnson said people should stay away from public gatherings at places such as bars, cafes and restaurants. (Last night, he ordered a shutdown.)

She realized right away that she would not be able to avoid closing the business she loved for an uncertain period. The U.K. is following many other countries by encouraging social distancing to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

“I saw the writing on the wall,’’ Asma said. ‘‘People were saying they would come to us out of solidarity, but I couldn’t have them coming out of love and then making them sick. I have to contribute to making the city safe. I couldn't let our restaurant be a source of infection or disease.

“I have a big responsibility. Our employees are immigrant women. Each is supporting 15-20 people back home — entire families, half a village: Grandparents, children, in-laws.  The children won’t go to school.’’

Asma is certainly not alone with all her worries, and now for the hospitality industry there is no clear end in sight.

Some restaurants, including Brat and the Tonkotsu ramen chain, are switching to takeaway of home delivery, which is allowed under relaxed government licensing regulations. JKS group is planning to step up its Motu home-delivery business. Brat chef Tomos Parry will prepare dishes for guests to take home along with wine from his wine list, which will be sold at discounted prices. 

The government this week announced a £330 billion ($384 billion) package to help businesses, including tax breaks, loans and grants. But the indefinite nature of the shutdown means many restaurants may be hesitant to take on more debt. Last night, the government said it will pay 80 percent of the wages of furloughed workers, up to £2,500 a month.

So what happens next for Asma?  It had been difficult to get a table at Darjeeling Express since it featured in a Chef’s Table documentary on Netflix last year, and each lunchtime, there were 95 guests in the 55-seater restaurant off Carnaby Street.

“I closed on March 17, which happened to be the third anniversary of my signing the lease for Darjeeling Express,” Asma says. “That was a landmark day for me. It was enormous. I had never before signed a contract in my life. Even my mobile phone was in my husband’s name.”

She’s talking tough and plans to re-emerge even stronger.

“It is women who will pay the highest price in hospitality, not the arrogant chef,” she says. “I am looking at my options but we will definitely come back. I cried but now I feel like when you reboot your computer. I hope we come back to hospitality kinder. And chefs less arrogant, less angry and less toxic. I hope it will make us all very humble.”

Richard Vines is chief food critic at Bloomberg. Follow him on Twitter @richardvines and Instagram @richard.vines.

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