Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1432448
T his is a time to visualise lavish end-of-year parties, yet due to pandemic rules and the high cost, less people are booking places at restaurants for merriment. Instead, it is becoming the norm for the management to provide staff with free food and drink on the business premises for all. ere are solemn speeches about the business and its extolling strategies ahead while junior staff indulge in extra drink teasing their managers - singing and sporting party hats because it is all free. In the recent past, when no masks were de rigueur, hugs and handshakes at work places were permitted - now the mood is more cautious and mostly formal. Prior to March 2020, the popular custom was for in-laws to be invit- ed to lavish meals in-house, savour- ing slow-cooking treats endowed with plum puddings and other delicacies - a gazillion calorie dessert. Now with instant ordering online of fast yet tasty delivered food, most nev- er dream to let our wives or girlfriends cook for the occasion, let alone plan a party. Imagine a time when preparing a glorious full-scale Christmas meal took - on average - a back-bending 27 hours to prepare. Nostalgia of Christmas eve fun reminds us of sweet worries, like waking up at 5am only to discover that the fat turkey did not fit in the oven or that the asparagus was not fresh. Would our partners and loved ones want us to throw in the kitchen towel and instead surf our smartphone to book for outside catering – perhaps in some traditional farmhouse restaurant where hearty meals are served by smiling waitresses with tinsels in their hair? For the purists, the lure of home cooking is immeasurable such that the carving and serving of the triumphant turkey bordered with red chipolata sau- sages and impregnated with the famous sage and chestnut stuffing becomes by rite the honorary task regaled to the head of family. But this romantic scene is mostly a by-gone memory - perhaps never to return. Today, it's rare to find a good restau- rant which can guarantee a table given the high demand and fewer tables set- ting because of restrictions enforced by health authorities. Perhaps our nos- talgia owes its roots to the Victorian age, having been a British colony for so many years. In this fast world of Netflix dinners, we lost the pathos of the bread winner, sitting proud at the head of the table, acting out the role of the pater familias — the Dickensian icon set in the Christ- mas Carol novel — judiciously dividing among his grateful family the bounty that his toil and acumen have provided. Such memories from the past form the liturgical objects of our Christian be- liefs that have honed our subconscious during past festive periods. Such gatherings conjure forgotten feelings of a convivial spirit. Now, food is being served and alas the nuclear fam- ily is absent. No more that sentiment of staying at home and toiling in the kitch- en for so many hours that gave the chef a deep satisfaction seeing many smiling faces around the decorated table. Serving a homemade Christmas din- ner can be a thing of Dickensian fan- tasy, as modern versions seem to have gone through some kind of transmogri- fication machine that lead us to cherish their currency. Perhaps this introverted feeling is fuelled by an increasing fear that the incremental cost of food is becoming unassailable. Pensioners, youths and middle-aged people complain that the COLA mechanism offering a €1.75 weekly increase does not cut it. Many notice food and grocery costs are spiral- ling upwards. is is hurting everyone much more than ever before. It is no surprise that both the Cham- ber of Commerce and the Malta Cham- ber of SMEs have spoken with huge concern about the projected increases in the cost of imports and exports due to our insularity. Even so, it is the sign of times as in the U.S. inflation is currently above five per cent while it is over four per cent in the EU. Finance minister Clyde Caruana is expected to announce a separate mechanism to compensate society's most needy for the rising cost of living. Sources said the new mechanism will be separate and over-and-above the cost- of-living adjustment mechanism where those who feel the pinch of rising costs can be compensated separately. is also links to the main theme of fes- tivities. A lavish lunch for Christmas in a posh restaurant does not come cheap for those on a tight budget, so their op- tions are limited. Still, some will decide to throw caution to the wind and forget cholesterol levels by drinking prosecco at an affordable pizzeria, where sim- ple pleasures include gorging a dome shaped Calzone, deliciously filled with an exquisite cheese mix, ham and truf- fle oil - all baked in a wood fired oven. e treat will be followed by chocolate covered profiteroles or liquid mint ice cream solidified with liquid nitrogen. Definitely in this pandemic age, the option to book lunch outside is tempt- ing yet sobriety make us act cautious as infections are again on the rise. Readers may well lament that simple pleasures in life are burning holes in their credit cards. Is it fair for locals to pay the high vat rate on food and drink when other neighbouring countries are charging lower rates? e trophy goes to Luxembourg as it charges a rate of 3% on food and 17% on alcoholic bev- erages. Now that the tourism industry is limp- ing forward with low occupancy rates, can we follow Greece's bold experiment in 2013 and drop the vat rate to 7%? is article argues that over-charging vat is like burning the candle from both ends and will cause the catering sector to implode if remedial action is not tak- en to tackle challenges lurking under the surface. In conclusion, this is the time of year when most restaurants re- sort to decorate in glittery kitsch which is a wonderful thing - if only better sala- ries are paid to catering staff once brisk business starts benefitting from a lower vat rate. Is eating out still affordable? George Mangion George Mangion is a senior partner of an audit and consultancy firm, and has over 25 years experience in accounting, taxation, financial and consultancy services. His efforts have seen PKF being instrumental in establishing many companies in Malta and ensured PKF become one of the foremost professional financial service providers on the Island 8 OPINION 25.11.2021