It’s very timely that one of The Caterer’s product features this week is on decaffeinated tea and the rising interest in the offer. The article explains that decaffeinated tea is becoming popular by those who want to have a non-caffeine drink especially in the evening so that it supports a healthier lifestyle for those that want to pursue one. It also highlights that the standard of providing out of home decaffeinated tea is disappointing. Choosing to drink decaffeinated tea, or any drink containing caffeine for that matter, is not just a lifestyle choice – it can be a medical one too. My wife suffers from a recent heart condition called Atrial Fibrillation (AF) which causes her heart to beat irregularly often creating palpitations which can be potentially life threatening and has been advised to avoid caffeine. An avid tea drinker for all her life and someone who dislikes coffee, she wants to still enjoy a decent cup of tea whilst out and about. However, most of the places that we go into, do not offer decaffeinated tea but they do suggest that they have herbal teas and fruit teas as alternatives. I’m not sure about those who are offered these alternatives and are happy to drink these, however, my wife does not like them and wants a traditional brew with milk but without the caffeine. Food and beverage operators regularly offer healthier options when it comes to coffee as well as offering a plethora of alternative milks to cater for the lactose intolerant – or for those that simply like the taste of almond, oat or coconut milk. I have been thinking of writing this article for a while now about our experiences of trying to order decaffeinated tea at cafes and coffee shops and want to make a plea to all food and beverage outlets - cafes, restaurants, hotels, pubs and coffee shops - to make a decaffeinated brew offering mainstream for those that have to avoid caffeine through medical rather than healthier lifestyle choices. So please think of and cater for those customers that want to continue to enjoy their tea by providing a decaff tea alternative. Otherwise, it may mean them voting with their feet and walking out before ordering or asking for a pot of hot water, a cup and some milk because they’ve had to bring their own with them. For a range of decaffeinated tea suppliers get your copy of The Caterer this week.
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For those people that get to know me they will find out about my passion for food, hospitality, catering and also social enterprise. The former stems from my original career choice and training to become a chef many years ago. The interest in social enterprise comes from seeing them using business to do social and / or environmental good.
The concept and idea of social enterprises didn’t exist as it does now back then or at least was not labelled as such; yet the social and environmental issues that many are created to help resolve existed. There are many social enterprises that help many disadvantaged groups, communities whether locally or internationally through food, drink and especially coffee shops and cafes. I discovered a great resource recently in the form of The Café Hustle podcasts https://thecafehustle.com/, a range of interviews and advice sessions created and curated by Andy Jones who ran his own coffee shop in Onchan on the Isle of Man and now is a well-respected expert and supporter of other coffee shop owners and operators. After connecting with him on social media and listening to his podcasts, Andy invited me to share my thoughts on social enterprises and how cafes and coffee shops can engage more with their local communities to help support them. I also share resources I created through Bridge To Hospitality, a website to help raise awareness of what charities and social enterprises there are in hospitality, how they help each other and the wider hospitality industry and opportunities to improve skills and knowledge. Follow the link here to listen on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/episode/5ukWZzoUaSc6cxzNkNVxGI but also available on other podcast streaming sites. This was a stretch in more ways than one as I have a covert stammer and have oftentimes put myself into situations where I challenge myself through speaking opportunities. So if this helps others with a similar speech impediment to stretch and develop themselves, it will have achieved on multiple levels. I'm sure that I'm not the only person that comes out of an interview thinking about the questions that the interviewers ask and mentally (if not physically) kicking yourself that you should have said this or you shouldn't have said that. But in the heat of the moment, when you've only got a few seconds to consider your best example to give, it is sometimes difficult to think of the best one. And I'm sure you've also had the constant questions from colleagues or family and friends saying "How did it go? What did they ask?"
