Caterer & Hotelkeeper articles from October 2008

Caterer & Hotelkeeper archives from October 2008

Improving accessibility makes marketing sense.(News)
October 2, 2008... In the latest in our regular series of articles looking at the challenges facing hospitality operators ahead of the 2012 Olympics, we focus on accessibility for disabled customers. Chris Druce reports With Team GB having finished a...

Features.(culinary competition)
October 2, 2008... chefs compete for major title The biennial National Chef of the Year competition, run by the Craft Guild of Chefs and sponsored by Knorr, is one of the most respected culinary challenges in the industry today and boasts such past winners...

Infozone Foodfile ingredients in season.(Features)(Recipe)
October 2, 2008... Fresh produce There's plenty of wild produce around at the moment, from the more exclusive white truffles - the first batch of which arrived on the market last week at about [pounds sterling]2,800-[pounds sterling]3,000 per kg - to the...

Resistance to GM foods is falling away.(Side Orders)
October 2, 2008... Martin Lam is entitled to advance whatever arguments he wishes (Opinion, Caterer, 11*September, page 17), but it would help if he got more of his "facts" right Martin Lam is entitled to advance whatever arguments he wishes (Opinion,...

Unhelpful promotion.(Side Orders)
October 2, 2008... I've just been sent a promotional e-mail from Lastminute.com I've just been sent a promotional e-mail from Lastminute.com. It says hotel sales start today (great stuff) and highlights a number of hotels (no problem). Then it goes on to ask...

Insights from farm visits.(Side Orders)(Letter to the editor)
October 2, 2008... Your "Gate meets plate" article (Caterer, 18 September, page 36) made very interesting reading, in particular farmer John Geldard's comment that "One of the most fascinating things I do now is have a group of chefs on the farm.. Your "Gate...

Be prepared.(Side Orders)(Letter to the editor)
October 2, 2008... I'm concerned by recent woes in travel and tourism and the need to review customer service infrastructure I'm concerned by recent woes in travel and tourism and the need to review customer service infrastructure. At the time of its...

Chez Pierre.(Features)
October 2, 2008... After 10 years away, the colourful character behind the Pierre Victoire chain of restaurants has returned to Edinburgh to open a new eaterie, Chez Pierre. Janet Harmer reports This time round, Pierre Levicky says that he is taking things...

Picture of the Week.(Side Orders)
October 2, 2008... The light fantastic The Oxford Street Christmas lights in London are prepared for installation by experts at Piggotts seasonal illuminations. Installation, which begins on 2 November, will include placing eight large and as many as 140...

Make your British menus special with new cookbooks.(Features)
October 2, 2008... Two new book giveaways feature on Caterersearch.com this week, while Marcus Wareing continues to dominate the headlines. Amanda Afiya reports BOOK OFFERS Two leading chefs have joined forces with Caterersearch.com this week to give...

Club history confers a future on the St J.(Side Orders)(St James's Club)
October 2, 2008... Whatever your business, branding can help to underscore it. And creating a bespoke cocktail can certainly give a bar - and, if it's part of a hotel or restaurant, the wider establishment - a certain cachet. Particularly if you can get the drink...

Chefs' loose dress code gives our students the wrong idea.(Features)
October 2, 2008... letter of the week I am amazed that you consistently publish pictures of cooks, chefs and celebrity chefs who, in my opinion, are not professional enough to dress appropriately while at work or while having their photographs taken for...

Our back pages: stories from the Caterer vaults.(Features)
October 2, 2008... The Caterer and Hotel Keeper, 31 December 1937 The growing popularity of towns abroad, and the fact that facilities for travelling to foreign countries were so much before everybody's eyes nowadays, are affecting this country's hotel...

My life in hospitality David Pantin.(Infozone)(Occupation overview)(Personal account)
October 2, 2008... Chief executive, Pantin Hotels Highs... My first appointment in the USA was a great high. I was based in New York, as assistant to the president of Trusthouse Forte North America in 1986. New York is a great place for any youngster,...

Strategy clinic.(Infozone)
October 2, 2008... "Are incentives a good way to motivate my staff? If so, how should I go about introducing them?" Most businesses want to motivate their staff and will use incentive schemes to do so. To do this effectively, you need to identify what...

Disciplinary processes.(Infozone)
October 2, 2008... Katee Dias, of law firm Goodman Derrick, discusses the necessary steps to take if an employee is alleged to have behaved in a manner that leads you to consider disciplinary action The PROBLEM It has been alleged that one of my...

