Catering and food manufacturing equipment supplier, Euro Catering, is addressing a key skills gap in the catering sector by launching ‘Equipment Plus’ training options that provide those charged with operating hi-tech equipment with 360° support, whilst also delivering on-point consultancy in all aspects of food production or service.
Regardless of whether or not they purchase equipment from Euro Catering, end-users, restaurateurs, dealers, supermarket kitchen operatives and private individuals, whether operating ovens, rotisseries, bakery equipment, or something else, can turn to Euro Catering for training that puts them firmly in control of the controls.
Additionally, anyone requiring top-level consultancy advice, be that in relation to food product development, menu development, planning, auditing or service operations, can also benefit from informed and in-depth consultancy. This could help drive more revenue through their business, but also enhance customer satisfaction with both food and service.
The new Equipment Plus training, which is provided free to some Euro Catering customers but available to anyone, firstly enables the end-user to exact maximum value from their equipment purchase. The service is all about upskilling, but also making sure that, in a time of economic uncertainty, every facet and feature of a piece of equipment can be utilised for competitive advantage and rate of return on investment.
Secondly, it takes a holistic view of every aspect of the end-user’s service environment, assessing how gains can be made, satisfaction levels improved, new menu items developed or perfected and strategic planning and reporting enhanced.
Darren Massey believes end-users and chefs, on average, currently only use around 60% of their equipment’s functionality at best. Many could reduce operational costs and optimise their menus, if they knew how to use the functionality behind their control panel to the full, operate programme selection to their advantage and better plan recipes and dish costings.
The training works at two levels – Equipment Plus and Equipment Plus Advanced. The first is a 3-hour session, guiding the trainee through the basic operation of their equipment, its functionality and its general care. This includes programming and programme selection, cleaning advice and recipe guidance and, if desired and appropriate, cooking-off a dish or dishes using a pre-set programme.
Equipment Plus Advanced is a session of a working day’s duration and enables the trainee to do all of the above, but also go deeper into the formulation of recipes, testing of potential new product lines or dishes, advanced problem solving and trouble-shooting, menu innovation and out-of-kitchen food management and budgeting.
Training will ideally take place at Euro Catering’s state-of-the-art Culinary Centre in Daventry, but Darren and the other trainers can travel and train on-site, charging travel and any accommodation costs.
This superb training programme is overseen and largely run by Darren whose experience in the catering industry stretches over 35 years. Having worked at head chef level in hotels, restaurants, banqueting venues and contract catering operations, and as a college chef lecturer, he has a mass of knowledge to impart and a training background.
When it comes to recipe development, he is also not lacking in expertise. A role as a group executive chef for a large restaurant and brewery company, saw him developing dishes, menus and much more, before he became a globe-trotting development chef for a combi-oven manufacturer.
Channelling all of this expertise is one way in which Euro Catering is delivering immense value to caterers and restaurateurs and the next building block on the foundation that it laid when it opened its hugely impressive Culinary Centre, in January 2018.
Darren Massey says: “We believe the content of our training will be unique and the approach we are taking to this, truly enlightened. Those we work with through this programme can be using any brand of equipment, as the principles of capitalising on functionality and focusing on the minutiae of a food manufacturing or food service business, to ensure that all works in harmony and on an optimal basis, is the same regardless of what is being used.
“This is about added value, but much more. It can provide participants with all the tools they need to make their business run more effectively, dynamically and profitably, whilst generating higher levels of customer satisfaction and better product taste, presentation and payback. It might be training for half or a full-day in most cases, but it will be training with purpose and intent that will be embedded in processes forever more, if applied post-training.”
Equipment Plus costs £225 plus VAT, whilst Equipment Plus Advanced costs £495 plus VAT for a day’s training. Both costs are per person attending.
To find out more about these new training options, contact Darren Massey on 01455 559969, or email darren@euro-catering.co.uk
