Farm Shop’s Kitchen Project Has Been No Waste of Energy

Euro Catering has not only delivered informed consultancy advice, but also supplied top-notch catering equipment, to allow a hugely popular Leicestershire farm shop to expand its culinary proposition through the opening of a new tea shop.

 

The Attfield’s Farm Shop, with a heritage stretching back to the 1960s, prides itself on the quality of its local produce and has long been encouraged to add an eatery, where customers could relax after their shopping or meet up with friends.

Having decided to create the Attfield’s Country Kitchen, it called upon Euro Catering’s Franco Sparano for advice on the equipment that could best handle the desired menu, whilst also being very mean when it came to energy and water consumption.

Working with  distributor partner,  Caterlink UK, Franco designed the new kitchen and front-of-house counter from scratch, specifying a Palux Topline heavy-duty modular suite, with induction plates, fryers, planchas and vario pans, plus a Giorik Steambox combi-oven.

The Topline suite benefits from the very latest ergonomic thinking and engineering and offers the stylish appearance of a mono-block, which is  a clever illusion created by the unique Palux-patented and watertight joining system.  Hygiene considerations are also at the kitchen’s heart and the approach taken makes the suite extremely easy to clean.  Additionally, the suite is futureproofed for any future menu changes, as individual components can be taken out, or slotted in as required.

The suite is designed to optimise workflow and in-kitchen communication, whilst also reducing the distance the chefs need to travel, whilst preparing food. Its appliances are proven multi-functional workhorses, with the Palux vario pan a prime example.  This can cook meat, fish, flour dishes, potatoes, soups and sauces and provide the best frying and browning results, with very little oil and thus healthier dishes, because of its stainless-steel frying top.

With only low-heat radiation generated whilst cooking with induction plates, and short heat-up times for equipment like the vario pan, Attfield’s kitchen’s working environment is much cooler. Additionally, its energy bills are tumbling, thanks to ‘heat on demand’.

Energy savings – important to owner Paul Attfield – are being derived via the use of a Giorik combi-oven, which can cook a wide variety of dishes, with a precise and intelligent use of steam.  Superb control over the temperature and density of the steam used, prevents oxidising, burning or drenching of dishes and the humidity is adjustable according to whether the chef wishes to use wet or dry steam.

The unit is as capable of turning out delicate puff pastries as it is sous-vide, poached dishes or roasted meats or vegetables, delivering flexibility and better-tasting food, with locked-in flavours and minimal shrinkage.   The Giorik-patented Meteo water system, is also saving Attfield’s kitchen 30% on the water consumption that would be required to operate other combi-ovens.  The oven only takes more water on board if required, with this operational intelligence being a godsend when it comes to the utility bills.

Attfield’s Farm Shop’s chef, Chris Merrick, has been particularly surprised by two things – the speed with which the Palux induction units heat up and their responsiveness when turned down, plus the lack of unnecessary heat emitted by the planchas and vario pans during service.  The plancha sears and grills food to perfection, leaving the team delighted with their equipment choices and happier with their working environment.

Owner Paul Attfield says: “We love our new kitchen, which officially opened on August 1 2018 and which is already delighting customers. We are open seven days a week, but know we have the equipment to cope with the demands of a varied menu, which requires us to employ different cooking methods and keep up with customer demand.

“We have the ideal kitchen workflow, energy-efficient equipment that will not eat into our budget and a suite and oven that are easy to clean and operate.  We feel we have set ourselves up with the best choices in the market and these will stand our kitchen in good stead for years to come.”

Franco Sparano adds: “On the basis of energy costs alone, the combination of Palux and Giorik equipment is an easy sell.  When you then consider the way in which the suite is manufactured and modelled, the intelligence of the equipment and its design and the fact that the gripes of any kitchen – the heat and the clean-down – no longer niggle the team, everyone is a winner.  When clients can also learn how to best use their equipment, by working with our in-house development chef, Darren Massey, it is no surprise to discover that clients are delighted with what we can offer.”

More information about Palux and Giorik equipment, which UK distributors can only supply by working with Euro Catering, is available at www.euro-catering.co.uk  Details of Attfield’s Farm Shop can be found at www.attfieldsfarmshop.co.uk