News.
October 2, 2008... Bryn Williams has taken full control of north London restaurant Odette's, two years after being appointed as head chef, Caterer can reveal. The Welsh chef joined Odette's in autumn 2006, after it reopened under the ownership of...

Win a total Coffee Solution.(Features)
October 2, 2008... Here's your chance to win a precision-built First Choice machine and First Choice Coffee, the bean-to-cup market leader in the UK hospitality industry, is giving Caterer readers the exclusive chance to win a bespoke total coffee solution....

Fruits of the sea.(Features)
October 2, 2008... The growing interest in healthier eating and the importance of using sustainable sources of food have meant that fish is more popular than ever on UK menus. And, despite the focus on fresh, local food, for some caterers the frozen option is the...

Bad week.(Side Orders)
October 2, 2008... good week Egyptian prisoners They'll be allowed to order meals from any restaurant they like after a trial run during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was deemed successful. Normality Ice-cream maker Ben & Jerry's refuses a request...

Economy slows green progress.(News)
October 2, 2008... Credit crunch turns hospitality a lighter shade of green, says new research By Kerstin Kuhn The hospitality industry is making progress on sustainability but many operators view the economic downturn as an obstacle to pursuing more...

How green is your industry?(Features)
October 2, 2008... When did you last have Wind turbines, solar panels, cycling to work - you've heard it all from David Cameron and his advisers, but how far has hospitality travelled down a green path that many, not just the Conservatives, now extol? Over...

Hilton Niseko Village, Japan.(Side Orders)
October 2, 2008... Hilton's first ski resort in Asia is located on the Japanese island of Hokkaido and offers access to 48km of ski slopes. The resort includes seven dining outlets as well as a cabin-style bar overlooking a ski piste. Opened September ...

Yotel Amsterdam, The Netherlands.(Side Orders)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... Founded by entrepreneur Simon Woodroffe, the Yotel group's first overseas outlet is located at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. Aimed at travellers facing delays or early-morning take-offs, its 57 futuristic cabins can be hired for four-hour slots...

Ivy Shanghai, China.(Side Orders)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... This boutique hotel in Shanghai is located in a former 1950s cinema and features theatrical interiors throughout. The hotel includes the Kuromatsu restaurant serving classic Japanese teppanyaki made at a seven-chef teppanyaki grill. Opened...

Rose Rotana, Dubai.(Side Orders)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... Housed in a 333m tower and spread over 72 floors, this is the world's tallest single-use hotel, located on Dubai's Sheikh Zayed Road. Dining outlets include Petals, an informal all-day dining restaurant, and Cafe Rose, a lobby cafe serving...

Go green but don't go into the red.(News)
October 2, 2008... Never mind Black Monday welcome to Green Month, Caterer and Hotelkeeper's annual focus on the environmental issues surrounding the hospitality industry. Over the coming month, we'll be giving extensive coverage to the green debate, showcasing...

Going places.(Infozone)
October 2, 2008... Julie Hammond has been made the new general manager of the St Johns hotel, Solihull, Birmingham, which is part of the Principal Hayley Group. Previously, Hammond was general manager of another Principal Hayley property - Eastwood Hall in...

News.(Infozone)
October 2, 2008... * Immigration 'too complicated' The UK immigration system is still "tremendously complicated", with employers expected to shoulder most of the burden, an expert has warned. Don Flynn, director of the Migrants' Rights Network, claims the...

How green are you?Catey-winning hotelier Vanessa Scott kicks off Green Month with her eco-review of three businesses.(Features)
October 2, 2008... WIN - a coffee machine and a year's supplies Masterclass: ossobuco, the Milanese classic infozone: Can staff perks contribute to the newly increased minimum wage? Skills crisis Peter Lederer says the solution is to promote...

The real veal.(Features)(Recipe)
October 2, 2008... Ossobuco has been traduced in a way few Milanese would recognise, yet in its classic form it's a big-flavoured combination with good mark-up potential. Fabrizio Cadei, of Milan's Principe di Savoia, shows Michael Raffael how to cook the dish...

Right under our noses.(Side Orders)(skills shortage in hospitality industry)
October 2, 2008... Peter Lederer, chair of the new hospitality diversity body, One and All Foundation, says that the industry could solve the skills shortage in an instant by looking more closely at internal talent The One and All Foundation, launched...

Over to you.(Side Orders)(workplace diversity)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... How can we improve diversity in management? Max Ball, general manager, Ramada Hyde Park, London "We can improve by accepting that the onus is on us as managers to identify excellent employees from minority backgrounds and support their...

