Register

To receive our newsletter, click below…

Poll

Do celebrity chefs have a positive or negative effect on the industry?

Why pubs must be fully equipped...

16th April 2008, 10:07am

Punch Taverns, the country’s largest pub owner, which currently manages or leases over 8,400 pubs throughout the UK, has secured a deal that sees them using Lincat’s Opus 700 range of heavy duty prime cooking equipment throughout its estate.

The move follows an extensive programme of rigorous testing of the equipment in Punch Taverns' development kitchen, followed by extensive trials in several of the group's busiest pubs.

Alan Todd, Punch Taverns' Catering Development Manager, explains why a strong relationship between the two is critical:

"Our relationship with Lincat extends over several years, initially through our managed house business within Spirit Group. Having satisfied ourselves as to the quality and reliability of Lincat's range, we had no hesitation in recommending the brand throughout our tenanted estate.

Within Punch Taverns we have demanding catering requirements, calling for equipment which is robust, reliable and easy to use. We therefore decided to test various makes of equipment both in our development kitchen as well as in several of our pubs, selected for the demanding, high volume nature of their business.

Due to our recent expansion and an even greater emphasis on catering following the smoking ban, it was important to have a catering equipment supplier who could cope with our growth and supply quality, robust equipment, able to withstand the demands of a busy commercial kitchen. Lincat ticked all these boxes with Opus 700. Our chefs concluded that the equipment is 'well thought out in design and a robust, solid piece of kit'.

Lincat's modular production set up means that they are flexible and can respond quickly to changes in demand, and we have been impressed with after sales service.

They were also prepared to act on our feedback, for example by developing a more powerful rise and fall grill which offers our chefs the versatility and responsiveness they needed in a busy kitchen.

As a result we now have a strong relationship with Lincat and we are recommending their equipment with confidence to our tenants.

Our aim is to work with our retailers to help them build better businesses. So we're increasingly using the knowledge we've gained from our managed operation to help tenants looking for help to improve the profitability of their food offer.

In addition to offering day to day advice, we can also help by identifying potential new opportunities to improve kitchen efficiency. Our partnership with Lincat supports these objectives."

Click here to submit a comment!

Have your say!

To comment on this article, simply enter your name and email and send us your views. Please note that your comment will appear publicly below this article once it has been processed. For enquiries please email info@eatoutmagazine.co.uk.

RSS Feed Subscribe

August 2008

TOP STORY: Pebble Hotels develop a new take on three star market
IN BUSINESS: Fishbone expands from Kent concept to outside catering
SPECIALITY & FINE FOOD FAIR 2008:Taking a look at what’s on offer at Olympia next month
ISSUE: Canada lures catering staff to a new life across Atlantic
ON SITE: Waterside on Eastbourne seafront undergoes major facelift

View The Archive