Mechanical marvels

Each month we ask licensees and chefs to tell us about the devices that work well for them. We also take a look at new equipment on the market.

Labour savers

Clean and clearFrank Scott, looked for three main design features when he decided to upgrade the dishwasher in the White Rock Inn in Underriver, near Sevenoaks, Kent.

He wanted wash performance, energy efficiency and ergonomics that did not involve his staff having to continually bend down to load and unload from an under-counter machine.

"Bending and lifting is becoming a health-and-safety issue in the kitchen. A fully-loaded wash basket is heavy and I didn't want the risk of staff getting back problems with all the litigation that can involve," says Frank.

Energy and water consumption is something he now closely monitors on any equipment coming into the White Rock Inn kitchen. Ultimately, though, the new dishwasher had to give high performance, since the food to wet sales ratio is currently 70:30 with the food component on the rise.

His choice was a Classeq Hydro 850 pass-though hood machine, with stainless-steel tabling either side for loading and unloading.

With an extremely low wash-tank capacity of just 20 litres - even while washing up to 60 racks an hour - utility costs on the Hydro are also lowered.

The wash is so powerful with the Hydro that only basic plate scraping is needed before loading the machine. This, Frank says, makes the whole warewashing process a lot quicker.

Another factor in choosing the Hydro was judging the size of machine to buy, based on peak demand times and future demands, rather than averaging out customer number and tableware volumes over a week.

Classeq is part of the Winterhalter UK group, providing a total solution for warewashing though their nationwide network of distributors. That means everything from pre-sales advice to after-sales service.

For information on the Classeq range of glass and dishwashers, including details of your nearest stockist, call 0870 2247280

Hot favouriteThe Hold-o-Mat oven is northern chef Terry Laybourne's choice of vital kitchen equipment that he would not work without.

The Hold-o-Mat allows Terry - who owns Jesmond Dene House in Newcastle - and his team, to prepare and cook meat in the kitchens, transport them and then serve an improved dish at outside events. The meat actually improves whilst resting in the Hold-o-Mat and because it does not dry out, its succulence actually improves.

Because of its unique method of controlling holding temperatures and humidity, it means that products cooked hours before peak service times can be held and served in perfect condition.

Terry says: "The Hold-o-Mat is a vital piece of kit for us; I wouldn't like to live without it because it's such a timesaver.

We use the Hold-o-Mat to hold pieces of meat and then rest them at the right temperature."

The Hold-o-Mat Oven is a stay-warm cupboard that keeps food, and especially meat, warm under precisely-controlled temperature and humidity conditions while enhancing food quality.

The Hold-o-Mat Oven facilitates modern cooking methods such as cook and hold, which is of great significance in the market because of its ability to vastly reduce the stress in the kitchen at peak service times and without any loss of eating quality.

The Hold-o-Mat oven is available from Continental Chef Supplies for £1,500.

For more information call Paul Goodfellow on 0808 1001777