But if the tone is light, the mood is less so.

December is a crucial month for the sector and accounts for 10% of annual turnover, between corporate Christmas parties - an institution in the United Kingdom - and feasts with family or friends.

After two years of pandemic and ruined festivities, the sector is counting on the season which is opening to recover.

But between the cost of living crisis, strikes for purchasing power and worker shortages, nothing is less certain.

“December normally represents 2.3 billion pounds of revenue”, but “unfortunately, reservations are for the moment 20% below the level of 2019”, before the pandemic, explains to AFP Emma McClarkin, the president of the industry federation, the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA).

Customers of the Mad Hatter pub, November 30, 2022 in London © Daniel LEAL / AFP

About 50 pubs per month go out of business, far more than during the pandemic, when government aid kept businesses on life support.

However, the landscape is contrasting.

The Marston's chain, which has more than 1,400 pubs, describes Christmas bookings as "encouraging" and so far above their 2019 level.

The World Cup has boosted sales on the days England play but the company fears a tough 2023 as the country braces for recession.

The opulent City, the financial heart of London, superbly ignores the crisis.

Customers seated or standing in front of pubs in Carnaby Street, in the Soho district, on December 1, 2022 in London © Justin TALLIS / AFP

At The Globe pub, beer and wine are flowing, and Christmas parties follow one another, according to the manager.

Budgets can defy gravity: Nearly £20,000 spent at a neighborhood wine bar for a single "office party", says one waiter, who declines to be identified.

Lower consumption

But a few miles further north, in bustling Camden, the small Crossroads cocktail bar is seeing a drop in activity.

"We had to increase our prices in October" in the face of rising costs, but "our receipts are stable", explains manager Bart Miedeksza.

"Our regulars spend as much time with us but consume less".

Bart Miedeksza, manager of Crossroads bar, on December 1, 2022 in Camden, north London © Justin TALLIS / AFP

Despite the waitress who comes by regularly to remove the empty glasses and offer, all smiles, new drinks.

Still a little further north, in the bourgeois district of Hampstead, "the data is for the moment comparable to 2019" in terms of reservations, but "the economic environment is difficult. We are suffering from inflation, particularly for butter , cooking oil, since the war in Ukraine," says Jonathan Perritt, co-owner of Stag.

Inflation has reached 11% in the UK and up to 60% for certain basic foodstuffs such as cooking oil or pasta, compressing customer budgets and establishments' margins.

The Stag adapts: "many of our customers work in the hospital next door. They are on a tight budget and we offer offers as affordable as possible, such as a Christmas menu with a single dish at 20 pounds a head".

And it is not possible to transfer everything to the customer: "we are not a starred restaurant. There is a price level above which we cannot go up", adds Mr. Perritt.

Customers of the Mad Hatter pub, November 30, 2022 in London © Daniel LEAL / AFP

At the Mad Hatter, John Paul Caffery is seated with one of his employees.

He has planned a Christmas party for the recruitment platform he founded but "it's significantly more expensive than last year", so "we booked a place that offers a fixed price offer".

"Coming out of Covid-19, we want to enjoy life, but at the same time we have to be careful with our budget," adds Christopher Jones, a 54-year-old Welsh urban planner on a business trip.

He is organizing a small party for his colleagues and customers in ten days, in his usual pub, where the pint has taken 1 pound at once and now costs 4.40 pounds (5.12 euros).

© 2022 AFP