Economy drive
Food pub Clancy's, in Cork, Ireland, was bought by Colin Ross in November for IR£3m (£2.6m). The business, which has a 115-seat bistro and a pub seating about 300, is staying open throughout a major refurbishment project. Ross and executive chef James Grimes are scrutinising the business to find ways to cut down on wastage and improve efficiency.
Some 60% of the IR£1.8m (£1.5m) projected turnover for this year is to come from food. After the refurbishment, Ross hopes to increase lunch sales by 5% and boost evening restaurant covers by 100 a week. Wet sales are also forecast to rise by 10%. Newly introduced breakfasts are already selling nearly 150 a week.
Good housekeeping is the order of the day for staff at Clancy's. Managing director Colin Ross is making sure every employee makes a conscious effort to cut out waste - and no one escapes his scrutiny.
As if to prove his point, Ross stops a barman in his tracks to ask why he is throwing away a sugar sachet that had been left unused on the table. But that is the least of his worries. What has been really annoying him is the size of Clancy's latest electricity bill.
"It's immense - we're spending IR£1,600 (£1,333) a month on electricity and I know so much of this is waste," he says.
Ross suspects that lights are often being left on all night and he has told staff in no uncertain terms to be more careful.
Other measures being taken at Clancy's will also help to cut power bills. For instance, this month a new coldroom incorporating a freezer is being installed to replace three existing coldrooms plus three chest freezers.
Executive chef James Grimes has also been nagging staff to get better organised in the kitchen. "We are like a couple of mother hens, running around telling everyone to tidy up," he says.
With the annual staff wage bill at IR£400,000 (£333,333) and set to rise by 12% this year, Ross wants to ensure everyone is contributing to the team effort. He felt that three of the full-time bar staff were not doing so, and sent them packing. "They had the wrong work ethic," he says.
On the whole, Ross and Grimes are pleased with their team and are especially proud of the awards brought home from the Catex exhibition in Dublin. Commis chef Aoife Delanty scooped the gold award in the Junior Vegetarian competition, assistant restaurant manager Keith Lawlor and head chef Frank O'Connor received a certificate of merit in a three-course cook-serve competition, and senior chef de partie John O'Keeffe picked up a merit in the Junior Fish sector plus the top award for hygiene.
Senior sous chef Barry Downey was not so fortunate, however. On arriving at his hotel in Dublin, he asked the staff to refrigerate a chicken he had taken with him. But the next morning, he found it had been put into the freezer instead of the fridge. "He was competing in an hour and had to forfeit his place," says Grimes. "He was devastated."
Back at Clancy's, the new regime of alternating evening and day teams covering the pub lunches and the bistro hit problems. When heads of departments had their days off, standards were slipping, particularly in the restaurant during the evenings. "There was no solid back-up, which put the team under too much pressure," says Grimes.
To remedy this, the three most senior chefs will now stay put in the bistro while a new sous chef, Maria Lowney, will deputise for daytime head chef Siobhan Kennedy.
The pub refurbishment was delayed by a few days to avoid losing half the pub space on St Patrick's Day.
This proved a wise move - the pub was busy all day, with people drifting in for lunch until 4pm. Along with the usual carvery and lunchtime menu, oysters and hot dogs were offered free as part of a Guinness promotion. Guinness provided the sausages, plus two kegs to pay for the oysters.
Boost in trade
Ross is pleased with February's turnover of IR£143,100 (£119,250), which was just 0.7% below budget. Food accounted for 58%, not far off its 60% target. March is expected to see a rise in sales and gross profit margin, helped by a boost in trade from Mother's Day and St Patrick's Day.
Replacements on the bistro menu have proved popular. One of the old dishes, sauté of chicken with casserole of butter beans with garlic at IR£9.50 (£7.91), used to sell about five a week. It was replaced with a new idea, Clancy's Cordon Bleu - chicken breast filled with honey-roasted ham and Gruyäre cheese, deep-fried in crumbs with redcurrant jus, for the same price. "It's really taken off - we sell at least 120 each week," says Grimes.
Grimes and bistro head chef Frank O'Connor are also planning to widen the range of fish dishes and have been checking out some of the more unusual varieties from the local supplier. Hilsha from Bangladesh and yellow croaker from Uruguay were among those they chose to freeze ready for an extended menu after the refurbishment.
As planned, the pub food has improved in presentation and variety. Some dishes from the bistro menu have been scaled down to make them cheaper. Grilled salmon with a puréed leek sauce, which sells for IR£10.50 (£8.75) in the restaurant, is priced at IR£4.75 (£3.96) for lunch by using a 5-6oz steak instead of an 8oz piece. A simplified garnish allows a shorter preparation time.
When the builders start work on the kitchen in the coming weeks, the pub will continue to serve lunches. Ross and Grimes have decided to hire a local contract caterer to deliver sandwiches and hot dishes in insulated boxes. With the hot dishes costing Clancy's IR£3.75 (£3.96) per serving and with the bistro closed, April will be a lean time.
Ross is concerned about the cost of beef used in the carvery. The pub used to use topside, but switched to striploin after complaints that the meat was too tough. This has gone down well with the customers, but has put the cost up by IR£1 (83p) per serving.
Prices will have to increase, but Ross will hold off until after the refurbishment. Until then, he is having to swallow the extra cost while the customers enjoy a pretty good deal.
"With every lunch dish at IR£4.75 (£3.96), it's like a subsidised canteen," he says. n
Next visit to Clancy's: 6 May
