While no-one needs reminding of the growing importance of food in pubs, turning the aspiration of a successful food operation into reality takes hard work and commitment.
Family brewer Young's has transformed its operating model over the past two years. Family patriarch John Young died in 2006. Shortly afterwards, the departure from the Ram Brewery site in Wandsworth and the transfer of brewing to joint venture Wells & Young's in Bedford left some purists spluttering over their pints.
However, the move also demonstrated a business that was prepared to grasp the nettle and make the changes necessary to compete in today's pub market. With the brewing operation now separate, the core pub business consists of 118 managed and 103 tenanted and leased pubs.
Young's reputation for high quality cask beer is well known. While the company has also always had its share of high quality food pubs, there has been a concerted drive to improve food standards across the managed estate.
Evidence of the success of this approach came in Young's results for the year to March 2008. Across the year, food sales in the group's managed pubs increased by 16 per cent, with food representing 25.4 per cent of revenue in the managed business.
Driving that performance is the Young's food team, led by Paul Jeffereys, catering development manager and Ken Brown, executive chef. Each takes responsibility for a slice of the managed estate, driving all aspects of the food operations.
To find out what that entails in practice, we joined Ken for a day at work…
6.30am - 7.30am
Pub visit
The day starts early, with Ken leaving his home in Chislehurst, Kent, and driving to one of the 42 pubs that make up his 'patch', an area covering a fair chunk of the south of England.
Ken carries out an unannounced walk-through audit of the pub. One of the aims is to ensure that statutory hygiene and health & safety regulations are being followed. The way a kitchen and food serving area were left at the end of a busy evening can tell a great deal about whether good kitchen practice is being followed.
As well as looking at legal compliance, Ken also looks at the way menus and specials boards are displayed.
7.30am - 8.30am
Scheduled meeting at pub with pub manager
Following the walk-through, Ken has a pre-arranged meeting with the pub manager. Issues which arose during the audit are discussed, both good and bad. "It's not about catching pubs out," says Ken. "Where we see good practice, it's important to mention it. People need a pat on the back when they've done well."
These meetings are also a chance to discuss issues such as staff training and recruitment. "We try not to get directly involved with recruitment - with so many pubs, it would be time consuming, but it's also important for the pubs to have ownership of the process," he says.
Planned menu changes are also discussed, along with a local food supplier the pub wants to use. Young's encourages its pubs to source locally, but all suppliers have to be audited at head office level to ensure quality standards are met.
9am
Riverside House, Wandsworth
Young's new head office may not have the 500-year history of the Ram Brewery site, but it's a similar hive of activity.
"It's always a shame to lose the tradition, but the great thing about this business is the people, and that hasn't changed," says Ken.
There are also plenty of mementoes of the old site dotted around the new building. At his desk in the office, there's a chance to check and respond to emails, followed by meetings with colleagues in marketing and other head office functions. As food sales become more important to the pubs, the need for teamwork across the business is even more important.
12 noon - 1pm
'Shopping'
It may be lunch time, but even popping out for a sandwich is an opportunity to check out new food products on the retail shelves, some of which have been suggested by suppliers as ideas for pub menus.
Ken adds: "It's useful to monitor food trends and changing consumer tastes - which have to be balanced against the expectation by our customers that Young's will always have 'real' pub food at the heart of the offer."
1pm - 3pm
Cook-off with a group of pub chefs in Young's training kitchen
Bringing groups of chefs together in the Young's kitchen is a key opportunity to engage those working in the pubs with the menu development process, as well as to train and develop new skills.
While each pub has its own tailored menu, there is a central bank of recipes which have been cooked and fully costed, available to all the pubs through the company intranet either as core menu items or specials.
The cook-offs encourage creativity in developing new dishes, as well as ownership of recipes being added to pub menus.
Ken says: "We want to nurture the enthusiasm
of our chefs, and encourage them to suggest new dishes, many of which find their way onto the
pub menu. The cook-off process allows us to ensure that dishes are prepared quickly and with consistent quality."
3pm - 4pm
Travel
The expansion of Young's estate in both numbers and geography makes it important for Ken to plan time properly, so he will arrange a series of meetings with pubs in a specific area.
4pm - 7pm
Visits to three pubs in area, meetings with managers and chefs
The aim of these group meetings is to ensure that everyone understands the latest developments. This will include upcoming menu changes, plans and promotions across the estate, as well as, inevitably, issues such as rising food prices.
The meeting is also an opportunity for Ken to get feedback on what's happening locally in terms of competition, and menu pricing. "Every pub's different, and it's important to know what they're up against locally," he says.
7pm - 8pm
Meetings with managers in pubs
Meeting to specifically review and discuss food GPs/margins, and advise them on ideas to maintain their budgets. These sessions are particularly important in the current market.
"It's relatively easy to lose track of GPs when prices are rising, so we have to keep a close eye on these issues," explains Ken. "If a particular pub's having difficulties, it may be a question of looking at new suppliers or making changes to the menu."
0.30pm
Home
Such long days are far from unusual - "we wouldn't do it if we didn't enjoy it, and I still find the job very rewarding," he says.
In addition to formal duties, Ken and a number of colleagues also dedicate some of their 'spare' time to working with catering students.
"I worked with some great teachers when I was starting out in the industry, and I want to pass that on," says Ken.