We've rounded up our favourite aperitivo kits, picnic boxes and pre-prepped platters out there — most of them available for delivery, many across London. All you'll need to source is a picnic blanket and some sunshine.
Sorella — Clapham
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Aperitivo kits: a boozy picnic hamper by any other name. While this is a box you'd actually order via Darby's Irish sister restaurant for delivery, the contents are a stack of Sorella's usual Italianate sunshine: truffle arancini, 'nduja arancini, charcuterie, burrata, olives, freshly baked foccacia and two servings of negroni.
The details: £50 for two. Delivery available within four miles of Sorella.
CasaCosta — Southwark
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Technically you don't have to have a picnic delivery from CasaCosta; these guys — a new service from the people behind the Macellaio RC restaurants — are speeding Italian food and drink of all sorts to your door, including cook-at-home pastas, rich, thick passata and meaty ragù. But we challenge you to not browse their website and think it yells Park Picnic: fennel taralli, peppers stuffed with tuna in golden oil, bone dry Lambrusco, freshly baked focaccia and chewy Barolo DOCG salami. Oh, and the makings of an Italian cheese-and-salumi board of epic proportions.
The details: delivery in a 10 mile radius from their site in SE1.
Etta's Seafood Kitchen — Brixton
This one's actually a seafood platter rather than a hamper, but this Brixton restaurant happens to have put together a greatest hits dish (for collection or delivery) that's ideal cutlery-free, snackable eating. The £25 platter includes ackee and saltfish moneybags, cod goujons, king prawns and saltfish fritters — throw in some of their homemade sorrel (a hibiscus flower and ginger soft drink), plantain chips and a couple of festivals (fried dumplings with an edge of sweetness) to turn it into a sprawling meal for two.
The details: £25 for the platter; local delivery or collection only.
Order from Etta's Seafood Kitchen.
Melrose + Morgan — Primrose Hill
The big draw of the hampers at this fancy deli is how easy they are to bespoke to your picnic desires. Melrose + Morgan start off with a range of pre-made hampers running from £40 to a punchy £140+ box for six people, ready to whisk to nearby Primrose Hill — but then make it very simple to turn it vegetarian, accommodate other dietary requirements, or just dial it up via a list of added extras from their shop. Particularly good for low-cutlery, picnic-blanket spreads: the Charcuterie and Cheese hamper — £100, with a bottle of champagne — or the Aperitif Deluxe hamper — £80, with a bottle of rose.
The details: collection or delivery, hamper prices start at £40.
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Chrissy's Kitchen
Catering company Chrissy's Kitchen have expanded to picnic box deliveries during lockdown, serving up Med-slanted snacks and British savoury pastries. They've got it nailed on both the style and substance side of things, each delivery box packed with cute, candycane-striped paper packaging and recyclable/compostable plates and cutlery.
The current line-up includes sausage rolls (swap them out for falafels to make it vegetarian), delicate mushroom tarts, two hefty 'side' salads crammed with cheese, olives, couscous and some very, very good tomatoes, and your choice of a bottle of rosé or a four-pack of Canopy pale ale. Oh, and a box of some of the most intensely fudgey brownies we've had in ages (which you can also order as a standalone delivery). Technically intended for two to share, this box could stretch to cover three hungry picnickers without effort, or more if you add on some of their cheese-and-charcuterie extras.
The details: £40, delivery available in zones 1-3 (and for larger orders, contact them directly to check if they can offer delivery further afield)
Get Stuft — Stockwell
Boxes from this south London caterer are literally stuffed, a very large amount of cheese, crackers, breads, vegetables, hummus, and snacks — and charcuterie, if you go for the meat version — packed with spectacular Tetris-like neatness into a relatively small box for park portability.
And they're good on the packaging front — entirely biodegradable or recyclable, and made from recycled materials and vegetable inks. But the real bonus is same day delivery, so you can make your picnics happen rapid-fire, in line with the excitingly capricious British sunshine.
The details: Same day delivery or pre-ordering available — delivery charges vary depending on location. You can also collect from their Stockwell site. Boxes start at £40 for two people, with a range of sizes, and a choice of meat, vegetarian, and vegan options.
Order here.
Arabica — Borough
Some of the greatest hits from their King's Cross and Borough restaurant menus are in the picnic hamper from Arabica — including their house pickles, beetroot borani, freekeh salad, and a baklava platter. Their punchy supergreen hummus isn't in there unfortunately, but you can choose from a range of extras to add in from their online shop. Compostable plates and recycled napkins are included, making it a zero effort job — unless you opt for the deluxe version of the hamper, which comes with a feta and spinach boregi to cook at home first (half an hour in the oven, no prep needed).
The details: £50 for the picnic hamper for two to three people, £75 for the deluxe version for four people, delivery across London every Tuesday and Friday — eat within three days of delivery.
Order here.
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Ibérica — Victoria
The neat little hessian picnic bag from Ibérica — a partnership with Estrella Galicia — packs a lot into its portability. Some charcuterie (the restaurant chain's speciality), a selection of five cheeses (the portions look a bit undersized, but each of these are so punchy this goes from looking like not-quite-enough to bit-excessive-actually), crackers, the makings of pan con tomate, bag of olive oil crisps, four Estrella Galicia beers, two glasses, one bottle opener. For £15 more you can get a version with wine rather than beer, but we'd say the £40 beer bag comes in at the right amount of bang — and snacks — for your buck. Strong all round: only quibble is that the lack of vegetarian option's sort of a shame, as the cheese and meat-free snacks are actually the best part.
The details: £40 for the picnic box with beer, £55 for the picnic box with wine, delivery across London.
Order here.
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Honourable mentions: haven't tried these but hear good things about Diogenes the Dog's charcuterie and cheese list, available to add-on to any wine order (collection from Elephant + Castle or local delivery only).
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