When Wetherspoons made it possible to order food and drink to your table using only an app, pub-goers’ reaction was mixed. Traditionalists, to the extent that they were aware of the technology, lamented the erosion of the ancient custom of mingling at the bar. Younger customers enjoyed the service’s faceless convenience, revelling in their new ability to order unsolicited plates of peas to faraway friends.

That was 2017, which is three years and several lifetimes ago. During that time, other large pub chains have developed similar apps. Greene King have one; so do Brewdog, O’Neill’s, Harvester, and various other well-known chains. In-house software of this kind costs hundred of thousands of pounds to build, probably millions in some cases, but it is a sound investment [ . . . ]