Caterer & Hotelkeeper articles from July 2004

Caterer & Hotelkeeper archives from July 2004

Last supper.
July 1, 2004... So you think a bona fide lord would go for caviar and foie gras at his last feast? Not a bit of it - Richard, Earl of Bradford, seems partial to more than a bit of garlic with his Champagne What's on the menu? Fresh Scottish...

Food Round-up.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Worldwide threat to chocolate Worldwide chocolate production is under threat from the spread of virulent plant diseases, a scientist has warned. Witches' Broom, a disease that affects the cacao bean, has already devastated plantations...

Global report.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... FAR EAST Starwood's 23rd in China US-based Starwood Hotels & Resorts has signed an agreement to manage the 348-bedroom Sheraton Xiamen hotel in China. The newly built hotel will open in June next year, and will be the city's first...

review OFTHEREVIEWS.
July 1, 2004... 26 June Giles Coren is dazzled by chef Bjorn van der Horst's menu at the Greenhouse, London W1 The food is delicately and sexily presented without a hint of fussiness or any compromise of flavour. And the menu achieves that prized and...

Amuse bouche.
July 1, 2004... reader soapbox Pay less attention to image and more to basic hospitality Greville Dare, managing director of Richmond and Hampshire, fears drowning by design I'm a hotelier, not a designer. Yet, day in, day out, I get sucked...

21.
July 1, 2004... things you may not know about the Cateys... Next week, the Caterer & Hotelkeeper Awards, the Cateys, celebrate their 21st birthday. Here we present 21 facts about the awards you possibly didn't know 1Arriving with a bangIn 1984, the...

Man of the Match.
July 1, 2004... Ex-corporate lawyer Jonathan Downey exchanged his personal assistant for a pair of flip-flops and set up some of the best cocktail bars in the country. Now he's opening restaurants and hotels, too. Fiona Sims met him Thank you, Jonathan...

MBO on the cards at Yates as Laurel interest wanes.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... By KARL CUSHING Pub group Yates looks set for a [pounds sterling]93m management buyout after rival chain Laurel decided not to bid and analysts believe fresh approaches are unlikely. "We look at pretty much everything that comes on to...

Improving diet needs leadership.
July 1, 2004... If we are ever going to improve the diets of children in the UK, we will need trailblazers who are prepared to challenge the way we currently provide school meals. People like Mark Lloyd, headmaster at east London's Barking Abbey School. ...

Masterclass.
July 1, 2004... with Anthony Flinn Espumas Anthony Flinn is putting his own spin on the principles and practices he learnt from Ferran Adria. Michael Raffael finds out how to go froth and multiply Partly it's the El Bulli effect, partly it's the...

The scholars' progress.(Glenapp Castle)
July 1, 2004... There's still time to enter this year's Gordon Ramsay Scholar competition. Amanda Afiya and Dan Bignold catch up with the current holder of the title and some past winners At 24, Tristan Welch had already fashioned himself an enviable CV....

Property Watch.
July 1, 2004... regional spotlight Lincoln As residential property prices start to cool in the South-east of England, the cathedral city of Lincoln has become a major hot spot, and this is having a knock-on effect on the commercial market. Steve...

Fresh lessons.
July 1, 2004... Individual schools have had the right to arrange their own catering service since 1998. But gaining greater control over the provision of school meals can be a struggle for catering staff and head teachers, as Caterer found out on a visit to...

Shaken all over.(Column)
July 1, 2004... Can't tell a grasshopper from a cricket bat, or a Manhattan from a man with a hat on? Stir yourself to the Shaker BarSchool BYLINE: By Drinks Editor Fiona Sims Well, it's all happening in Birmingham. New bars and boutique hotels are...

Young Guns meet key players in hospitality.(Interview)
July 1, 2004... Every year, two hospitality students who excel on their work placements are awarded the title of Young Guns - and whisked away to the Catering Forum. James Garner caught up with them on board to see how it was going Lucinda Bence ...

FSA rethinks safe limits of oily fish consumption.(Food Standards Agency)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... By Louise Bozec Britons should restrict the portions of oily fish they eat each week, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has indicated, in its latest guidance on food safety. Its latest advice follows a year-long investigation into the...

Red tape threat to smaller businesses.
July 1, 2004... The relentless tide of red tape and paperwork is threatening to overwhelm smaller hospitality businesses. Karl Cushing inspects the damage so far This week saw added proof, if any were needed, that hospitality businesses are drowning in a...

First national deal for Holroyd Howe.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Contract caterer Holroyd Howe has won its first national contract deal. The Amersham-based company will cater for 3,750 staff at 18 UK sites owned by utility company RWE Group. Managing director Rick Holroyd said that the deal would be a...

