Caterer & Hotelkeeper articles from May 2005

Caterer & Hotelkeeper archives from May 2005

Our new website has all the facts you need.
May 5, 2005... From today, hospitality has a new home page. The Caterer Group this week launches CatererSearch, its one-stop shop for industry professionals looking for up-to-the-minute news, information and advice. CatererSearch combines the search power of...

Craft Guild's student draw offer.
May 5, 2005... The Craft Guild of Chefs is offering a student the chance to work in a high-profile kitchen for the night, helping to cater for 400 guests. The kitchen - yet to be disclosed - will be one of the most prestigious in the country. To enter the...

Bigfish.
May 5, 2005... 'Occasional table' takes on a new meaning at Bigfish, in Edinburgh's revitalised Leith docklands - it's an occasional restaurant which the owner opens every couple of weeks. However, the locals obviously feel it's worth the wait, as Victoria...

The fisherman's friend.
May 5, 2005... Swedish chef Christian Sandefeldt is a fish specialist with a sense of responsibility for endangered species. So his new London restaurant, Deep, is charging each customer an extra [pounds sterling]1 to put towards marine conservation The...

Hospitality's home on ; the web.
May 5, 2005... This week sees the unveiling of Caterer Group's new website, CatererSearch. What's that all about, then? Website editor David Shrimpton explains Where do you go if you're looking to find information relating to your work or your career? If...

ADVICE ZONE.
May 5, 2005... Common licence application mistakes and how to avoid them On 7 February some 400 local authorities started processing new licence applications, and the team at law firm Poppleston Allen has been monitoring the common mistakes made by...

The age factor.
May 5, 2005... Wanted: young, enthusiastic bar staff, salary dependent on age and experience. Sounds fine, doesn't it? But from October next year wording an advert like that will be illegal. Nic Paton reports New laws banning age discrimination in the...

property of the week.
May 5, 2005... This week's featured property is a free-house pub in the historic Devonshire village of Silverton, five miles to the north-east of Exeter. The Grade II-listed Three Tuns is believed to date from 1496 and is awash with period features such as...

Starwood and Lehman agree Le Meridien deal.(Starwood Capital)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... London-based hotel group Le Meridien is to be bought in a joint venture between Lehman Brothers and Starwood Capital after lengthy negotiations. Starwood Capital confirmed the terms of the deal, worth an estimated [pounds sterling]1b,...

Brakes boss talks up food integrity.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Food integrity is the single most important issue facing the catering industry today, according to Brakes group's new chief executive, Bruno Deschamps. He told 450 delegates at an Arena lunch at the Dorchester hotel in London that the...

Hotelier Denis Hine dies, aged 62.(Corse Lawn House hotel)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
May 5, 2005... Denis Hine, owner of the Corse Lawn House hotel in Gloucestershire, died unexpectedly last week (29 April) at the age of 62 after a very short illness. His wife of 39 years, Baba Hine, said: "He was a larger-than-life character and a wonderful,...

Sales and openings surge ahead at La Tasca.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Three more La Tasca restaurants are about to open as the group continues its rapid expansion. Having recently opened its 50th restaurant, in Maidstone, Kent, the group now has three restaurants being developed. The first is due to open this...

We love...(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... ... alfresco dining Spring is firmly in swing, so it's time to start eating outside again. A little rain never hurt anyone, and if you feel the chill, move closer to one of those outdoor heater contraptions. Here are a few places you might...

Scottish smoking ban eased.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... A breakthrough in legislation for the forthcoming Scottish smoking ban is good news for smokers who want a fag in their hotel rooms. The proposed ban, due to take effect next March, will include a clause allowing hotels to designate smoking...

Wetherspoon's presses on with smoking ban.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... JD Wetherspoon has repeated its pledge to ban smoking in all its pubs by next year, even though customers have been spending less on drink in non-smoking venues. The pub company said a slight fall in alcohol sales at its 17 non-smoking pubs had...

Nestle launches all-in-one hot drinks arm.(Nescafe Coffee Company)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Nestle Foodservices is moving into the roast and ground coffee market with the launch of the Nescafe Coffee Company, a one-stop shop for hot drinks. Quentin Knowlson, commercial director of the Nescafe Coffee Company, said: "We will deliver...

QMH puts nine UK properties on the market.(Queen's Moat Houses PLC)
May 5, 2005... Queens Moat Houses (QMH) has put nine of its UK hotels up for sale with an estimated price tag of between [pounds sterling]100m and [pounds sterling]110m. The hotel company, which was acquired by Goldman Sachs's Whitehall Street property arm...

