Scottish catering and hospitality news in Scotland

Four Scottish chefs raised a glass for Maggie's Cancer Caring Centres by attending a special dinner in support of the charity's latest fundraising campaign, 'A Knife, a Fork, a Bottle & a Cork'.

Gamba's Derek Marshall, Abode's Martin Donnelly, The Ubiquitous Chip's Ian Brown and Gleneagles' Andrew Fairlie (pictured L-R with Maureen Fey, centre) joined centre users in attending the four-course dinner held at the Maggie's Centre in Glasgow, one of five Centres offering emotional, psychological and practical support for people affected by cancer.

A Knife, a Fork a Bottle & a Cork is a fun way of raising money for Maggie's and helping people build a life beyond cancer,' says Maggie's Glasgow Centre Head, Maureen Fee.

'We wanted to raise awareness of the campaign and also communicate to the chefs how the warm and friendly atmosphere of Maggie's is key to our success, just as the sophisticated surrounds of their restaurants is central to what they do.

'What we'd like people to do is host a dinner party but instead of guests bringing flowers or wine, they each make a donation to Maggie's. Each guest in turn then goes on to hold their own dinner party, and then their guests each set up a soiree and so it goes on. Whether it's a dinner, lunch, brunch or breakfast, any occasion can be turned into a KFBC event. Eventually hundreds, hopefully thousands, of dinner parties will be taking place, raising thousands of pounds for Maggie's and enabling us to help people build a life beyond cancer.'

Maggie's 'A Knife, a Fork, a Bottle & a Cork' campaign aims to encourage as many people as possible to hold dinner parties for the charity and raise thousands of pounds in the process.

'Everyone around the table had been affected by cancer in someway and it was a real honour and privilege for me to share the dinner with them,' says Andrew Fairlie.
'The food, service and company were all fantastic. It was a really wonderful night.'

For more information on how to host a fundraising dinner, contact Maggie's on 0800 047 0686.

Craig Millar, Executive Head Chef and Co-director of The Seafood Restaurants, will cook up a culinary storm this weekend to launch the NEW Yellowstone Chalet in Sainte Foy (pictured).
Craig is being flown out to Sainte Foy later this week, ahead of some of the finest Scottish food supplies, to create a banquet of dishes for the first guests to Yellowstone. Craig, who has cooked for Michael Douglas and Sean Connery at his restaurant in St Andrews, will be incorporating seasonal Scottish and French produce into the menu for the launch.

Often referred to as the 'Jewel in the Crown' of the French Alps, the resort of Sainte Foy is situated beneath Mount Pourri and above the Tarentaise Valley.

For more information on Sainte Foy and the Yellowstone Chalet, visit the Premier Neige website.

Greywalls in East Lothian has been nominated in four categories in the 2007 Scottish Hotel Awards.
The country house near Gullane, which opened as a hotel in 1948, has been nominated as the Scottish Luxury Hotel of The Year, and the manager, Sue Prime, has been shortlisted for the Hotel Manager of the Year. The restaurant, which has received a number of accolades since the arrival on Head Chef David Williams in April 2005, has also been nominated in two categories: Hotel Restaurant of the Year, and Chef Williams has been selected for the Scottish National Hotel Chef of the Year.

'We have worked hard over the years to make Greywalls the place it is, and we look forward to the results of the awards,' says Sue. 'The fact that it is a joint decision by both the public and the panel means alot to us.'

The Scottish Hotels of the Year Awards are appraised by a panel of judges that include Marco Truffelli, CEO of VisitScotland.com, former AA chief hotels inspector David Young, Sandra Hutton of the Tourism Innovation Group and The Herald food critic, Ron McKenna.
The results will be announced at an awards ceremony in Glasgow on 25 February 2007.

Visit Hotel Review Scotland for more information.

Eighty Queen Street, the traditional pub and restaurant, will be celebrating the life and times of Robert Burns on 25 January with pipers, poetry, whisky-tasting, a four-course dinner and live Scottish music.

The Devil's Kitchen, the caterers at Eighty Queen Street, will be serving a modern take on the traditional Burn's Night feast, which will be interspersed by Burns' poetry including an Ode to the Ladies and a Return to the Laddies. The live music will start at 9.30pm, and will be spread over two floors, with Scottish fiddle music downstairs or the quieter melodies of a clarsach-player in the bar upstairs.

Visit The Devil's Kitchen online for more information.

A year on since the acquisition of India Quay Restaurant in Glasgow's Finnieston Street, Manager Pardeep Sanghera has seen a two-fold increase in business compared to their original restaurant north of the river.

'A combination of location, new business, passing trade and loyal customers from our first restaurant the Himalaya has resulted in a very fruitful first year of business, he says. 'The recently opened Clyde Arc has also acted to effectively bridge the gap between a number of businesses and communities on both the north and south of the river'.

Located next to the SECC and with views on to the new Clyde Arc, India Quay has also gained access to a new market of customers by attracting the staff from the new Sky Business park and from the new Daily Record, Sun and STV offices from each side of the river.

The closing date for entries for the 2007 Scottish Food Scholarship is 18 December, so if you're aged bewteen 18 and 28, contact Crimson Edge PR on 0131 311 7050.