Catering Forum delegates get the restaurant masterclass test.
July 1, 2004... This year's Catering Forum provided delegates with the usual talking shop, meeting place and furious exchange of business cards. James Garner was aboard P&O's Oriana and found, among the seminars and discussion groups, a masterclass on how to...

Investment firm leads race for Wagamama.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Japanese-style noodle bar chain Wagamama is in advanced talks with several companies over a possible [pounds sterling]60m buyout. Investment company Hutton Collins has emerged as the front-runner, although a source close to the restaurant...

Senior staff leave newly opened Baglioni hotel.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... by Louise Bozec Four top members of staff have left London's five-star Baglioni hotel since it opened three months ago. A source at the hotel, who asked not to be named, said they were made redundant, but the hotel has denied this. ...

Ever So Sensible takes [pounds sterling]1m stake in Coventry scheme.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Nottingham-based Ever So Sensible Bars has taken a [pounds sterling]1m leasehold at a new eating and drinking development in Coventry city centre. Opening in October, the 800-capacity site will be the third Dogma branded bar and eaterie...

Waplington lands 2004 Norwegian seafood title.
July 1, 2004... David Waplington of Falmouth's Greenbank hotel has won the 2004 Norwegian Seafood Recipe Challenge after his second tilt at the title. Cornish-based Waplington, who came third in 2003, cooked against nine finalists in the kitchens of the Axis...

Penalty shoot-out costs pubs and bars [pounds sterling]100m.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... By Karl Cushing Publicans are to miss out on a [pounds sterling]100m windfall following England's dramatic exit from the European Championships last week. The British Beer and Pub Association estimates that publicans In England took...

Ramsons tops list of Booker winners.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Five independent caterers won awards at this year's Booker Prize for Excellence, in a ceremony held last week at Arbury Hall near Nuneaton, Warwickshire. The five were rewarded by the UK wholesaler for their exceptional business management...

European hotel values fall by 4%.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Hotel values across Europe dipped by 4% last year, according to the latest edition of consultant HVS International's Hotel Valuation Index. The index, which monitors the value of four- and five-star hotels in 28 European cities, said that...

Domino's cuts the fat.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Domino's is offering a pizza made with 30% reduced-fat mozzarella. Dozens of reduced-fat mozzarellas were tested but until now, each failed the five-point "sensory" evaluation - taste, look, smell, stretch and mouthfeel. Reduction of...

Schoolchildren get early taste of fine dining.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... BY SAMANTHA McCLARY Children in Norfolk are being offered free school meals and a taste of working in the hospitality industry by two local restaurateurs. Richard and Sue Hughes, proprietors of the Lavender House restaurant in...

Bank Restaurant Group confirms merger talks.
July 1, 2004... Struggling Bank Restaurant Group is in merger talks with an unnamed party. The company's managing director, Christian Delteil, confirmed the AIM-listed group had entered into exploratory discussions, but couldn't give more detail. ...

Honeycombe keeps sweet.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Pub operator Honeycombe Leisure enjoyed a solid performance last year despite being in the middle of a major operational shake-up. The company, which owns and manages 95 pubs and inns in the North of England, is repositioning itself in the...

Diners demand they know meat's origins.
July 1, 2004... More restaurant diners than ever now want to know the origin of the meat they eat, according to the latest research commissioned by the Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC). A national opinion poll of 1,000 respondents found that 61% of...

Trevor Tobin at Chapter Two.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... In the 17 June issue of Caterer & Hotelkeeper, Menuwatch featured the Blackheath restaurant Chapter Two. Caterer would like to point out that Trevor Tobin is the head chef of the restaurant, and not Trevor Torbin, as stated.

Police get ready for six-week crackdown on pubs and clubs.
July 1, 2004... By Samantha Mcclary Pubs and bars around the UK will come under intense pressure from the Government this summer when it launches a six-week "blitz" on under-age drinking and loutish behaviour. Next Friday (8 July) police from more...

Bell Inn sounds a winning note.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Nottingham's Bell Inn won the conservation category in the Campaign for Real Ale's (Camra) 21st National Pub Design Awards last week. The pub's owner, brewer Hardys & Hansons, impressed the judges with sympathetic treatment of the...

French Table owners take over Stepping Stone.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Battersea restaurant the Stepping Stone has shut and been replaced by a new operation from the owners of the French Table in Surbiton, Surrey. The new 60-seat restaurant is called the Food Room and opened on Queenstown Road this week. The...

