Case Study: The Manor House
Head chef Nick Jeffels and his kitchen team at the award-winning Manor House Conference Centre and Hotel couldn’t wait to put their new skills into practice, each time they returned from a Fresh Skills for Chefs masterclass.
Delegates and guests at the venue in Godalming, Surrey, have also benefited, with the new knowledge and techniques reflected in the food served.
Nick was quick to sign up to the programme: “When you consider the low cost, the range of courses and the opportunities to learn from specialists, it was an opportunity too good to miss,” he said.
Already committed to using local produce wherever he could, Nick has also discovered further local suppliers and introduced new ideas onto the menu, using skills he and colleagues have developed.
“You can get ‘stuck in the mud’ in the kitchen and your menu can become a bit repetitive, so I was keen to embrace fresh ideas. Because they are practical, short courses that are taught by experts in specific areas of cooking, you can learn a lot which you can then take back to the business.”
The Manor House is now baking and serving its own bread daily as a direct result of the pastry chef and commis chef attending the bread-making course. Nick also enjoyed a Chef’s Tour of Surrey-based food and drink producers, subsequently adding a vegetable grower to his list of regular local suppliers.
With 10 conference and meeting rooms of varying sizes, plus 31 bedrooms, The Manor House typically caters for 70-80 covers at lunchtime, ranging from finger buffet to full lunch, and up to 60 people in the evening.
Nick’s sous chef and other kitchen staff have also benefited from the training: “It is very much an environment where you learn every day, but it was a great chance for them to learn from someone other than me. They have come back to the kitchen really enthused and wanting to put their skills into practice.”
The Manor House is already recognised as one of the south east’s top quality conference venues, having won the regional Tourism ExSEllence Awards Business Tourism category twice in recent years. Its green credentials were underlined when the business was highly commended in the Sustainable Tourism award in 2008.
As well as boosting the Manor House, Nick firmly believes Fresh Skills for Chefs has an important role in helping improve the region’s wider hospitality sector.
“It’s easy for businesses, such as some pubs, to rely on ‘flat pack’ catering, bringing in frozen ready meals. While they have low wastage, they do not offer any real food quality to customers,” he said.
“This initiative is about opening people’s eyes to what is available locally and how they can use it by giving them new cooking skills. Sourcing locally reduces transport costs and of course improves quality of ingredients. With rises in food prices, using local suppliers and improving your menu and standards of food can increase revenue and gross profit.”
