Food court solution for Bryanston School



Bryanston School, Blandford, Dorset, has installed the first of a new type of food servery system, transforming school mealtimes and bringing this school’s catering well and truly into the 21st Century.

Bryanston has created a stunning ‘food court’ offering a variety of hot and cold dishes to pupils, aged 13-18, and staff. Up to 900 meals can be served at one sitting, 800 within 40 minutes.

Because any of the five serving sections in the dining hall are not limited to just holding or cooking but can be both, the shape of the food offer can change when required.

On a Friday to serve fish and chips for example, three areas of the servery convert to serve just this, at a rate of 370 meals served in 15 minutes.

Key to the new system is its ability to cook food in front of the customer, as well as holding hot food ready for service. Bryanston chose a servery system based on Rieber’s EST Ceran module, which can hold food and cook anything from fried eggs to noodles. It also simmers dishes such as curry sauces, while holding them ready for service.

Bryanston is also using two of Rieber’s Varithek mobile induction front cooking units. The Varithek provides options which can change daily to suit the menu: stir-fry, noodle, crepe, wrap bar, omelette bar. They can be moved to other function rooms, or even outside in the summer to cater for event business.

During the Easter break, the school will host two to three hundred visitors on short courses. Theatre cookery is the preferred service option. The visual appeal is further enhanced because there is no waste as food is cooked to order.

In addition to the five main serving sections, there are also salad bars and the Varithek section, which can serve 180 stir fry meals in 40 minutes.

Previously, the traditional servery featured gas powered hot plates. Staff numbers are the same with the new system, but there is more flexibility and staff can be concentrated onto theatre cooking or service as appropriate.

Before choosing the food court solution featuring Rieber’s EST Ceran module, Catering Manager Mike Thorne toured other schools and high volume food sites (including Wembley and major retail sites/shopping malls) to see how food service had evolved and what lessons could be learned.

“We had been stuck in a time warp with either wet wells or flat hobs with gastronorms on top,” he says. “There was no versatility with that system. You can’t cook with it; all you can do is serve food.

“I was staggered not to have seen more Rieber equipment in use in the wider market. With the Rieber EST system you can cook or hold food hot at any service point and, because you can alter the height, GN serving dishes of varying capacities sit flat and present perfectly.

“No-one knows where food is going to go,” he says. “Think back a few years and who would have thought we would now be serving ‘warm salad’ – unbelievable. I got the idea for this style of service from looking at places like Waterloo and Bluewater. We care about the food we serve and that is why the school has supported the new system.”

The school catering contract is managed by Chartwells. Catering Manager Mike Thorne, a Deputy and Assistant Manager are directly employed by Chartwells. All other catering staff are employed directly by the school.

“Bryanston is a boarding school in Dorset providing quality food for 670 boarders 36 weeks of the year. The other 14 weeks we become a conference centre catering for up to 650 guests during the summer and Easter holidays,” says Mike Thorne.



















“In November of last year we had a long awaited dining hall refurbishment which included the installation of a food court. In the food court we have two Rieber Varithek Front Cooking Systems which we use for stir fries, omelette bar, crepe bar and many other uses, some of which we have not yet thought of!

“They are very versatile and we firmly believe that theatre cooking is the way forward.

“We also have another eight service points using the Rieber Ceran hobs and hotplate (which can also be used for cooking).

“Again these hobs are very versatile. The EST 4 system means that the food can be set at whatever level is required so the presentation of the food is always enhanced.

“This was a complicated refurbishment with us having to cater in a big marquee for six months. We decided to use some of the new equipment in the marquee and it was all delivered on time, as was the rest of the equipment for the new food court.

“The training was adequate for the equipment we had purchased and the after sales service very good. We had a couple of minor problems but these were dealt with promptly.

“I would be more than happy to recommend Rieber equipment to anyone thinking about changing their service equipment.”

THREE WEEK MENU CYCLE

Bryanston’s impressive menu runs over a 21 day cycle. Highlights include:
Soup: 21 different soups over a three week period
Bread: Home-baked bread and baguettes
Traditional: 21 choices over three weeks including Moroccan lamb stew, pork chops, steak & mushroom pie, battered fish, roast turkey, Lancashire hot pot, roast beef, southern fried chicken, Irish stew, Caribbean Jerk chicken, salmon fish cake.
Vegetarian: Spanish omelette, roast vegetable and blue cheese jalousie, vegemince Cumberland pie, four cheese tortelloni, butternut squash risotto.
Vegetables: mash, peas, braised red cabbage, new potatoes Lyonnais, sweetcorn, broccoli, Cajun spiced potato wedges, carrots courgettes.
Theatre: Wrap bar, stir-fry bar, omelette bar.
Light bites: Pasta bar, noodle bar, rice bar, warm salad.
Jacket Potato: With fillings i.e., beans & cheese, soured cream & chives, vegetable chilli.
Dessert: Dorset apple cake & custard, jam sponge & custard, ice cream & sauces, treacle tart & custard, fruit salad, spotted dick.

THE SCHOOL

Bryanston occupies a magnificent 400-acre estate in North Dorset, just outside the Georgian market town of Blandford Forum. The main building, a palatial country house in red brick banded with Portland stone, was designed for the Portman family by Norman Shaw and completed in 1897.

The School has outstanding teaching and recreational facilities. There are purpose-built centres for Science, Technology, Music and Art, a modern professional theatre, a comprehensive sports complex, riding stables and 56 acres of playing fields bounded by the River Stour. The remainder of the estate provides an exceptionally beautiful garden for the School.

Bryanston School opened in January 1928 with the objective of providing an education which incorporated the best ideas of the past and of the present, drawing from both traditional and progressive educational philosophy. This is reflected in the School's motto et nova et vetera, the new and the old. Originally a boys' school, Bryanston admitted sixth-form girls in 1972 and junior girls in 1975, which makes it one of the country's most experienced co-educational boarding schools.

Bryanston has high academic standards, good examination results and levels of achievement which reflect considerable 'added value'. Sporting performance is impressive and the School enjoys a strong reputation for the Arts and Design & Technology.
www.bryanston.co.uk

Catering Manager Wins Prestigious Award for His Star Quality

Mike Thorne, Catering Manager at Bryanston, was awarded the prestigious title of Catering Manager of the Year in the Educatering Excellence Awards.

Recognising the stars of the school food industry, the Awards received a staggering 300 nominees, with the final three for each category being invited to an award ceremony in London.

Mike was nominated by Paul Speakman, Bursar at the School, who said, “Mike is an outstanding man, leader and colleague. He deserves the recognition this award gives him. His dedication and commitment to Bryanston has influenced and inspired all those who work with him. We are thrilled that he has been given this award as it is truly deserved.”

Richard Ball, Services Bursar at the School, who works with Mike, said, "The award is fantastic news and richly deserved. It is confirmation indeed of Mike's passion, enthusiasm and commitment to providing everyone at Bryanston the highest quality catering. Congratulations."

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