Caterer and Hotelkeeper – 21795
we should be represented at olympics
I WAS very disappointed and disillusioned to read that the British Culinary Olympic Team has had to pull out of the forthcoming Olympics in Berlin because of lack of funds (News, 1 August).
It is extremely sad that we will not be at the Olympics this year. We have had four years to prepare for this prestigious event, and sponsorship should have been signed and sealed a long time ago.
In my experience of fund-raising, there are many good companies in our industry who would, I feel sure, be happy to support a team that truly represents the best this country can offer and which can give maximum publicity to its sponsors across many activities.
This country has nothing to fear. The standard of food set, both in live theatre and display, is a credit to all those concerned.
We have many chefs who have talents just waiting to be harnessed.They have proved themselves in the work-place, Salons Culinaires and many national and international competitions.
I see them every year at the various events I am involved with.
Unfortunately, the British team did not compete at the last two Hotelympia exhibitions and will now not represent us at the Olympics in Berlin.
Two of the chosen team members named in the news story let me down badly at this year's Hotelympia, informing me with only 14 hours' notice that that their team would not be competing in La Parade des Chefs.
Clearly, something is drastically wrong. We should be present in the world culinary arena.
For the good of our industry and the talented people who are devoted to it, surely now is the time for change.
PETER GRIFFITHS
Salon Director,
Reed Hospitality Exhibitions,
Solihull,
West Midlands.
even mezzo faces staff shortages
GRAHAM Garrett, head chef at Christoph's, said that "People believe Conran has hoovered up the cream of the staff for his mega-operations" (Menuwatch, 25 July).
The copy then went on to imply that this was the reason he was unable to find suitably qualified staff.
This is not the first time such a remark has been made and I would like to clarify the situation.
Far from "hoovering up" staff, we too are facing a shortage of good applicants, particularly in the kitchen. We recognise that this is an issue affecting everyone and is a direct result of the industry's failure to attract more young people.
When we opened Mezzo last September, we created employment for nearly 350 people, recruiting not only those qualified but also individuals from other professions.
Instead of being credited for stimulating the economy, we have received negative remarks from various sectors of the industry.
It is time that some individuals stopped complaining that staff shortages are our fault and looked at the bigger picture, working together to find a solution to the current situation.
Last year, Conran Restaurants, Groupe Chez Gérard, Catering & Allied, the Hospitality Training Foundation and several other companies joined forces with the London Docklands Development Corporation and the London Borough of Southwark to open the Butlers Wharf Chefs School, providing training for the employed and unemployed.
We hope that this project, together with our support of a number of industry bodies and training initiatives, will start to encourage more young people to make catering their chosen profession.
We are all committed to maintaining the high culinary standards that the UK is now associated with and it is therefore essential that we not only address the immediate staff shortages but also work together to find a long-term solution to the problem.
JOEL KISSIN
Managing Director,
Conran Restaurants,
London SE1.
advice on getting round the regulars
AS EVER, Graham Webb's Reader Diary (8 August) provides an enjoyable insight into his world.
I'm not sure that I should presume to advise a man who has customers queuing outside his door, but he did pose the question of how to break news of change to the regulars.
As Mr Webb discovered on moving bar tables into his splendid new function room, people hate change of any description. They particularly dislike having change sprung upon them, and any subsequent explanation tends to be seen as "excuses".
So how about presenting all the Sunday bar meal diners for the next several weeks with a note explaining the coming change in service, and inviting them to try the Sunday table d'hôte, complete with a suitable incentive for their first visit? If £14.50 is beyond their budget then their trade will still be lost for Sundays, but hopefully not their goodwill for the rest of the week.
JON COCKERILL
The Tourism Works,
The Docks,
Gloucester.
subsidy for tourism is not the answer
I REFER to the editor's Opinion (1 August) concerning additional holidays taken by Brits in Great Britain.
Good news, but the article suggested a contradiction which should be explored.
Gary Crossley stated that increased government subsidy would improve the encouraging trend that a spell of better weather had prompted.
Having said that, any improvement that has taken place coincided with a reduction of taxpayers' money. So what replaced it?
Simple! The market has identified an opportunity and, as he says, "public and private partnership" have done the rest.
Subsidy may have a place in hospitals, schools and social security, but it does not sit comfortably with private enterprise - which is what hospitality, in all its forms, is all about.
MARTIN CUMMINGS
Amberley Castle,
Amberley,
Arundel,
West Sussex.
we will fight them in the cellars
I AM fed up with the problems the European Union (EU) and in particular Germany is causing Great Britain and its farmers over BSE - with no scientific justification at all.
The final straw was the German agriculture minister calling for even more restrictions on British beef rather than the reduction and eventual withdrawal of the ban as agreed at the last EU summit.
In addition, the sight of Germans burning the Union Jack in the streets made me feel expressing one's revulsion and disgust was not enough.
I am currently doing an annual review of my hotel's wine list, which contains 74 bins of wine, including four German varieties. This time I am taking out all the German wines. If they don't want our beef - we don't need their wines.
I hope many other hotels and restaurants will follow suit. This is the only sort of action the Germans understand.
We will also be adding a Welsh wine to our list.
WARREN HAWKSLEY MP
Edderton Hall,
Welshpool,
Powys.
hours are too taxing for staff
I AM writing in response to the recent letters regarding the perennial problem of staffing.
I too have had problems recruiting experienced staff for my kitchen, and I realise that part of the reason is the hours that we ask our chefs to do.
With this in mind I am going to introduce a straight shift pattern for my team, which will increase in number from 11 to 16. However, I can only do this when I have a more skilled team than I have now.
The answer that I can see is to train up a suitable team from scratch - a very difficult task!
Having had some discussion with the team it has been decided that the kitchen porters, hereinafter referred to as kitchen assistants, will become part of the food preparation team and that the chefs will have to do more cleaning than they do now.
Chefs will work four straight shift patterns and one "double" per week, giving an average week of 46.5 hours. Kitchen assistants will work five straight shifts and an average 42.5 hours.
The main mise en place time will be during the afternoon when the early and late shifts will overlap. There will be breaks during the day for lunch, dinner and cleaning. The kitchen assistants will be trained to do breakfast and sandwiches and other "easier" tasks. The team will include three National Vocational Qualification trainees of varying experience, whose pay rates are guaranteed to increase as they become more experienced.
This shift pattern, the bonus scheme that we already have and the interesting menu that we offer will, I hope, make this an attractive place to work.
How far away from this nirvana am I? I do not know, but I am hoping for late October. I will keep you posted.
NICK STEIGER
Chef-patron,
The Old Bridge,
Huntingdon,
Cambridgeshire.
