Page 23 - Foodservice Magazine October 2018
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Lazarus, “so it’s always good to alleviate as much pressure as you can by forward planning as much as possible.”
It’s also important to consider whether your current workforce will be able to meet the challenge of the Christmas rush. At
Shoal Bay, the team is currently looking into the entire, staffing structure and, Lazarus reveals, they are “recruiting, training and upskilling our staff accordingly to ensure we maximise efficiency throughout the holiday period. Staff are a business’s greatest asset, and being a seasonal and destination based venue, it is crucial that we are well-prepared for the holiday season.”
MAKING MEMORIES
“We like to do simple things well,” says McIntosh. This approach has been informed
by his own memories of food growing up. Indeed, his first recollection of Christmas day lunch involves “whole prawns served with homemade brioche, Marie Rose sauce and salted butter. Now a tradition that has stuck with me ever since.”
Accordingly, McIntosh ensures that each Christmas event or function is distinctive and exceptional to the customer. As he sees it, Tommy Collins
is about “creating bespoke experiences for our clients that stay with them forever, as well as leave a lasting impression on their guests. One of the ways
we do this is by bridging the
gap between restaurant and event caterer.”
This Christmas, McIntosh and his team will be bridging the gap with a classic-inspired menu albeit with a contemporary twist – think bite-sized dishes like mini croque monsieurs, turkey burgers with cranberry jam and
pistachio crumb, and prawn cocktails with saffron crisp.
For Shoal Bay’s first Christmas after a multi-million dollar refurbishment, Lazarus is hoping “to bring together family and friends through good food and drink in a unique, waterfront setting. Our venue is centred upon our local community, so staying in touch with local businesses, people and happenings is vitally important to us.”
The Hunter region venue is expecting a significant flood of visitors over the warmer months. To cater to these crowds, both
a summer menu and Christmas buffet lunch will be offered, plus a pop-up Greek taverna for six weeks.
“My aim,” says Lazarus, “is to ensure enough variety at a single venue, so we have repeat customers come two, three, four times during their stay in the area.”
The Christmas day buffet will feature fresh, local seafood, like blue swimmer crab, local Port Stephens oysters and Balmain bugs, alongside such mains as roasted whole turkey, slow-roasted lamb shoulder, and mustard-glazed ham. In comparison, the pop-up will focus on lamb on the spit.
“Naturally, it’s the busiest time of the year, so maintaining quality of food and service is the biggest challenge,” Lazarus says. “If diners walk away with their Christmas craving satisfied, I’m happy.”
A STRONG MENU
Planning the Christmas operations early has the added benefit of making certain that the chef has enough time to experiment and create the
menu while going about his or her usual duties. Plus from an environmental perspective, this aids in ensuring a spread that has minimal or zero waste.
“Ultimately we plan as far
in advance as we can, there are always so many moving parts and logistics that need to be taken care of so we’d rather lock things down, and move on to the fun stuff.”
TRADE TALK
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From top: Tommy McIntosh, creative director at Tommy Collins by Atlantic Group; inside Shoal Bay Country Club; a seafood spread by Tommy Collins by Atlantic Group; and Andrew Lazarus, owner of Shoal Bay Country Club.


































































































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