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don’t see the benefit because of the volume of suppliers. Malcolm: We have cheese coming from seven different companies and so we are working on consolidating that. Our frozen seafood spend is around AED2m a year so we make big savings in consolidating big suppliers. And from their point of view, it doesn’t make sense to deliver such small volumes to multiple properties. I have been in the region 18 months and I came from Europe so it’s very different. The whole sustainability of supply chains and local purchasing isn’t viable. You have to change how you operate and change your style. A lot of local vegetables are decent for certain things and we use as many as possible, but it isn’t viable all the time. Saco: Some of the local farms are very inconsistent. Danny: There is a new vegetable company launching next year and they will be able to supply a variety of produce. Most of the fish will be fished locally also, but everything is double price. Narayanan: Development in the local market is urgently needed because it can really transform how we work, but there is nobody coming to the hotels to speak to us. How do you compensate for inconsistencies in the supply chain and the availability of items? Malcolm: For me the biggest issue I have had has been with pineapples and I have
Forum
been complaining to suppliers on a daily basis – it’s not ripe, not ready to eat, not the quality I want to eat – so now we import them from Kenya. Narayanan: I have had so many problems with pineapples. They are awful. The prices are going up and the quality is going down and there are very few alternatives. It isn’t just about buying it’s also about how you can prepare it, because many fruits are cut straight and not with the curve of the fruit so there is a lot of waste. Kenyan pineapples are very small so you cannot use them for the bulk requirements. The fruit is good from Thailand. Danny: Sometimes the supermarket is the only place to source pineapples from. Saco: Sometimes you have to accept the product isn’t available. Jordan Annabi: We change our lunch menu almost daily and do all the printing in-house so if something isn’t available we just substitute and arrange in-house. We have a recipe database to choose from to avoid telling customers that something isn’t available. Narayanan: I can buy from a supermarket if I am really struggling to find something. There are times when you can be left up to a week with no delivery from suppliers but you can’t just exclude those ingredients from the menu – sometimes there is no choice but to source a product from a store, so long as the quality is right. We are a business, we can’t stop. Danny: We also have a strategy, with a basic menu and 10 signatures, which are also seasonal. And these 10 signatures will be the daily playground. Like Jordan said, you see what is available, check for alternatives, have the basics, and play with the rest. How does the ad hoc sourcing of ingredients impact on profit margins and how is that impact managed? Saco: Sometimes you have to bite the bullet – let’s be honest you can’t mark up a price regularly – other times you have to re-price the menu. Danny: There should always be room to play with because you need to think about the guest satisfaction. In a 5-star establishment you need to meet the guest demand. You can’t tell them you don’t have pineapples. Malcolm: When it comes to some ingredients though, especially things like fresh fish, I would rather explain that the fish wasn’t
Participants
Jordan Annabi chef de cuisine Market Kitchen, Le Royal Meridien Abu Dhabi
Malcolm Webster executive chef St Regis Saadiyat Island
Narayanan Jaya Sous chef Aloft Abu Dhabi
Saco Musch executive chef Hilton Abu Dhabi
November 2015 Catering NEWS ME
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