OVER; TO YOU.
May 5, 2005... Can the hospitality industry be blamed for increasing levels of childhood obesity? What food people put in their mouths is up to them, but a certain amount of education is needed and I believe there is a level of responsibility for us as...

Tamarind to launch midmarket project.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Michelin-starred Indian restaurant Tamarind is launching a new fast-casual concept in Soho, London, later this year. Tamarind's owners, the Khanna family, have acquired a 3,700sq ft site at 167 Wardour Street, where they plan to introduce Imli,...

Howe takes LACA's top chef title.(Local Authority Caterers Association)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Scottish school cook Lynne Howe has been named the Local Authority Caterers Association's (LACA) chef of the year 2005. Howe, who has worked at Tannadice Primary School in Forfar, Angus, for two-and-a-half years, beat seven other finalists to...

Caterer Group launches new website for hospitality.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Hospitality professionals should bookmark a new website today: www.caterersearch.com, brought to you by the Caterer Group. CatererSearch will act as a single gateway, providing users with a one-stop shop that caters for every information need...

Thistle sells off top London sites.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Thistle Hotels has announced a [pounds sterling]185m deal for the sale-and-manage-back of six hotels, including its five prime London properties. Private property group Topland has bought the portfolio, which represents more than 1,200 bedrooms...

Bewley's to reopen after [pounds sterling]1.36m refurb.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Bewley's cafe on Dublin's Grafton Street is to reopen this month under a management deal agreed between the Campbell Bewley Group and the owners of the city's Cafe Bar Deli restaurant chain. The cafe and patisserie will reopen under its...

The chain in Spain is luxury boutique hotels.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Two of Spain's top banks and a construction company are joining forces to build 10 luxury boutique hotels over the next four years. Caixa Catalunya, Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo (CAM), and the Espais construction company plan to invest...

Sodexho pays $80m to settle discrimination case.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Sodexho has agreed to pay $80m ([pounds sterling]42.3m) to settle a lawsuit that alleged its US division systematically discriminated against black workers. The class-action suit, which was brought in March 2001 and included 2,400 managers,...

Review of the reviews.
May 5, 2005... 30 April Gareth McLean is not overly impressed north of the border at Mar Hall in Renfrewshire There was nothing awry with the cheeky lobster bisque amuse bouche or with our starters. The main problem was with the room itself: it had all the...

Parents protest that PFI is bad for ; children's health.(Private Finance Initiative)
May 5, 2005... Private-sector caterers have reacted angrily to claims that they are using Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts to undermine improvements in the standard of school meals, but parents remain unconvinced. Last week newspaper reports claimed...

Signature Restaurants group is put up for sale.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Signature Restaurants, the owner of London's Ivy and Le Caprice restaurants, is on the market. A report in the Sunday Times said that Signature had hired accountancy firm KPMG to seek potential buyers for the group, which also owns fish...

DoH reveals massive rise in child obesity.(Department of Health)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Figures confirming that obesity among children is increasing at an alarming rate have prompted renewed calls from the hospitality industry for a responsible all-encompassing attitude to young people's diets. The Department of Health's study...

A minute on the clock.(Interview)
May 5, 2005... Michel Roux Jnr was the fastest chef to complete this year's London Marathon. He talks to Emily Manson about what drives him... Caterer: How did it feel to cross the finishing line? MR: Excellent! I felt good on the day, and it was my best...

Bottled water set for bigger market share.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Bottled water is set to become the second most popular soft drink after fizzy drinks by 2008, according to new research from Highland Spring. Water sales account for 15% of the UK soft drink market, but are predicted to increase to 21% within...

How to...(H)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... ... save energy H Appoint an "energy champion" to take responsibility for managing energy usage in the company. H Set your thermostat to the ideal year-round working temperature of 19[degrees]C, remembering to turn heating off completely...

Letters Caterer.(Letter to the Editor)
May 5, 2005... Irish smoking ban improves the craic My son went to Ireland last week to celebrate a friend's 18th. They visited the Guinness factory, attempted to reach all the pubs and clubs of Dublin and had a ball. He said the friendliness and hospitality...

Table talk.
May 5, 2005... DUNES HELP YOU BREATHE MORE EASILY Walking across undulating sand dunes, I crush thousands of microscopic capsules buried beneath my feet, releasing subtle fragrances into the air. Do I smell "clean underwear" or is it a whiff of "woodpecker"?...