So what can you do to ensure that you give your best answers to the questions posed under pressure? Here is a list of 6 tips to help you prepare… 1. Prepare your best examples before hand Your strongest example should be the one you put in your application form or covering letter/statement. You should be pretty confident to talk about this, however, do not be too complacent as the interviewers may ask you questions about this experience that you least expect. Make sure you read your application or examples beforehand so you can explain confidently as you won’t always be able to refer to it when in the interview. 2. Have a few other examples to call upon It is good to have a few extra examples in addition to your main one that you can call upon to cover a particular competence or skill if the interviewers ask “Can you give me another example of when you ….?” This doesn’t always mean to say that your first example or answer was wrong, they might just need to see that you have other examples in different situations. 3. Try to anticipate what they will ask Think about other situations in your life where you have been the interviewer. Can’t think of a time? Well how about the time when you had to interview for a housemate when you were at uni or you were looking for the best childminder or babysitter? What did you look for, what did you ask them? Put yourself in the interviewer’s shoes and think, if I was asking questions of this person what would I want to know. Look at your CV or application form against the person spec or job description and think about any gaps you could get asked about. 4. Don’t make it up When thinking about questions you might get asked, rather than think about what you would do, think about what you have done. Most interviews now should be behaviour or competence based with questions similar to “Can you give me an example when you’ve had to deal with a difficult situation?” rather than made up or hypothetical ones eg “What would you do if you found yourself in a difficult situation?” The first allows the interviewers to get a real life example rather than an ideal answer but where you’ve never actually been tested. 5. If you can’t think of the answer to a particular question, stall for time We’ve all been there when you’re asked a question and your mind goes blank and what is only a few seconds of trying to think of an example seems like an eternity of silence, try to gain a few more seconds of thinking time by: · taking a sip of water · asking them to repeat or rephrase the question · asking if you can come back to that at the end of the interview 6. Write down what they actually asked you, what you said and what you should have said I know sometimes when you’ve come out of the interview, the last thing you want to do is analyse it and think about what you did or did not say, however, take some time to sit down and write down all the questions they asked you, what you said and what you feel you should have said. If you do this after every interview, even the ones where you got the job, you will build up a library of questions and answers that you can review again when you have your next interview. With the benefit of hindsight, and a little preparation your next interview should be a breeze. The Caterer article Pale, Male and Stale by Andy Lynes in the 3-9 June 2022 edition identifies the need for restaurant review publications like Michelin, Hardens and the AA Guide to recognise the wider diversity of cuisine and establishments in the UK. The article suggests that the guides should include more establishments and achievements from different cultures and genders as the majority of those included seem to be establishments run by white, male and often restricted to fine dining or those in the Western northern hemisphere.
With Generation Z and millenials being more discerning about where their money is spent in terms of sustainability and how establishments help the local community, economy and environment, these guides do need to re-think how they appeal to the younger generation. Organisations that have a clear and transparent way of being inclusive are more likely to appeal to these diners and the increasing interest in ethical practices, sustainability and social and environmental good will make diners continue to choose those that demonstrate this openly. One way that diners and investors can possibly influence these review guides is to see how their guides align to their own Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives and agendas. Michelin Group has Diversity as a key theme at the heart of their All Sustainable approach https://www.michelin.com/en/sustainable-development-mobility/ as does The AA. So, ideally, their strategies and ideologies should feed down into the guides that they produce. Years ago, I had an idea for a project to create an alternative to the Michelin guide for showcasing social enterprises in hospitality with an emphasis on encouraging younger people to become engaged with its creation. It would provide the opportunity to young and disadvantaged people to become mystery diners visiting social enterprises initially in London as a pilot. The project outcomes and benefits could include:
The project could also include web development skills for the review website design and build and special masterclasses from current amateur and professional reviewers. This type of approach could provide a potential pipeline to review guide producers to aid initiatives like Elizabeth Carter, the Good Food Guide’s editor explains in the article. And as shown by Elijah Quashie, aka The CNSR, who made his name through online YouTube video reviews of fried chicken shops around London, reviews created and shown online via social media are potentially a way to encourage a younger audience to get involved and interested. Then maybe by going totally paperless, review guides can also add this to their environmental sustainability aspirations and achievements. Now that would go further than levelling up. As ever, it was great to see the Acorn Awards reported in The Caterer this week, celebrating the achievements of the most aspiring 30 individuals under the age of 30 in the hospitality industry. Being an advocate and supporter of social enterprises or businesses for good in the hospitality, catering and food industries, it was even more rewarding to me to see the nomination and recognition of Lewis Greenwood of social enterprise Fink Street Food. Whether by coincidence or on purpose it was also good to see discussion around social mobility at the recent round table being reported on about how more disadvantaged groups could be a solution to the staffing problem crippling the industry. The ambition to level up and encourage a more diverse workforce is applaudable, however, in reality is much harder in practice. Individuals from these groups need role models to inspire them and give them hope that they can emulate the achievements of their role models. Awards systems like the Acorn Awards are good ways in which to recognise, celebrate and inspire talent and give the opportunity to be role models, however, where are the minority role models this year? In fact, over the last few years, the relative absence of people from Black, Asian or other ethnicities has been palpable. According to research undertaken by Be Inclusive Hospitality CIC – another social enterprise whose aim is to support and advance racial equality in hospitality - workers from these backgrounds account for 17% of a 1.8m person workforce pre-pandemic. Given that overall statistic there should be some expectation that at least five Acorns would be from a Black, Asian or of another ethnic background. Why is it then that these groups are not fully represented? To a certain extent as discussed at the round table, it could be that individuals do not want the limelight shone on them due to cultural attributes or that they don’t want to be seen as charity cases. However, could it be due to not wanting to experience racial abuse in their places of work if they are singled out for praise and recognition? Or being considered as a token gesture to cover the diversity quota? Be Inclusive Hospitality’s research shows that almost a fifth of their Black, Asian or ethnic minority survey respondents are wanting to change occupation. This is worrying especially if the industry is looking to the local community to fill roles and nurture the talent that is available. If this statistic were extrapolated on the 300,000 ethnic minority employees in the industry pre-pandemic, this would equate to approx. 60,000 people. Add this number to the current shortage of approx. 200,000 workers in the industry and the crisis deepens further. Working with universities and schools to promote the variety of jobs and career opportunities is vital for the future of the industry as highlighted in the round table discussion; however, they need to be given role models to showcase the opportunities a career in hospitality would bring. The industry needs to work more with organisations like social enterprises Breadwinners and Migrateful, diversity and inclusion specialists and organisations like Be Inclusive Hospitality to recruit and develop Black, Asian and other ethnic workers. Role models from all walks of life, classes, backgrounds, education and upbringing are needed to help not only attract staff to establishments and the industry but also helps attract customers to our businesses. Some reading this may think that these are the views of a woke individual, a snowflake or maybe someone who is ignorant to the issues due to the privileges of my own white background. Yet since being the proud grandparent to a beautiful mixed-race granddaughter, I want to help her as much as I can to have the opportunities available without having to struggle to identify where she fits in or what career she eventually wants to choose. Or more simply choosing which establishment she wants to eat in when she is old enough to make that decision independently. And if that means using my own powers of influence to do so, I don’t mind being classified like that and raising my head above the parapet. Maybe I’m being altruistic or naïve. Maybe that’s what I’ve always been. But having her in my life has aWoken something in me that I used to keep buried inside. A voice but also an inquisitiveness to find out how it might feel to be on the other side of the privilege coin. For someone from a working-class family who grew up on a Guinness Trust estate in Brixton in the 70s and 80s, went to a school in Camberwell from which I played truant for almost a whole year, I haven’t done bad for myself. I don’t automatically think of myself as a role model, but if I can help at least one person to benefit from my experience, my learning or my insights, that will make all the difference to me. Don’t ignore the elephant in the room Acknowledge it is there and more importantly, discuss it with others and do something about it. Be inquisitive and find out more. Mental health and the stigma associated with it used to be a massive elephant that very few talked about. But with COVID-19 and its repercussions on all of our society making mental health a household issue, talking and doing something about it has lead to many organisations implementing mental health support systems and mental health first aid. Talking and doing something about the lack of role models and opportunities for more people from Black, Asian and ethnic minority heritages to be recognised, could make a difference. A difference to individuals, the local community and to a business’ bottom line. So what can you do to