Back-2-Front's blog

It’s that time of the year where all of the UK’s finest festivals and shows keep the general public entertained.

One such event that is taking place in the next few weeks is The Bath & West Show which will commence on Wednesday 30th of May – Saturday 2nd June.

The Bath & West show is the country’s biggest rural festival in the UK which offers something for everyone from farmers to food lovers and families.

For all catering and food lovers there is a wide variety of stalls and demonstrations for you to enjoy including the National Cheese awards, Cider completion and new for 2012 is the Festival of Baking.

The Food halls will be divided into four which will allow you to sample some of the finest foods, cheeses and ciders from the west country and the whole of the Uk. Chef Raymond Blanc will attend on Thursday 31st to judge what is said to be the largest cider competition in the world.

The Bath and West show is an ideal way to spend your Bank Holiday weekend, lets hope the weather doesn’t play havoc with this event like it has done with numerous outdoor events over the last few weeks.

If you need a professional Chef to help you out on your Kitchen  please contact our Back of House Recruitment Consultant Orla Murphy at Back 2 Front on 0117 9041001 or visit our Chef Agency Bristol or Chef Agency Bath or Hospitality Staff Bristol and Bath pages 
 

Privately-owned top-end caterer Searcys has announced the plan to open another outlet within the historic city of Bath.

The Roman Baths Kitchen is set to open later this month and will comprise of a deli style café able to seat 25 people on the ground floor with a further 60 diners able to use the bistro restaurant on the first floor.

The Searcys venue is going to appeal to tourists visiting the Pump Rooms along with providing a great family-friendly restaurant for the local diners of Bath.

With the Pump Rooms receiving over a million visitors per year this is a much needed venue to add to the already popular restaurant.

If you would like to book any catering staff to work at your event then contact Pete Cann on 0117 904 1001 or visit our Chef Agency Bristol, Chef Agency Bath or Hospitality Staff Bristol and Hospitality Staff Bath pages.

My work in hospitality over the past few years has taken me on many adventures, most of which have been serendipitous, where I have found myself in odd, exciting and interesting places without any original intention.

On a money making expedition to raise serious travel funds in 2008-2009 I was working 3 jobs and had moved back to my home town, a small tourist town on the Murray River in rural Victoria, Australia.

My town always seemed like the worst place on earth growing up, but is obviously very beautiful and a great place to have grown up in retrospect. Echuca is a historic town which was Australia’s largest inland river port. Three rivers run into the nation’s biggest river in Echuca, which before the rail came to Australia provided the biggest trade network in the country. Echuca was at the heart of the roaring river trade and goods were transported on barges and paddle steamers and distributed throughout the region from Echuca’s wharf.

Echuca has the largest fleet of working paddle steamers in the world. These beautiful and majestic river boats are still used today, no longer carrying bales of wool but loads of tourists and school groups getting an insight into the town’s early history and the river trade as well as taking in the beautiful serenity of the river.

This particular summer I found myself working on one of these historic river boats. I worked aboard the PS Emmylou, making coffee, manning the bar and serving tourists a delicious lunch or morning tea. It was just me and the chef in the tiny galley kitchen, which was known to reach about 60°c in summer as well our river boat crew. The beautiful PS Emmylou was always my favourite boat on the river, though not as historic as some of the others, it is the most beautiful. I came to really enjoy life on the boat, mastering the art of walking on a moving boat with hot coffee and carrying plates of food up the vertical stairs. Oddly enough it was a return to my roots as my great-grandfather was a river boat captain when my family first settled in Australia.

While I remember many Sunday afternoons eating cheese platters and drinking coffee, talking to visitors and having the crew try and explain reef knots to me; my most memorable day aboard the PS Emmylou was during an overnight weekend trip. We had left Echuca and headed upstream because it was going to be a hot January weekend which means river traffic  aplenty with water-skiers and swimmers, it also happened to be the Southern 80, the biggest ski race in the southern hemisphere which happens in Echuca. That weekend turned out to be a rather horrendous one in Victoria. It had already been a scorching summer.  The weather was getting hotter and hotter. The temperature was in the mid-40s. We started our cruise and we soon had to dock on the bank early in the day because we were overheating. Australia gets extreme temperatures and in summer it is quite common to have a total fire ban and we were aboard a wooden boat, with a wood-fired steam engine on a 45° degree day.