A minute on the clockRob Hartwell.(News)
October 2, 2008... Rob Hartwell is the 2008 Acorn Scholar, who is on a sabbatical from his role of sous chef at the Peach Pub Company. With the deadline for the 2009 scholarship just over a week away (10 October), he spoke to Kerstin Kuhn about his experience of...

Compass gets another seven years in Leeds.(News)(contract with United Kingdom. National Health Service)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... Compass Group has retained its deal to cater at Leeds NHS trust in a contract worth an estimated [pounds sterling]10m-[pounds sterling]15m over the full term, Caterer has learnt. The seven-year contract, which started on 1 October, sees...

Colleges are facing a funding shortfall for chef diploma.(News)
October 2, 2008... Government spending cap leaves catering colleges in the red EXCLUSIVE By Nick Huber Catering colleges have warned that they don't have enough money to teach the Professional Cookery Diploma, owing to a spending cap imposed by the...

The week in brief.(News)
October 2, 2008... Enterprise delays REIT plans Enterprise Inns has put plans to become first pub group to adopt tax-efficient Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) status on hold. Although Enterprise has been given the go-ahead by the tax man to place its...

If in doubt...Let's eat out!(News)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... The number of people eating out hit its highest level since last June in the first two weeks of September, with pubs the main beneficiary, research has revealed. Consultancy FMCG's regular QuickBite eating out tracking survey of more than 1,000...

National Trust is given three historic hotels.(News)
October 2, 2008... Properties will continue to be run by existing managers Bodysgallen Hall in Conwy is one of the three properties given to Europe's largest conservation body as a going concern By Nick Huber Three historic hotels, including a listed...

Licensees want an end to beer ties.(News)
October 2, 2008... The overwhelming majority of licensees want the beer tie that is imposed by pub companies to be scrapped, research has found. In a survey by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) of its 1,000 publican members, 94% said that exclusive...

Appeal Court reverses glassware ban.(News)
October 2, 2008... An appeal court's decision to overturn a blanket ban on glasses at a Hertfordshire bar has been hailed as a "victory for common sense". The bar, 24/7 in St Albans, was banned from serving drinks in glass containers at a licence review in...

London tourism supremo quits to return to retail.(News)
October 2, 2008... James Bidwell is to quit his job as the figurehead of tourism for London to become managing director of the European business of a US-based fashion retailer. Bidwell, who has led tourism board Visit London for three years, will leave at...

Chocolatier Curley quits Society link.(News)
October 2, 2008... Curley will concentrate, for now, on building his brand and website sales Former Acorn award-winning chocolatier William Curley and his wife, Suzue, have closed their shop in London's Shepherd's Market just a year after acquiring the site...

Contract caterers back Jamie Oliver on schools funding.(News)
October 2, 2008... Industry chiefs add weight to call for additional investment By Chris Druce Jamie Oliver's claim that the majority of school kitchens do not have proper facilities because of insufficient funding has been backed by the contract...

Side Orders.(Image Hotel terminated its male workers for unethical behavior)
October 2, 2008... Table Talk Room service is free Table Talk was amused by the tale of the Turkish hotel that sacked all its male employees because they took customer "service" to new levels. The male staff at the Image Hotel in the Mediterranean...

My worst job.(Infozone)(Julian Prosser )(Interview)
October 2, 2008... Julian Prosser became executive chef at the four-star Macdonald Roxburghe hotel in Edinburgh earlier this year. A chef for 21 years, Prosser learnt his trade working under Terry Laybourne at both Matfen Hall, Northumberland, and 21 Queen...

The briefing.(Infozone)(rule for retirement age)(Enhanced Capital Allowance incentive scheme to conserve energy)(Brief article)
October 2, 2008... * Setback in retirement battle Employees wanting to work beyond the age of 65 were dealt a blow earlier this week. A preliminary legal opinion by the Advocate General at the European Court of Justice rejected Age Concern's claim that...

A time for ethics?(Infozone)(hotels are using Fairtrade products)
October 2, 2008... Fairtrade - is it just a gimmick for the good times or an ethical revolution that will survive the economic downturn? Catherine Wheatley finds out At London's Cavendish hotel, a commitment to purchase Fairtrade tea and coffee is an...

Review of Reviews.(Features)
October 2, 2008... Time Out 25 September No Thai restaurant is complete without a portrait of the king, but Rosa's on Brick Lane has a picture of The King, discovers a suprised Guy Dimond. The photo was taken when Elvis met the king and queen of...

Infozone.
October 2, 2008... The problem Dave works as a waiter. He is 21 years old and gets paid [pounds sterling]4 per hour. His employer gives him a free meal at the end of his shift each day, which he says counts towards his pay. At the same time, Dave's employer...

