Two of London’s best-loved craft alcohol brands, Jim and Tonic and German Kraft Brewery have announced a raft of new measures that will be in place for the reopening of their popular South London beer garden at Mercato Metropolitano.
In any normal summer period, the 15,000 square foot London Gin & Beer Garden would welcome thousands of punters each day to enjoy artisan gins and hand-crafted beers – both of which are distilled and brewed on site - at one of London’s largest outdoor spaces for delicious street food, premium drinks and live music.
With lockdown restrictions gradually easing, the two independent alcohol brands, who have joined forces to create their alfresco metropolis, have moved quickly to revamp their large outdoor space. The Jim and Tonic Gin & Beer Garden has been totally re-designed to allow tables to be placed 2 metres apart, with all staff also wearing PPE and rigorous new cleaning procedures being implemented.
The capacity of the space has also been considerably reduced to allow a safe number of customers to gain entry at any given time, with plans in place to screen guests upon entry. Throughout the lockdown, Jim and Tonic have used their on-site distillery to produce hand sanitiser for the emergency services - Jim ‘Hand’ Tonic – and as part of the new measures, there will be numerous stations dispensing the sanitiser throughout the garden for customers and staff to use.
It is expected that the Jim and Tonic and German Kraft Beer Garden at Mercato Metropolitano will re-open early July, although this is subject to further Government announcements. Upon re-opening, visitors will be able to enjoy a range of handcrafted gins and German beer, both produced onsite using sustainable production methods.
The independently run food stalls at Mercato Metropolitano will also be selling a myriad of delicious street food from across the globe – from Turkish BBQ to handmade pasta and Italian gelato - the perfect space for Londoners looking for restaurants with outdoor drinking space. Director of German Kraft Beer, Felix Bollen says: “We’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that our Beer Garden is safe but also enjoyable and welcoming to our customers who want to support the independent businesses who have suffered during lockdown whilst enjoying some fantastic food and drink with friends after such a long and hard few months in lockdown.”
James “Jim” Mark, the founder of Jim and Tonic says: “It’s a really tough time for the whole industry at the moment so we’ve had to be innovative to create an outdoor space for our customers that keeps them safe but that they’ll still love. We’re confident we’ve achieved that balance and can’t wait to open again soon!” Jim & Tonic was founded in May 2016 by owner James Mark – his vision was simple; he wanted to sustainably create quality gins to be meticulously paired with specially curated tonics. German Kraft Brewery was founded in 2017 by three friends who wanted to make fresh, authentic German style beers in London, produced using modern brewing processes that focussed on sustainability.