Prizes include an internship with Martin Wishart (pictured) at his eponymous restaurant, and a week's training and accommodation at French ski resort, Sainte Foye, with luxury ski holiday provider, Premiere Neige. The winner's establishment will also receive product prizes to include £500 worth of product from Graham's Dairies, a year's supply of herbs from Scotherbs and 100 kilos of chocolate from Cacao Barry.

All budding chefs aged 18-28 by the 26th of February should contact Crimson Edge PR on 0131 311 7050 to receive their applications now.

Visit the Scottish Food Scholarship website for more information.

After eighteen years at the Roxburghe Hotel and Golf Course near Kelso, George Mack (pictured) has recently been appointed as the new General Manager.
An Aspiring chef from a young age, George arrived at the Roxburghe Hotel in 1987. With the position of chef already filled, he was offered a General Assistant post, and hasn't looked back since.
'My years at the Roxburghe have provided me with an in-depth knowledge of all aspects of the hotel and its operations, he says 'I am fully aware of the jobs my staff undertake, as I have experienced these for myself.'

Eight young chefs have reached the finals of this year's Major Mini Series competition to be held at the Hospitality Show, NEC Birmingham on 23rd January 2007.

Run in conjunction with the Craft Guild of Chefs, the competition is aimed at recognising and encouraging excellence in catering students. The finalists will have one hour to prepare, cook and serve two different main course dishes from a 3lb chicken using Major Mari-Base Marinades.

Following the launch at the Bournemouth Wessex Salon Culinaire Exhibition in March 2006 and consequent heats in Bath, Henley and Westminster colleges, those selected for the final are:

Ryan Lowrey - Royal Garden Hotel
Lee Ann Jones ? Westminster College
Carl Janus Mitchelll ? Westminster College
Mark Froydenlund ? Westminster College
Rob Stacey ? Westminster College
Shane Webb - Highbury College
William Sherwin - Henley College
Jonathon Deacon - Henley College

There are winning prizes of £500 and £1000 of CCS vouchers for the junior and senior classes respectively.

Sodexho Scotland has achieved a quality standard accreditation that focuses on service and business excellence.

Hospitality Assured, championed by the Hotel and Catering International Management Association (HCIMA) and supported by the British Hospitality Association, is endorsed by the British Quality Foundation and Quality Scotland Foundation, and meets the criteria in the European Excellence Model.

'The process of gaining the accreditation was rigorous,' said Denise Coulter, Sodexho Scotland's Learning and Development Executive (pictured) , who co-ordinated the work. 'The hallmark of Hospitality Assured accredited organisations is a powerful desire to exceed customer expectations, within a climate of continuous improvement and business excellence. There are 10 key steps and 49 measurable indicators which must be met.'

David Pease, Managing Director of Sodexho Scotland, said: 'The catering, corporate hospitality and support services industry in Scotland is highly competitive, and in 2007 we aim to achieve the accreditation for the support services we provide in addition to catering and hospitality.'

Charlton House has been awarded a catering contract with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) to manage its conference and banqueting operations at London Zoo in Regent's Park. The independent caterers will take over from the incumbents on 1st January 2007, while public catering is to be managed in-house.

The contract is valued at £1 million in annual turnover, and the company will cater for high profile hospitality events, conferences, themed functions, parties, weddings and other events.

Tim Jones, co-founder and chairman of Charlton House, co-sponsors of the Development Chef Award at the 2007 CIS Excellence Awards, said: 'London Zoo is a unique location for corporate and private events, and I believe that we can raise food standards to make it an exceptional hospitality destination.
'We demonstrated a tailored approach and focused on our potential client's needs. They were impressed with our current business; our emphasis on fresh, quality food, and our open and honest approach to finances and financial reporting.'

The Zoological Society of London is a registered charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It is entirely self-funded, and the hospitality and entertainment functions at London Zoo generate a significant percentage of the charity's income.

For more information, visit the Charlton House website.

Photo shows, L-R: Tim Jones with Steve Perkins, Head of Catering at London Zoo; Nico Prinsloo, Charlton House Business Development Manager, and Paul Jackson, Charlton House Operations Director.

Food writer and presenter Nell Nelson of STV's 'The Woman Who Ate Scotland' dropped into the Dunalastair Hotel in Perthshire this week in pursuit of some of Scotland's finest culinary offerings and stunning scenery.

'We're very pleased to have been asked to be a part of this,' said Robert Gilmour, owner of Dunalastair Hotel. 'We're really glad that the fantastic game, whiskies and produce of Highland Perthshire is being brought to the attention of so many people throughout the country through this programme.'

Nell (pictured, right) will return to the Perthshire area for the next two weeks with a visit to Aberfeldy and Pitlochry to visit the Dows of Aberfeldy and then on to Blair Atholl and the Blair Atholl Watermill.

Calinet Ltd, a hotel and tourism Internet services company, has today completed a £250,000 acquisition of Scotland's independent hotel website, HotelReviewScotland.com (HRS).
Calinet project a membership growth for HRS of at least 15% for 2007 and a steep rise in readership. HRS has already shown a 63% increase in visitor numbers in summer 2006.

The HotelReviewScotland.com Division will continue to operate the hotel guide, continuing and developing its role as organiser of The Scottish Hotels of the Year Awards.

'We are thrilled to have formally joined forces with HotelReviewScotland.com and are excited about the obvious synergy between us and the opportunity for future development,' said Robert Gilmour, Managing Director of Calinet.