The Scott report.(Features)
October 2, 2008... Are you recycling? Do you use long-life light bulbs in your reception? In a word, Best Western Yew Lodge Hotel The Yew Lodge implemented its green policy 18 months ago in response to rocketing energy costs. After advice from the Carbon...

Infozone Foodfile ingredients in season.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Fresh produce Fish There's a great selection of English orchard fruits around. Comice, Conference and Beurre Hardy pears are all arriving regularly. The apple choice is enormous. We expect to have superbly crisp, almost egg-shaped...

Montagu Arms.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Nine months after gaining his first Michelin star at the Goose in Oxfordshire, ex-Roux Scholar Matthew Tomkinson has moved south to take on a bigger challenge. Tom Vaughan reports There's an ambition in Matthew Tomkinson that assures you...

Disciplinary processes.(Infozone)
October 9, 2008... Katee Dias, of law firm Goodman Derrick, discusses the necessary steps to take if an employee is alleged to have behaved in a manner that leads you to consider disciplinary action The PROBLEM It has been alleged that one of my...

Catch all the action from the industry's top competitions.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Two prestigious competitions feature on our video channel this week - the Knorr National Chef of the Year and the Restaurant Association's Young Chef Young Waiter final. Amanda Afiya reports CHEF AND WAITer VIDEOS The past 10 days have...

Paris hotel sale confirms demand for big deals.(News)
October 9, 2008... The five-star HA[acute accent]tel Prince de Galles in central Paris has sold for about [pounds sterling]111m The sale of a Paris hotel for more than [pounds sterling]100m shows that there is still demand for large-scale hotel deals, experts...

A whole week of chocolate.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Order in the extra Colgate, because starting on 13*October is UK Chocolate Week, a seven-day excuse to celebrate the dark brown indulgence. Take the opportunity to pop into one of the many chocolate stores showcasing its produce during the week...

The briefing.(Infozone)(survey of employees regarding their training)(challenges of the small businesses)(Brief article)
October 9, 2008... * Employees lack training An alarming number of employees in Europe claim that they have not received sufficient training for tasks they are expected to undertake at work, a recent poll by e-learning specialist SkillSoft has found. The...

News.(Infozone)
October 9, 2008... * Sick staff carry on working Nearly three in 10 workers in the catering sector feel pressurised into returning to work as soon as possible when off sick, according to research. The survey of more than 1,200 employees by healthcare provider...

Spin the bottles.(Features)
October 9, 2008... It's amazing how many barmen insist their customers want only Becks or Bacardi and Coke - no, they would never be interested in a cocktail with premium Bourbon or an Italian liqueur, apparently. Yet it could be that these stewards of the bar...

TheWasteland?(Features)
October 9, 2008... A staggering 3.3 million tonnes of food waste from hotels, restaurants and bars goes into landfill sites every year. Janet Harmer looks at how the hospitality industry can reduce that figure in a way that would boost its environmental standing...

good weekBad week.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... Health-conscious Americans California becomes the first US state to force fast-food restaurant chains to list calories on their menus. Traditionalists After a 10-year campaign, officials in Europe give Melton Mowbray pork pies Protected...

The good fish guide.(Features)
October 9, 2008... "Don't use cod", "only serve sardines from the Atlantic over the winter months" - when it comes to buying fish for your restaurant the edicts fly around. With so much concern over preserving stocks and not harming the environment, it's hard to...

York & Albany, London.(Side Orders)(Gordon Ramsay Holdings)(Brief article)
October 9, 2008... Gordon Ramsay's first hotel operation is located in Camden, north London, and includes a restaurant, bar and deli overseen by chef-patron Angela Hartnett. The 10 bedrooms are individually designed. Opened 29 September Owner Gordon...

Broome & Delancey, London.(Side Orders)(Brief article)
October 9, 2008... Rising Star's latest venture, in Clapham, south-west London, includes a Champagne bar, two dining rooms and an alfresco terrace. With an all-day brasserie and rA[acute accent]tisserie, it serves a menu of classic American and European dishes....

Bel Canto, London.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... This is Paris-based Bel Canto's first UK restaurant, which is tucked away on Minster Court in the City. It combines French food with opera-singing staff, who serenade diners with favourites by the likes of Mozart, Puccini and Verdi. Opened...

Young Chef Young Waiter 2008.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Chef Alejandro Jose Cancino and waiter William Bonfield came out on top in this year's Young Chef Young Waiter competition. Amanda Afiya was there to see all the action Young Chef winner Alejandro Jose Cancino seasons his main course ...

