Faced with steep fall in room-occupancy levels, income from Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition (MICE) tourism severely hit, and uncertainty of when the national lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 will be lifted, half a dozen luxury star hotels in the city have begun home delivery of food from their kitchens.

The monotony of remaining home for weeks altogether and possibly the first time that people are remaining confined to their homes during the Easter-Vishu festive season, has prompted select hotels to deploy their own personnel for home delivery of their produce, mainly in cars and other four-wheelers.

City-based Le Meridien was among the hotels which took the plunge into home delivery of its lunch and dinner menu with the tagline ‘Great Food, Even Better Prices’, about a week ago. It has readied a special takeaway Easter menu too.

“Response is getting better by the day. Our idea is to extend to Kochiites an option to savour our food, without having to spend a lot. During the lockdown, it can be quite challenging for many to cook three meals every day and to wash the utensils. This could be an opportunity to break the monotony,” said Tejus Jose, general manager of the hotel.

A standard dish generally costs ₹750 plus tax, while the rate in the home delivery menu is much lower and is inclusive of 19% tax. “Food is packed in fully biodegradable containers and plates, along with wooden spoon and fork,” he said.

The Kochi Marriot too has readied a package to deliver meals at one’s doorstep. International, Syrian Christian and Kerala cuisine are on offer. “It has been a tradition for many guests to celebrate Easter with us. We are now providing them a menu which includes our all-time favourite dishes which will be sent to households. This is part of ‘Marriot on Wheels’ programme,” said Janice Fernandez, director-operations of the hotel.

The Abad Plaza too has begun the service, sending select dishes which range from soups to deserts. “Customers have begun availing the service, since many people are reluctant to cook food thrice a day,” said Binoy Gopi, the hotel’s operations manager.