Mitie good start for subsidiary.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Mitie Catering (London) has won four contracts with a combined annual turnover of more than [pounds sterling]1m in its first two months of trading. The new subsidiary was set up by Mitie Catering Services earlier this year to focus on the...

Wiltshire council to review Sodexho's school meals service.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... By Angela Frewin Wiltshire County Council has launched a review into the school meals provided by contract caterer Sodexho following complaints about value for money. Sodexho took on the seven-year contract - along with contracts for...

stockwatch.
July 1, 2004... As the [pounds sterling]93m management buyout of pub group Yates moved a step closer (see page 11), the company reversed the slight dip in its share price seen last week with a 4.95% rise, making it Stockwatch's star performer for the second...

Little Chef drops Harry Ramsden's.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Customers eating at 40 Little Chef restaurants will not be able to order Harry Ramsden's meals when owner Compass Group withdraws the dishes from its menus next week. Compass, which sold its Little Chef restaurants to venture capitalist...

Cipriani looks to City for second restaurant.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Cipriani, currently one of London's trendiest restaurants, is planning to open a second operation in the City. The founders of Venice's much-loved Harry's bar opened their first UK restaurant in Mayfair earlier this year but are now...

OVER; TO YOU.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... What do you think of David Blunkett's plans to "blitz" alcohol-related violence and under-age drinking? I totally agree that something needs to be done about it. You do find there is quite a bit of trouble at throwing-out time when pubs...

Exclusive.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... MPW sells Wheeler's of St James's Marco Pierre White has sold his Mayfair fish restaurant, Wheeler's of St James's, to ex-chef of the Belvedere, Matthew Brown. Brown, 31, bought the lease from White for an undisclosed sum although he...

Employee satisfaction: time to turn the tide.
July 1, 2004... The technology feature on customer relationship management (CRM - Caterer, 24 June, page 34) highlighted another critical business issue - employee relationship management (ERM). Your feature started with the story of a bidding war for the...

our back pages stories from the caterer vaults.
July 1, 2004... Caterer & Hotelkeeper, 5 July 1973 Bass Charrington has entered the popular-price catering market with Toby Inns. The first 15 will be opened this year. Toby Inns will be a national chain established in existing pubs. When the first was...

BOOKREVIEW.(Book Review)
July 1, 2004... BY Peter Robinson Oh, joy - a food critic decides to write a cook book! The phrase "like a lamb to the slaughter" pops into my mind for some reason. The book in question is Matthew Fort's Eating Up Italy - I assumed it must be a cook book...

career clinic.
July 1, 2004... Each week our panel of recruitment experts provide answers to an employment question posed by a Caterer reader The expert panel Our expert panel comprises representatives from the Hotel and Catering Training Company (HCTC), Accor...

Backdated holiday pay.(Working Time Regulations 1998 )
July 1, 2004... Marie Allen, a solicitor with law firm Steeles, examines the rights of employees to claim backdated holiday pay when the full leave entitlement hasn't been taken The problem A former worker, who joined the company on 1 August 2002 and...

JUst OPENED.
July 1, 2004... Made in Brasil, London London's fascination with all things South American continues with a new Brazilian bar in Camden. Despite its incongruous location, the bar and eaterie aims to resemble a "beach shack" and create the atmosphere...

On the market.
July 1, 2004... Printed leather menus, all-in-one handwash dispenser-deodorants and a new range of non-meat main courses are among this week's product launches Wave power Villeroy & Boch has added several new pieces to its HotWave range. Entitled...

In Brief.(standards of pork imports, Kraft Foods Inc.'s cofee initiative in United Kingdom, Environmental Agency's ban on eel netting)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Bad news on bacon Some 70% of pig meat imported into Britain comes from animals produced under conditions which would be deemed illegal in the UK, claims a new report from the Meat & Livestock Commission. The amount of pork and processed...

Global report.(Hotel Industry )(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... EUROPE Envergure goes large Groupe Envergure, the budget division of France's Societe du Louvre, has opened its largest hotel in Paris. The group has opened a g50m ([pounds sterling]33.5m) three-star hotel in the French capital's...

reader; soapbox.(Aberdeenshire Council's management of school catering)
July 8, 2004... In September 2003, Aberdeenshire Council's Scrutiny and Audit Committee reviewed its school catering service so it could make proposals concerning the effectiveness and method of service delivery. The results were not good. Aberdeenshire...

on the mo ve.(appointments of Sally Davis, Stephane Damezin, Trevor Brown)
July 8, 2004... SALLY DAVIS has been promoted to NEC Group catering director at the Birmingham exhibition centre. She will be responsible for leading catering at all the group's venues and its outside catering division, Amadeus. Davis has previously worked...