 As I stood on the deck the hot air felt like it was shrivelling my eyeballs. It was hot and not getting any cooler. The poor chef was slowly baking in the galley and our on-board passengers were hiding in any shadows they could find and requesting our weekend’s supply of ice. It quickly turned to casual dining. Over the weekend we took the dining room chairs off and set them up in the mud of the river banks so people could sit submerged in water and relax. It wasn’t getting any cooler and by the time we served the meals we were melted and my chef and I would quickly take our aprons off while they were eating and jump over the side of the boat into the river. We spent most of the evening chatting and getting to know our passengers while sitting in the shade of the wheel of the docked paddle steamer, going deep under the surface for the colder water.

By the close of the weekend as we were heading back in to town we started getting news about the bushfires. It felt hot, and it was, temperatures hit 47° in many parts of the state and the bushfires swept across the land causing horrifying damage and destruction. Amazingly, the only fire-free zone happened to be in the states north where we were. Whenever I think about that weekend and the fires, now a ‘where you when?’ statement  I think of standing out on the deck in my waitressing black shirt which eventually turned into a tank top, then eventually board shorts with an apron, having the heat shrivel my eyeballs and the wooden deck burn my feet. Us cooking and serving a full 3-course meal in the heat and casually chatting to my passengers while floating in the river, holding onto a rope so as not to be swept away by the current. Just another day at the office.

If you are after some work in hospitality contact Regan Stephenson at Back 2 Front on 0117 904 1001 or visit our website and check out our Latest Jobs section.

With the Eat Drink Bristol Fashion event after coming to an end there has been many highlights of such a successful event to reminisce on. The coming together of Bristol’s finest restaurants has allowed diners to enjoy fine food in the beautiful Tipi setting. 
 

One highlight that means quite a lot to me has to be Vincent Castellanos demonstration of the art of seam butchery

Sicilian born and French trained Vincent Castellano can only be described as a master charcuterie a form of butchery that cuts through the natural seams of the meat.

At EDBF Vincent demonstrated live to all the diners how to butcher a 5 week dry aged beef which allowed the diners to choose their steak and have it cooked to their liking by Pony and Traps Josh Eggleton

Unfortunately I didn't get to see Vincent’s demonstration, however having worked with Vincent for 3 years during his time at the Glassboat company I have had the pleasure of seeing him perform this
fine art up close.

It's an art that apprenticed chefs training today won't get the opportunity to learn. If memory serves me correctly the only bit of butchery that I did whilst in college was to bone a leg of lamb,
which is far from the art of Charcuterie

Since Vincent left the Glassboat company his success has gone from strength to strength, from appearing on Nigel Slaters show to winning A Two Gold Star Award for his Pate de Canpagne to name but a few.

It is a pleasure to be able to say that I have worked with Vincent as my Head chef he was supportive, a mentor, patient and gave me the opportunity to grow as a chef I can only wish him continued success in the future.

If you need a professional Chef to help you out on your Kitchen  please contact our Back of House Recruitment Consultant Orla Murphy at Back 2 Front on 0117 9041001 or visit our Chef Agency Bristol or Chef Agency Bath or Hospitality Staff Bristol and Bath pages 

In times like these (rainy ones I mean) there are going to be a lot of wet weddings. Given that our once showery April and Sunny May, has turned into Sunny March and Showery April and May, there will be lots of pre arranged weddings and disappointed Brides.

England does have a reputation for very unpredictable weather, but these days it is becoming more so. So instead of letting the weather ruin your big day, why not embrace it by being prepared. Moody Clouds and Big umbrellas can add a touch of individuality to your wedding photography, after all rain photography is an art and you might even catch a rainbow.

Order your Marquee. Marquees come in all shapes, colours and styles to fit in with any kind of wedding regardless of the weather. If it doesn’t rain then it’s a bonus but at least you won’t have to worry about the what ifs.

The Catering for your wedding breakfast does not have to be compromised. If you wanted a hog roast or BBQ then go right ahead. As long as the chef has a gazebo to keep themselves and the food dry, you can still have the menu you planned.

In some cultures, rain on your wedding day signifies good luck as the wet knot is harder to untie.  Plan for the rain and regardless of the outcome, you won’t be let down.

Planning a wedding? then visit our Hospitality Agency Bristol or Hospitality Agency Bath pages or give Chloe Cann a ring on 0117 9041001 to discuss the individual needs of your wedding. If you a looking to work at a wedding then visit our Catering Recruitment Bristol or Catering Recruitment Bath pages.