The quiet man.(sommelier Gerard Basset)(Interview)
May 5, 2005... Recently recognised by the Academy of Food & Wine Service, Gerard Basset talks to Natasha Hughes about his outstanding contribution to the sommelier's art If you polled the UK's top wine waiters, asking them to name the sommelier's...

VAT on hot take-away food.(Value-added tax)
May 5, 2005... Adrian Houstoun, VAT partner at accountancy firm Kingston Smith, sheds light on the murky issue of charging VAT on hot take-away food EXPERT ADVICE One of the most common problem areas is the one which Customs and Excise call the supply of...

Your shout.(Valuation of public houses.)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... by Barry Gillham, chairman of chartered surveyor Fleurets Profits method valuation: a thing of the past? With the proliferation of high-street A3 sites, a lot more retail surveyors have become involved with the rental valuation of public...

career clinic.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... The expert panel Our expert panel comprises representatives from the Hotel and Catering Training Company (HCTC), MaydayExec, Bartlett Mitchell, Learnpurple, Admiral Group, Conran and Portfolio International. The question I was executive chef...

how i got here.(Gordon Wright)(Brewers Fayre)
May 5, 2005... Gordon Wright, food marketing manager, Brewers Fayre Gordon Wright, 38, is a pub man born-and-bred. As early as 18 he was working in the bar of his local Berni Inn restaurant in Winchester, and he has since worked for Scottish & Newcastle,...

inside track.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2005... Elizabeth Hotels What business is it in? Midmarket hotel operator. Where is its head office and area of operation? Its headquarters are in Ipswich and it has 16 hotels from Hull to Felixstowe, but mainly in East Anglia, equating to 738...

on the move.
May 5, 2005... Steve Brice has become head of hospitality for Emirates Stadium, the new home of Arsenal football club. He joins the Gooners from racecourse Sandown Park in Surrey, where he was executive director of operations. Caviar House restaurant in...

salary watch.
May 5, 2005... Executive Chefs The UK five-star hotel market has seen a positive upturn in business over the past year, with occupancy levels remaining solid. There have been a number of groups restructuring and several changes of ownership, all of which...

stockwatch.
May 5, 2005... WHITBREAD, which last week revealed a profit increase of 17.8% over the past year to [pounds sterling]249m, saw its shares slide 7.46% to 849.5p by the end of Monday. Its performance was taken as a barometer when chief executive Alan Parker...

Masterclass... smoked haddock.
May 12, 2005... Haddock, carefully smoked, is a delicacy of rare distinction - and woefully underused in modern kitchens. Michael Raffael can help you redress the balance In the Cook and Housewife's Manual (Edinburgh, 1826), Meg Dods wrote: "An imitation...

Highland revival.(Macdonald Aviemore Highland Resort)
May 12, 2005... Aviemore, a Highlands new town of 1960s concrete, sits in some of the most breathtaking countryside in Europe. But for years it was forgotten, as Scotland's ski industry declined. Now, the new Macdonald Aviemore Highland Resort is putting the...

Last ; supper.
May 12, 2005... Chelsea strip, Chelsea venue, the Divine Jose as a speaker - and no girlies allowed. Alan Bird decides to sing the Blues at his last meal on earth Right then, tell us the grub. Prawn cocktail, steak and chips, strawberries and cream. ...

Shanghai Blues.(menu on chinese restaurants)
May 12, 2005... With ingredients such as shark's fin and jellyfish on the menu, Shanghai Blues is offering Londoners real Chinese food that isn't toned down for Western tastes Chinese restaurants in the UK are undergoing their own mini Cultural...

Scotland first.(school food meals improvement)
May 12, 2005... Scotland's Hungry for Success initiative is satisfying the appetites of ministers who want to improve school meals. With [pounds sterling]63.5m extra funding invested by the Scottish Executive since 2002, Andy Moore finds out what's changed and...

Freedom of choice will make new standards 'a nonsense'.
May 12, 2005... By Ben Walker A leading food policy expert has raised concerns that the Government's pledges to improve school meals in England will have little impact if pupils continue to be allowed freedom of menu choice. In some cases, even children as...

BOOKREVIEW.(Book Review)
May 12, 2005... A Paradiso Year: Spring and Summer Cooking (paperback) Denis Cotter Atrium, Cork University Press, [pounds sterling]13.95 ISBN 0-9535353-6-3 Denis Cotter's Cafe Paradiso is Ireland's best veggie restaurant, a perky bistro in the centre of...

