Scottish catering and hospitality news in Scotland

The finalists for the 2007 CIS Excellence Awards were announced last night, featuring some well-known names from the Scottish industry. Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin, The Town House Company and Pamela Fowlis, the recently crowned Knorr Scottish Chef of the Year, are all in the running for various titles, which will be announced on the night of Thursday 10th May at the Hilton Glasgow.
For tickets and info, visit
The CIS Excellence Awards website or call 0131 346 7999.

The Finalsts in the CIS Excellence Awards 2007, are:


The Healthyliving Award
Sponsored by Almond Catering in association with the healthyliving award

Finalists:
Café Derran, Fife Council
Eurest Catering
Compass Group at RBS


Restaurant Newcomer of the Year
Sponsored by Elior

Finalists:
The Peat Inn
The Kitchin Restaurant
Abstract Edinburgh


Innovation in Training Award
Sponsored by Xpress Recruitment

Finalists:
Cardinal Newman High School and Motherwell College
The Town House Company, Edinburgh
Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, Edinburgh


Independent Event Caterer of the Year
Sponsored by Host Contract Management

Finalists:
En Croute Catering
Appetite Direct


Chef of the Year
Sponsored by BaxterStorey

Finalists:
Pamela Fowlis, The Adam Smith College
Tom Kitchin, The Kitchin
Craig Millar, The Seafood Restaurant


Culinary Excellence Restaurant of the Year
Sponsored by Unilever Foodsolutions

Finalists:
Abstract Inverness
The Chandlery Restaurant, Bosville Hotel
The Seafood Restautant, St Andrews



Restaurant Manager of the Year
Sponsored by Brakes

Finalists:
Ahmed Yurdacol, Gleneagles Hotel
Elinor Donnelly, Abode Glasgow
Philippe Nublat, The Kitchen, Edinburgh



The Development Chef Award
Sponsored by ASA International & Charlton House Catering Services

Finalists:
Robbie Robertson, ESS Support Services Worldwide
Malcolm Warham, Simon Howie Foods
Robert Bruce, McCrae Foods


Hotel of the Year
Sponsored by ARAMARK

Finalists:
Gleneagles Hotel
Glenapp Castle
Isle of Eriska Hotel


The CIS Lifetime Excellence Award
Sponsored by Braehead Foods

To be announced on the evening of 10th May.

The man responsible for the catering at a leading Scottish visitor attraction has won a major UK award. Gordon Atterson, who runs the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum's catering provision, won the 'Serving the Public' category of the annual Cost Sector Catering Awards, which is open to both the public and private sectors.

Gordon works for Encore Creative Catering, the commercial catering arm of the City Council's Direct & Care Services department.
His team have so far catered for around 438,000 of the 2.5m people who have visited Kelvingrove since it reopened last July.

'This is an exciting, vibrant place to work and the feedback we have been receiving has been extremely positive. We have an increasing number of visitors from all over the UK booking tables in advance,' says Gordon.

The East Lothian Food & Drink Trade Show will be held at the Maitlandfield House Hotel in Haddington on the morning of Monday 14th May.

A direct result of the recent 'Eating East Lothian' seminar (attended by East Lothian food and drink producers, local chefs and hotel/restaurant owners), the trade show will allow the county's food and drink producers and suppliers to promote their produce to the hospitality industry.

The event will feature a butchery demonstration by Joe Findlay of Findlay's of Portobello, and a 'taste test' by Keith Marley of La Potinière, to highlight the differences between locally grown and supermarket-bought produce.

As an opportunity for chefs in East Lothian, Edinburgh and the surrounding area to sample the excellent produce available on their doorstep, the show will also provide East Lothian?s food and drink businesses with an opportunity to source potential new customers by offering tastings and samples.

Visit the East Lothian Food & Drink website or email jpilley@eastlothian.gov.uk for more information.

Wannaburger, the brainchild of bar and restaurateur, Jon Clemence, has spread opened the doors to its new outlet in Edinburgh's West End. With an investment of £100,000 to refurbish the outlet, Wannaburger West End will employ 15 staff in the company's second outlet in the city.

Offering a range of homemade burgers and shakes, Wannaburger aims to fill a gap in the market: 'We wanted to provide a reason to celebrate rather than crucify the burger - done well it's a fantastic meal and still a favourite despite having come under fire lately,' says Clemence (pictured).

'Wannaburger's all about great burgers, great shakes and having fun, which is what eating out should be about.'

On 21 and 22 April 2007, Historic Scotland opens its doors to over 70 of their attractions for the Free Weekend. The event has been running for well over a decade and encourages visitors to discover more about the nation's history and heritage.
Last year, over 103,000 visited the sites during the weekend, making it a record-breaking year for the agency with more than double the visitors of the 2005 Free Weekend.
'After the remarkable success of the Free Weekend last year, we are looking forward to again welcoming thousands of visitors to our attractions on the 21 and 22 April,' says Peter Bromley, Director of Properties in Care for Historic Scotland. 'This is a fantastic opportunity for people to get up close to Scotland's history, and to really understand and appreciate these treasures.
'Each attraction is distinctive and unique in its own right. From the splendour of Stirling Castle to Smailholm Tower, each property has an intriguing story to tell.'

Visitors signing up for an annual membership of Historic Scotland at any of the sites across the country during the Free Weekend will receive three months free.

Opening times over the Free Weekend are 9.30am to 5.30pm (last admission 5.00pm). Visit the Historic Scotland website for more information.

Following last month's announcement that Crerar Hotels has bought the Swallow name, the hotel group has launched swallow-hotels.com.
Allowing visitors to book online, the website also features a map of the UK highlighting each of the areas in which the hotels can be found. Guests can also search by theme, like hotels with conference facilities, golf courses, etc.

Visit the new website for more information.

A new report shows that restaurants and hotels are much more likely to go out of business if they do not train their staff properly.
The report into training and establishment survival shows that 28% of businesses that didn't provide training in the industry closed down, compared to only 3% of the businesses that did.
The report, conducted over a six-year period, follows People 1st's own research, which demonstrates that 33% of hotels and restaurants are currently not training. Twenty-five per cent of these employers say that nothing would persuade them to train, even though the majority admit that their business would benefit if they did.

Brian Wisdom, Chief Executive of People 1st, said: 'Businesses that don't train put themselves at risk of extinction. They also damage the reputation of the sector and lose valuable human resources. We are launching the UK Skills Passport service in April to enable the vast majority of employers to find the funded support they have never been able to access before. This will help them to provide skills and training for their workforce.
'I urge all hotel and restaurant businesses to consider investment in training and UK Skills Passport as a commercial lifesaver rather than an unnecessary cost.'

Visit The Skills Passport website for more information.

After seven years at the helm of Food from Britain (FFB), David McNair (pictured) will step down as Chief Executive to take early retirement at the end of May.
David oversaw a period of tremendous change in the UK food &drinks industry, and he leaves at a time when UK exports are predicted to reach their highest ever level at over £10billion.

'It has been a real pleasure and privilege to lead FFB and to serve the British food & drink industry during this time,' he said. 'I am sure FFB will continue to go from strength to strength, assisting the market development of its clients both within the UK and internationally.'

FFB Chairman, Lady Sylvia Jay said: 'David has worked hard for Food from Britain and consistently met the targets set for him and the organisation. His extensive knowledge of the British food & drink industry worldwide has served FFB and its numerous clients well. He merits a more relaxed future and, on behalf of FFB's Council, I should like to thank him and to wish him every continued success in the years ahead.'