Property Advice zone.(licensing rules for restaurants)
July 8, 2004... Know your licences In association with leisure specialist Davis Coffer Lyons Licensing can be extremely confusing, even daunting, for newcomers to the industry. Never mind trying to keep up with the Government's vacillations on the...

property of the week.(Northumbrian pub)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... This week's featured property is a Northumbrian pub that offers a secondary income through the letting of holiday cottages. The Railway Inn is located in the village of Acklington, roughly halfway between Alnwick and Morpeth, and just four...

how WE got started.(Maureen Small and family)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Maureen Small and family Maureen and David Small started out running a 14-bedroom hotel in Whitley Bay, Northumberland, before buying the Unicorn hotel in Ripon, North Yorkshire, in 1983. Under Maureen and David's control, the Unicorn...

regional spotlight.(Plymouth)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Plymouth Plymouth's history is closely linked to the sea, being a long-established naval base and the place where Sir Francis Drake allegedly indulged in a relaxing game of bowls before nipping off to rout the Spanish Armada. And...

Your shout.(growth of gastropubs)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... by Neil Morgan, a director at licensed property agent Christie & Co The inexorable rise of the gastropub Not so long ago, chefs who sought Michelin stars or other awards for the high standard of their cuisine were only to be found in...

Education and Training Award; Sponsored by Portfolio International.(John Guthrie)
July 8, 2004... John Guthrie The Education and Training Award, now in its second year, is open to people from the world of business, as well as those working in education. This year's winner was judged to have demonstrated an innovative approach to...

Pub and Bar Operator of the Year; Sponsored by Booker Cash & Carry.(Philip and Karen Burgess, Dartmoor Inn)
July 8, 2004... Philip and Karen Burgess Philip and Karen Burgess took over the Dartmoor Inn in Devon five years ago with spectacularly bad timing. It was just before foot-and-mouth disease was to hit Britain's agriculture and tourism industries with...

Newcomer of the Year; Sponsored by Christie Group.(chef proprietor Tom Aikens)
July 8, 2004... Tom Aikens Opening a restaurant in the full glare of the media spotlight, with your every move watched by your fellow professionals, is not an easy thing to do. The tiniest hiccup will be noted... and gloated over. Yet, it's fair to say...

Lifetime Achievement Award; Sponsored by Chess Partnership.
July 8, 2004... Anton Mosimann Few chefs can justifiably claim to have changed the face of British dining. This year's Catey Lifetime Achievement Award winner is one of the few - not that Anton Mosimann would ever dream of making such a bold claim for...

Special Award; Sponsored by American Express Establishment Services.(chef Brian Turner)
July 8, 2004... Brian Turner They say political dictators employ body doubles to help them honour all of their public engagements. Clearly chefs must be following suit. How else could you explain how Brian Turner manages to squeeze as much into every day...

Independent Hotel of the Year; Sponsored by Learnpurple.(Calcot Manor)
July 8, 2004... Calcot Manor An excellent hotel that is at the top of its three-star category and happy to be there. That was how the judges summarised Calcot Manor, winner of this year's Independent Hotel of the Year Catey. The 28-bedroom hotel, near...

Food Service Caterer of the Year; Sponsored by P&G Professional.(Mike Smith, Procter and Gamble Co.)
July 8, 2004... Mike Smith At a time when companies are struggling to retain staff, judges singled out this year's Food Service Caterer of the Year winner as a fantastic motivator of people who puts a great emphasis on training and stability. One...

Tourism Award; Sponsored by Aramark.(The Mersey Partnership, Aramark Corp.)
July 8, 2004... The Mersey Partnership Liverpool may have found global fame as the home of the Beatles, but for the past generation the city has had to shake off a troubled reputation. It suffered from dreadful inner-city poverty and discontent, which was...

Best Independent Marketing Campaign; Sponsored by Autograph Foodservice.(Warren House)
July 8, 2004... Warren House With so many contenders for the Best Independent Marketing Campaign award, there was a real mix of opinion among the judges, but in the end it was the entry from Warren House, a stand-alone conference centre business in...

Menu of the Year; Sponsored by Quorn.(East@West, London, Quorn Foods Inc.)
July 8, 2004... East@West, London There are plenty of people who will tell you that fusion food is dead. That it was a passing fad, long gone, and soon to be forgotten. Not so fast. The arrival of one chef to our shores last year left that theory in...

Contract catering Round-up.(Charlton House, United Kingdom Department of Transport, Transport Research Laboratory, TML Financial Solutions, Kostal Ireland Ltd., Catering Partnership, Sodexho, Oxted School)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Charlton House keeps on rolling Charlton House has gained three new contracts with total annual sales of [pounds sterling]1.7m. The caterer started a five-year contract on 1 July serving 1,400 staff at the Department of Transport in...