Gerald Milsom dies, aged 74.(Brief Article)(Obituary)
May 12, 2005... Gerald Milsom, founder of the Pride of Britain Hotels consortium, died on 29 April in South Africa at the age of 74. The East Anglian hotelier and restaurateur was on holiday with his family when he was taken ill with double pneumonia, which...

A minute on the clock.(Stoke Park Club)(Interview)
May 12, 2005... Chris Wheeler was Jean-Christophe Novelli's group head chef for 12 years. Now he's executive chef at Stoke Park Club in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire, but the pair teamed up again for the latest series of Hell's Kitchen. He talked to Emily...

We love...(Baishakhi Mela )(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... ... Baishakhi Mela Bhangra music, Bollywood dancing and Bangladeshi cuisine... the Baishakhi Mela festival is the highlight of the Bengali calendar. Held in Brick Lane, east London, the unique extravaganza was set up by the Bengali...

Good show.(wine and spirits trade fair)
May 12, 2005... Next week's London International Wine and Spirits Trade Fair promises to be the best yet, with more than 1,200 exhibitors from 35 countries. Fiona Sims looks at what's in store The biggest event on the UK drinks calendar is back in town...

Search is on for 2005 Ramsay Scholar.
May 12, 2005... After just four years, the Gordon Ramsay Scholar has become one of the most sought-after titles on the circuit. If you're the person to succeed 2004 scholar Marcus Eaves of Hibiscus restaurant in Ludlow, Shropshire, then now's the time to...

Mackay decides ; to quit as Compass investors protest.(resignation)
May 12, 2005... Sir Francis Mackay, chairman of the world's largest food service provider, Compass Group, is to step down in February 2006. Monday's announcement came as shareholders repeated calls for heads to roll, following two profit warnings at the...

Stakeholders group sets school food trust agenda.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... A forerunner of the Government's school food trust has begun mapping out the future of school meals in the UK. The stakeholders group, which has met three times since March, has 10 members and will form the core of the trust when it starts...

School meals turn Oliver into; industry's most powerful man.
May 12, 2005... Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been named as the most influential person in UK hospitality in a new annual list. The CatererSearch 100 recognises key players whose actions are having the greatest impact, and ranks candidates on criteria...

Jowell keeps Cabinet position in hospitality.
May 12, 2005... Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary and cabinet minister charged with overseeing the department that has most influence over the hospitality industry, has retained her role in the Labour Government. Despite rumours that she was hoping for a...

UK is unlikely to follow French VAT reduction.(United Kingdom)(Value-added tax)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... France's success in securing the go-ahead to slash its VAT rates on restaurant meals from 19.6% to just 5.5% is unlikely to stimulate similar moves in the UK, according to the British Hospitality Association (BHA). The concession from Brussels...

JDW puts smoke-free pledge on hold.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Pub operator JD Wetherspoon has delayed its pledge to make 60 of its pubs non-smoking by May 1 because it has decided to upgrade the kitchens first. The group found that beer sales in converted pubs fell, while food sales soared. Food accounts...

Councils seek extension to licence change date.
May 12, 2005... A group of London councils is making a bid this week to extend the licence conversion deadline beyond 6 August, fearing thousands of licensees will miss the cut-off date. Premises applications are still rare at local authority licensing offices...

Clapham House expansion gathers pace.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... New openings by Clapham House Group (CHG), which started the year with 17 restaurants and delivery centres, will help boost its portfolio to 27 venues by June. The company, set up by two former PizzaExpress directors in 2003, last week opened...

Schools must speak up over PFI contracts.(Private Finance Initiative)
May 12, 2005... The debate over the quality of school meals persists, with parents claiming last week that Private Finance Initiative deals were preventing improvement. But, as Nic Paton reports, there are ways in which schools can take action if they're...

Bailey has highest salary but Michels earns much more.
May 12, 2005... Compass Group chief executive Mike Bailey had the highest basic salary in 2003/2004 among 20 leisure companies surveyed in the latest Pay for Performance report. Hilton boss David Michels received the biggest total pay package, however. The...

Review of the REVIEWS.(restaurants)
May 12, 2005... 7 May Bob Granleese finds the perfect skewer of meat at New Tayyabs in London's East End How's this for starters: seekh kebab at 70p a pop. Yes, really. What's more it's the best seekh you're likely to come across this side of Lahore;...

Yau pulls out of Dorchester project.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Award-winning restaurateur Alan Yau this week confirmed he has pulled out of the Dorchester's latest restaurant project planned with fashion designer David Tang. The new restaurant, China Tang, will open in what was formerly the Dorchester...