help? One thing you could do is encourage any Black, Asian or other ethnic minorities you know to sign up for Be Inclusive Hospitality's new Professional Skills Development and Wellbeing programme supporting individuals over a 12 month period through a range of events to help develop their skills and knowledge. At work, as many other workplaces may do, we have a weekly meeting to celebrate our wins during the previous week and a personal win; then someone shares something that is of interest to them - this can be a hobby, a community involvement project or what type of sport they do. This week was my turn and so I explained my passion for food and especially food that does good too ie the work that charities and social enterprises do to help those who may be in a less fortunate place or position. So imagine the look of surprise or incredulity when I brought up the delicacy of Invisible Chips. Has Geoff been in the June sun too long that he is seeing things? I could read the concern on their faces. I wanted to raise awareness of the initiative designed by charity Hospitality Action to help raise funding for the support of hospitality workers that are facing hardship, something that is needed even more due to the consequences of COVID which has taken its toll and curtailed most of their face to face fundraising events. So what are Invisible Chips? It is an initiative to encourage hospitality venues to place them on their menus and when ordered by customers, the venue makes that donation to Hospitality Action to help with making more hardship grants, providing Employee Assistance Programmes, providing support to workers affected by substance abuse or providing a befriending service to retired hospitality workers. So what can you do to help? There are a few things that you can do:
It is estimated that 18% of hospitality businesses and 8% of pubs will not re-open as a result of the pandemic. Those that do are facing a skills shortage with nearly 190,000 vacancies created as a result of COVID and Brexit with those on furlough deciding not to return due to getting jobs in other sectors. All these issues will add to the stresses and strains of restaurant owners and their staff that survive to re-open at Step 4 of the roadmap to re-opening. Help play your part in supporting your local venue and its employees, past and present by seeking out these delicacies. Invisible Chips - 0% fat free, 0% carbs but 100% charity.
Prior to COVID-19's devastating effects on our ability to travel and enjoy ourselves, when my wife and I got the chance to go away for a long deserved weekend or week break, like many others we got the chance to relax as best as we can, by sitting and doing nothing for a change except read and watch the world go by. Normally that was sitting outside a café sipping a coffee or tea watching the locals going about their normal day to day business or watching how people interact with each other. We have had some great experiences in this way including sitting outside a café in the main square in Ravello, Italy watching a local couple get married and feeling like we were part of the celebration. Watching people isn’t all about watching locals and visitors alike though. It extends to anyone around you including those that are working to make your holiday experience memorable or as comfortable as possible. Being on a break where the entertainment and food is provided for you, you regularly come into contact and interact with reception staff, waiting staff and, if you are an active person, taking part in all the events and entertainment and you strike up a relationship with the ever friendly entertainment team to the point where you feel like you’ve known them for years. All of this makes your experience worthwhile; when you go away you want to be comfortable in all respects. You want to wake up, get down for breakfast, read the papers, go for a walk or have a drink in the bar and, if it is in your nature or part of your routine, go back to your room for a mid-afternoon snooze. However, you don’t want to have to start clearing up, making the bed or replenishing the toilet paper holder when you get back. How many times have you come back to your room to the pleasant surprise and satisfaction of a crisply made bed with no creases, new and plump bathroom towels for that late afternoon shower or soak before getting ready for dinner and the night of entertainment that awaits you? When you pay for your holiday you expect someone to do that for you as well and the housekeeping staff do that for you. Yet, while the waiters, bar and entertainment staff interact with you on a personal and direct basis, the housekeeping staff tend to undertake their work silently and a lot of the time unobtrusively while you are at breakfast or reading the Sunday papers in the lounge. Yes, you might see their trolleys in the corridors and have a quick peek into someone else’s room to see if they have better facilities than yours (come on we’ve all done it!) but how often do you take the opportunity to say hello or thank you to them for making your holiday experience enjoyable. Sometimes they may be seen as a nuisance because you want a lay in but know that you have to get up because someone will be knocking on the door soon. Yet they have a job to do, and if you consider how hard you work at home to keep things tidy, take a moment to think that they have more than one bedroom and bathroom to clear up, all at varying states of disarray. So from 17 May, when hotels and accommodation providers re-open and you are able to book a long overdue break, the next time you pass the trolley in the hallway after a big breakfast, take the time to smile or say hello. And when you consider how much to tip the waiter for his or her personal attendance to your needs, think about a tip for your housekeeper or chambermaid because they also helped you relax and forget about the world - even if only for a few well deserved days. In December 2018, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, announced six London boroughs would be designated as Creative Enterprise Zones with the aim of supporting individuals, entrepreneurs and creative businesses to start, grow and thrive in the capital. The boroughs have committed to providing:
Space: Permanent, affordable, creative workspace and live-work spaces at below market rents and ensuring no net loss of space Skills and support: Building entrepreneurial skills and offering business support to artists, start-ups, sole traders, micro-sized and small businesses, developing career pathways and opportunities for progression into the creative industries and supporting sectors Policy: Local Plans with pro-culture policies in planning, housing, business development, technology and infrastructure, and supportive business rates policies Community: Embedding creative production in communities, creating socially-inclusive places and strong links with education providers Now with the coronavirus pandemic decimating businesses, changing life as we know it and putting immense stresses on food businesses and support groups to feed vulnerable people, should the scheme be modelled and applied to create Community Food Enterprise Zones across the capital and extended to the UK regions? What could a Community Food Enterprise Zone achieve locally? In the short term, I think a local Community Food Enterprise Zone scheme could help: · co-ordinate community food and meal distribution · identify and liaise with landlords, schools, colleges, restaurants, cafes forced to close and broker meanwhile use opportunities for community food projects in need of kitchen space · help co-ordinate borough, town or city-wide emergency food support to vulnerable people · share good practice and resources to help businesses and charities through the crisis In the longer term · support local food, hospitality and catering businesses back into trading · create a local Community Development Finance Institute (CDFI) to help fund business, social enterprises and individuals in the food, hospitality and catering industries · provide community cooking classes and training unemployed and vulnerable groups in hospitality · provide a map of local kitchen space to help food entrepreneurs and social enterprises trade from · help shape local food policies and processes to help prepare and plan for more robust and joined up food systems · help to deliver the Mayor London’s London Food Strategy and Sustain UK’s wider Sustainable Food Cities initiative What do you think? Recognised as the Oscars of the catering and hospitality industry, the Cateys award nomination process is currently open and recognises and rewards excellence in a range of categories including Restaurateur of the Year, Hotel of the Year Best Use of Technology award and Menu of the Year to name a few. Categories also include the Accessibility Award, Sustainable Business Award and Health and Nutrition Award. While the Cateys nomination process is open to all in the industry, not every social enterprise offering a food or beverage service to help people who are disadvantaged are aware of the Cateys or associate themselves as operating in the industry; instead, they may associate themselves with the community services or education and employment industries/sectors they hail from. The question I would like to pose is whether there is scope and interest in providing a similar award process specifically for social enterprises, charities and social businesses in the hospitality industry. And if so, what could the categories and criteria be? Potential categories could include Best community cafe Best social enterprise
Best social enterprise helping
Alternatively, is the aspiration of social enterprise food and community businesses to compete and be recognised among their mainstream peers and counterparts or as part of local voluntary and community sector or local food and drink business awards? What are your views on this? Let us know what you think. With the uncertainty of Brexit and whether people and families can holiday in Europe post-Brexit given the uncertainty of having to get visas, travel issues or increases in holiday prices, let alone the value of sterling against other currencies, there will be an increase in the number of people staying and taking their holidays in the UK.
This would be a welcome boost for the local tourism industry and associated industries including restaurants, cafes, tourist attractions and hotels. In particular, it would be an opportunity for social enterprises in these industries to benefit from increased trade too as more and more people are discerning about where their hard earned money is being spent. A definitive listing or database of social enterprises operating in the travel, tourism, catering and hospitality industries would be beneficial to allow them to benefit from an increase in domestic tourism. Having said this, an increase in staycations would require existing and new tourism and hospitality businesses to be able to increase staff in their establishments therefore, ways in which employers can attract people into the industries to deal with the current skills shortage will be essential; this is something where social enterprises who help train disadvantaged groups in hospitality, catering, food preparation and tourism skills can play their part as well as industry initiatives to raise awareness of hospitality, travel and tourism as being careers of choice rather than a short term job between education and other career options. |
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December 2022
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