Manager of the Year; Sponsored by Dudson Group.(Christopher Cowdray)
July 8, 2004... Christopher Cowdray When a hotel is a national icon and has been showered with awards, it's easy sometimes to overlook the leadership that got it - and kept it - there. And it's certainly the case that in six years at the helm of one of...

Hole-in-the-wall gang uncovered.(cache of old wines)
July 8, 2004... An archaeological wine find has done wonders for the Gore hotel in London's Kensington. Caterer went to find out why It's amazing what a few old bottles of wine can do for your reputation. The Gore hotel in London's Kensington discovered a...

Independent Restaurateur of the Year; Sponsored by Brakes.(Nigel Platts-Martin, Brakes Bros.)
July 8, 2004... Nigel Platts-Martin Nigel Platts-Martin is not a man who courts publicity. You will not see his face on any reality TV show or smiling out from a cookery book cover. You're unlikely even to read any interviews with him in the press, and...

Group Restaurateur of the Year; Sponsored by Bunzl Outsourcing Services.(James Horler, chief executive of La Tasca Restaurant, Bunzl Distribution USA)
July 8, 2004... James Horler If you've ever wanted to meet a Catey winner who had the unanimous support of the judges, James Horler is your man. Despite some stiff competition, the chief executive of La Tasca Restaurants quickly emerged as the favourite...

One man and his molecules.(Heston Blumenthal, Catey Chef award winner)
July 8, 2004... Heston Blumenthal's career has taken some remarkable twists and turns. The winner of the 2004 Catey Chef Award gives Caterer an insight into how extraordinary his life really is For someone who specialised in repossessing office equipment,...

OVER; TO YOU.(best and worst moments of the Catey awards)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... most memorable Cateys moments Best moment: making an entrance dressed like Fred Astaire (2001). Worst moment: attempting to dance like Fred Astaire (2002). Forbes Mutch, Group Editor of the Caterer Group This is my 10th Cateys so I...

THE TERRACE.(Cliveden's restaurant)
July 8, 2004... Mark Dodson combines classical French cuisine with an element of lightness for the summer in his offering at Cliveden's Terrace restaurant It's always difficult to imprint your own personality on the menu of a landmark property like...

Double celebration; Forbes Mutch, Group Editor, Caterer & Hotelkeeper.(Catey awards)
July 8, 2004... What motivates employees most in their jobs? It could be money... maybe conditions of employment, career prospects, company location... all these things must be part of what makes a worker tick. But I bet there's something more. I bet what...

BOOKREVIEW.(Michael Cooper's Wine Atlas of New Zealand)(Book Review)
July 8, 2004... New Zealand promises to be very favourable to the vine," predicted Samuel Marsden back in 1819 after making the first recorded planting of grape vines at Kerikeri in the Bay of Islands. How right he was. New Zealand has proved it can make...

Bread winners.(Bread varieties)
July 8, 2004... Bread is the staple diet of the UK. So even though more than 70% of the bread we consume is white, the small percentage of ethnic breads sold still represents a huge slice of business. And it's growing Bread has experienced something of a...

Last supper.(humorous comments, Tom Aikens, Catey award winner)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Catey winner Tom Aikens fancies a chukka or two after a slap-up meal from France's finest chefs So, at the last shout, where would we find you? No 1 Polo Ground, Palermo, Buenos Aires. This is, perhaps, asking the obvious, but how...

The pits of the pit stops?(motorway service areas)
July 8, 2004... Britain's motorway service operators are used to getting a bad press. But do we really have the worst service areas in Europe, as a recent survey claims? The three major operators, which account for 95% of the market, answer their critics ...

Shangri-La plans for Europe.(Shangri-La International, hotels)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Asian hotel group Shangri-La has announced plans to expand into Europe. Austin Frost, the group's vice-president of sales, said that the group was keen to acquire hotels in London, Paris and other key European cities which provided tourist...

Bespoke to offer tailor-made management.(launch of Bespoke Hotel Company by Furlong Hotels)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Furlong Hotels has launched a new company to expand its management business. The group, which signed its first hotel management contract three years ago, launched the Bespoke Hotel Company last Thursday (1 July). Furlong currently owns...

Atkin launches new wine list.(Tim Atkin, Chef and Brewer Group Ltd.)(Brief Article)
July 8, 2004... Chef & Brewer, part of the Spirit Group, launched its latest wine list on Monday 2 July under the guidance of Master of Wine Tim Atkin, wine correspondent of the Observer and editor-at-large for Off Licence News. Changes this year include...