Hospitality waits for People 1st to deliver results on skills crisis.
May 12, 2005... People 1st, the Sector Skills Council for hospitality and tourism, is facing mounting criticism from the industry for failing to tackle the skills crisis. While Westminster Kingsway College and VisitBritain have endorsed People 1st's work,...

Dorchester shuffles jobs for summer relaunch.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... London's Dorchester hotel is undergoing a major overhaul this summer, with seven redundancies, up to 30 new jobs, three new restaurants and new conference and banqueting facilities. Rumours that more than 70 people were to be made redundant...

OVER; TO YOU.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Is People 1st doing enough to address the industry's skills crisis? No absolutely not - you don't gain people-management skills in academic environments and we don't necessarily need further educational qualifications. The vocationally...

Congestion charge hours could be cut.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... London restaurants in the congestion charge zone could benefit from new plans to shorten the time in which the levy operates by half-an-hour to 6pm. The proposals from Transport For London form part of a public consultation on its plans to...

London chain Giraffe to add four new restaurants this year.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Family-friendly all-day London restaurant chain Giraffe is adding four new restaurants this year. The first new outlet will open in Wimbledon Village in May with about 50 seats; a second in Heathrow's Terminal 1 in June; and a third, the...

Moscow group brings Japanese ; and Asian cuisine to London.(restaurants)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... A Moscow-based restaurant group, with an empire of 37 Japanese and Asian restaurants in Eastern Europe, is to make its UK debut at the PaddingtonCentral development in north London. Association Vesta Center International plans to open the...

Sodexho wins [pounds sterling]140m contract back from Aramark.
May 12, 2005... Aramark has lost out on a [pounds sterling]140m contract to provide catering and hospitality services at Great Leighs racecourse in Essex. After beating off competition from rivals Compass and Sodexho for the 20-year deal in January 2004, the...

Stein wins James Beard Cookbook ; of the Year.(Rick Stein )(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Chef-restaurateur Rick Stein has been recognised for his literary skills at the USA's prestigious James Beard culinary awards. Padstow's most famous resident walked away with the Cookbook of the Year award for his Rick Stein's Complete Seafood,...

Mystery bid made for Jurys Doyle.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... An approach to buy Jurys Doyle, Ireland's largest hotel group, has been made, it was confirmed this week. Although the group is currently valued at a882m ([pounds sterling]602.5m), its shares have been rising amid the rumours of a possible...

The hot hundred.(caterers ranking)
May 12, 2005... Over the past few months the Caterer Group's new website, CatererSearch, has been scrutinising the players in the hospitality market whose actions are having the greatest impact in 2005. Here we give you a taste of the CatererSearch 100 - an...

CatererSearch 100: are you on the list?(Editorial)
May 12, 2005... What is it with lists? It seems you can't switch on your TV or open a newspaper these days without stumbling across a list of some sort. There are rich lists, the top 100 greatest albums, greatest-ever films. Everyone's gone list mad. Not...

Advice zone.
May 12, 2005... Planning Policy Statement seven (PPS7) The Government has recently published its new planning policy statement seven (PPS7) for rural areas of England, which is to replace the former PPG7 published in February 1997. As chartered surveyor and...

Bradford council's in-house caterer to join private sector.(Education Contract Services)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... Education Contract Services (ECS), Bradford council's in-house catering provider, will transfer to private ownership next year. The transfer is part of the council's asset management project, a ground-breaking deal that will see a private firm...

Health and safety advice.
May 12, 2005... David Bryant, of Chadwick House Group, the trading subsidiary of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, offers health and safety advice to employers the problem The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has produced general...

How to...(PANCAKE RECEPIE)(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... ... make pancakes for crispy duck INGREDIENTS H 1kg plain white flour H 100g fine white sugar H 10g salt H 50g corn oil H 800g warm water METHOD Put the flour into a mixing bowl. Create a hole in the middle and add salt and sugar....

Letters Caterer.(Letter to the Editor)
May 12, 2005... More alcoholic drink might not mean more alcoholYour recent website story on the Datamonitor report into young women's drinking claims it "reported that women were due to increase their alcohol consumption per head to 291 litres a year by...

In brief.(Brief Article)
May 12, 2005... wHospitable Climates champions named Ross and Janet Anderson are the HCIMA's Hospitable Climates Champions of the Year. The couple won the award for their outstanding commitment to the environment at East Lochhead Country House and Cottages in...