Auf Wiedersehen fat
If you think building workers are prone to high-cholesterol feeding frenzies, think again. One catering company in Hampshire has found that its bistro fare is just the ticket for the men in hard hats. David Tarpey reports.
Cement mixers, scaffolding, loud drills, long hours and hard physical toil is the norm for your average construction worker so, not unreasonably, food takes on an exaggerated importance. The options, however, are usually your own sandwiches or a flask of soup taken while sitting on a muddy block of wood.
Yet all this could be about to change if a pioneering new approach at a Ministry of Defence (MoD) building site in Andover, Hampshire, catches on.
For the past six months, the fledgling catering arm of supplies and cleaning firm Milbourne Support Services has been serving breakfast and lunch to a growing clientele of builders and some office workers. But don't come looking for burgers or Spam in batter. Rather, think garlic, chillies, chicken roulade or tagliatelle; think something akin to what you'd get in your neighbourhood bistro.
It all started when building firm Pearce Construction was impressed by the cleaning service that Milbourne was providing for it and suggested that it had a stab at providing food for the men working on its building sites. Milbourne did some research, discovered that existing catering provision for construction workers was basic, and within months had signed a deal with the MoD. It means that the Government body provides, free of charge, the space for the kitchen and pays all utility bills while Milbourne wins the hearts of the workers by keeping their stomachs satisfied.
Working from a temporary kitchen in a converted office, its catering manager, David Baker, and his assistant were determined to do something different. As a trained chef and lecturer with a background in restaurants and hotels, Baker was not about to limit his repertoire to the obvious. From the start, he noticed a big interest among the workers for anything imaginative he provided.
He explains: "This experience has totally opened my eyes. These guys don't want what you might think they'd eat. They're much better educated than you'd expect, and they start comparing my food here to restaurants that they've been to. They think that, for the prices we charge, it's a fair comparison. They're big on carbohydrates such as pasta, but they really go for the creative stuff. Pigeon breast with an apricot coulis has been one of the most popular dishes."
So popular are Baker's half-dozen daily options that he now takes punters' lunch money with their orders when they arrive on-site. This is ideal because it allows him to cut down on wastage. Daily favourites, by popular demand, include cottage pie and some sort of curry dish. Other top choices include various turkey escalopes in lemon and pepper breadcrumbs, stir-fried beef with egg-fried rice, and various stuffed chicken dishes.
Surprisingly, he has found that fish and chips has not caught on because, as Baker says, "they realise what else they can get here".
The success of the operation speaks for itself. Over breakfast and lunch, Baker serves as many as 120 customers a day. This has increased by 10-15% each week and continues to do so, as more builders and office workers arrive at the site. His monthly turnover is around £6,000, and this too is rising by about 10% each week. His profit margin hits an average of 55-58%.
The customer breakdown shows that, of the current on-site workforce of about 140, around 80% are regular diners. The great majority wear hard hats and muddy boots, while those in shirts or skirts make up the rest. Baker estimates the age range for both types of worker to be 22-45, with most in their early 30s. Average spend is £4.40 for one course, including drinks.
He says: "We've tried to get away from providing just greasy-spoon food or something from a van. Most of these people go out to nice restaurants and go abroad on holiday and eat well there, so why not here? Serving up good food stops them going down the pub so, for their employer, that's another bonus."
Breakfast is, of course, a significant event in the working day of men who start at 7am and often don't finish until 6pm. Here, the fry-up remains popular, but Baker adds small touches such as offering eggs in poached and scrambled form as well as fried, but he griddles them to cut down on the fat. He also provides pastries and croissants.
An attempt to provide a range of Granary and brown breads was, however, not successful. He now sticks to pure white bread.
The kitchen is open-plan and Baker thinks that letting the diners see him work helps to build confidence in his cooking. He puts hygiene top of his agenda, and proudly refers to his excellent ratings from a recent EHO inspection.
He is also impressed by how the workers try to clean their boots on specially provided carpets before they arrive. They even clear away their plates. Baker is sure they respect his unusual work canteen because it delivers a surprise and surpasses expectations.
The contract runs for almost another two years so, not surprisingly, he plans to take on three new staff in his temporary kitchen this month. Beyond that, his company has firm plans to take the model to other construction sites where word of Baker's meals has reached.
Of the future, Baker says: "It will be totally different and exciting, because our name is being put around a lot now. We have more and more delivery drivers making a beeline for us at lunchtime, even though they really don't need to be here then. And all the time, I hear the builders on their phones bragging to their mates elsewhere about the food they can get here."
Milbourne Support Services
Head office: Racedown House, Thruxton Down, Andover, Hants SP11 8PR
Tel: 01264 889249
E-mail:milbourne.services@talk21.com
Group turnover: (1999, latest available): £5m
Staff: 600
History: the company was founded in 1973 by current chairman Tom Marriott, a graduate of Harvard Business School
Services: Milbourne offers a range of cleaning services as well as in-house security; the move into catering has just begun
Company motto: Do it right first time
Clients: include Daewoo Electronics, Lucent Technology, Surtech Interconnection, Saab GB, J Sainsbury, Samsung Electronics, WH Smith
Area of operation: extends from the London area across southern England to include Brighton, Bournemouth, Taunton, Bristol, Oxford, Watford
Lunch options
David Baker now offers as many as eight main-course lunch dishes. These always feature pasta, vegetarian, meat and fish dishes.
Typical items include salmon fish cakes, goujons of plaice, oven-baked cod in white wine and lemon sauce, fisherman's pie, various curries, and Cumberland sausages in onion gravy.