It's reds, whites and blues - and lots more.(Side Orders)(Great British Cheeses)(Book review)
October 9, 2008... Book Review Great British Cheeses Jenny Linford Dorling Kindersley, [pounds sterling]12.99 ISBN 978-1-4053-3436-5 Once a dying art in the British Isles, artisanal cheesemaking has been undergoing a renaissance over the...

How to: book the highest-paying customer.(Infozone)(Brief article)
October 9, 2008... By Ally Dombey, managing director, training provider IFH UK Very often it feels as if everyone books into a hotel at the last minute. If you chat to hoteliers, the most common lead time cited for all bookings is within two weeks. But,...

Going places.(Infozone)
October 9, 2008... Lennoxlove House, the country house hotel near Edinburgh, has appointed Kenneth Buchanan as general manager. Buchanan worked at the Crieff Hydro, a four-star hotel in Perthshire, and the Melville Castle hotel in Edinburgh before joining...

Cod bepraisedCatey winner Tom Kitchin on why nothing beats fresh Scottish produce.(Features)
October 9, 2008... Green Month - how to cut down on waste Win a "green and clean" Electrolux dishwasher infozone: taking the right steps in the disciplinary process Spin the bottles How to make more of what you have behind the bar Best of...

Grownathome.(Features)(Restaurant review)
October 9, 2008... Gone are the days when serving exotic produce meant crossing borders, or even continents, to acquire it. Much of it is now grown - or has always been grown - right here in Britain. Emma White explains how At the crack of dawn on Hurst Farm...

LettersCustomers are as green as coal.(Features)
October 9, 2008... letter of the week I read the opinion of Margaret Hodge, our minister for tourism, who recently gave a stark and broad view of the state of quality in our industry. Now she is telling us that the customer is buying on the basis of green...

Take top-class advice for TV.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... Hundreds of businesses in the leisure and hospitality industries are among those threatened by the current economic climate, and many of these won't survive to see the end of the financial year Hundreds of businesses in the leisure and...

Service gets a smile - at last.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... As the person privileged with the task of hosting the Young Chef Young Waiter awards night, I should like to add my congratulations to the winners and all 16 finalists but also to the Restaurant Association for giving equal attention to waiters...

Lay off good guy Gordon.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... I think that Gordon Ramsay gets lots of bad press for speaking his mind I think that Gordon Ramsay gets lots of bad press for speaking his mind. One has to ask: why? I have always found Gordon down to earth, especially considering his...

Leadership Programme is the answer.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... Peter Lederer makes some important points about growing talent from within (Opinion, page 18, 2 October), but perhaps there is also the need, and an opportunity to create a Caterer and Hotelkeeper Leadership Programme Peter Lederer makes...

Griff gets it almost right.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... I was delighted to read Griff Rhys Jones in the Mail on Sunday: "I eat out at Villandry on Great Portland Street, London, a lot I was delighted to read Griff Rhys Jones in the Mail on Sunday: "I eat out at Villandry on Great Portland...

May the source be with you.(Infozone)(purchasing of local produce by hotels)
October 9, 2008... Local sourcing is all the rage but it's also time consuming and can be more expensive. So is it worth the effort? Janet Harmer reports The benefits of buying and serving local ingredients are well known. Locally grown and reared produce is...

Stay focused on giving value.(Side Orders)(effect of credit crunch on hotel industry)
October 9, 2008... Beppo Buchanan-Smith, proprietor of the Isle of Eriska hotel and Master Innholder, says the credit crunch could widen the gap between small and large hotel operators once again The gap between large chain hotels and small privately run...

Over to you.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... What was your biggest IT disaster at work? Kevin Mullen, operations director, Bartlett Mitchell "I have, of course, in my career had the nightmare experience - I believe credited as "sod's law" - where I've stayed up all night...

Hotels and restaurants must be flexible friends.(News)
October 9, 2008... Operating an independent restaurant in a hotel can work well, but it's essential to keep both sides talking - about everything. Kerstin Kuhn reports Last week Gordon Ramsay opened his first hotel operation, the York & Albany in Camden,...

A minute on the clockDerek Johnstone.(News)
October 9, 2008... Scottish chef Derek Johnstone last month became the inaugural winner of Masterchef The Professionals, an offshoot of the BBC television programme's competition for amateur cooks. He spoke to Joanna Wood about the experience Caterer How did...

Contents.(Side Orders)
October 9, 2008... Alejandro Jose Cancino at Young Chef Young Waiter 2008 12 7 Hotels GuestInvest failure casts doubt on buy-to-let model 9 Marketing Experts hail Pizza Hut "rebranding" 10 News analysis Making an independent hotel restaurant work...