City workers 'swap boozy lunches for cups of tea'

City workers are swapping lunchtime pints for cups of fancy tea following new rules on daytime drinking.

Hotels and restaurants which traditionally relied on businessmen enjoying boozy lunches have been forced to offer alcohol-free alternatives.

Club Gascon, a Michelin-starred restaurant in the City, has started offering three premium teas for £15 – each selected to match a five-course meal.

Manager Thomas Rabuel told the Times that he had noticed a shift in clients’ lunchtime habits six months ago.

"It's not the law, but now a company can punish employees if they have a drink," he said. "It's challenging for us because as a restaurant you make more of a margin on your wine than you do on your food.

"All of these big companies are not allowing people to drink any more at lunch, except the very big managers or people who are coming to sign a big deal. We looked at the numbers and saw that they were decreasing."

In February, Lloyd’s of London introduced a 9am-to-5pm booze ban which could see employees sacked for gross misconduct if caught breaking the new rule.

An internal memo to employees, leaked to the Standard, revealed the ban was introduced after an analysis of grievance and disciplinary cases over the last two years found “roughly half” were related to alcohol misuse.

Other insurance companies, including Hiscox and QBE, reportedly have similar rules.

Fera at Claridges’s is another exponent of fine tea – serving it in wine glasses and at the right temperature to match the food.