05/10/04 - Sat Bains to buy restaurant
Nottingham chef Sat Bains is to buy the restaurant in Hotel Des Clos.
In March 1999 Sat reached the final of the Roux Scholarship, a competition for young chefs under the age of 28 pioneered by the famous Roux Brothers Michel and Albert.
After impressing the judges who included Rick Stein and Gary Rhodes, Sat successfully took the honours.
In July of 2002 a decision was made to brand the restaurant separately to the hotel. In November of the same year the restaurant was re-launched as Restaurant Sat Bains, coupled with the re-launch Sat developed a unique menu format. His menu is based around a traditional degustation format of a number of tasting courses some of which are part of the make up of the menu and others where one is given a choice.
The restaurant that seats 40 will benefit from a £250,000 refurbishment, and will launch in early december.
"I'm not into the novelty factor, I just want to excite people with food" Sat Bains.
02/10/04 - One in Five Restaurants Automatically Charge Service
Restaurants are confusing customers by failing to stick to a standard approach on service charges, inspectors say. Although most routinely add a charge to the bill, the rates vary, according to a survey published today.
Almost one in five restaurants said the charge was automatically added to the final bill. Some customers complain the practice takes away their choice of whether to pay for service or not.
A spokesman for the AA Restaurant Guide, which carried out the survey, said: "We want to see a common practice. This will provide clarity and transparency for the customer, and present the industry in a better light."
The guide also says there is a difference between the service charge and a tip. Restaurant owners may decide to keep all of the service charge or share it with their staff.
A tip, it says, generally goes straight to the waiter or waitress who may then give some to the kitchen staff. The practice of adding on the service charge varies across the country, according to the survey of 1,357 restaurants.
Almost two-thirds of restaurants questioned in London said they automatically added a charge of 10% to 15% for service.
This compares with just 3% of restaurants in Scotland, 4% in Wales and none at all in Northern Ireland.
The survey found 63% of restaurants across the UK said service was optional and was not added to the final bill.
A further 19% included the charge in the cost of the meal and did not expect customers to contribute more.
Albert Hampson, business manager at AA Hotel Services, said: "From these figures it appears that the onus is on the consumer to decide whether they will pay a service charge.
"Many establishments automatically add a service charge to the bill, but tell the customer it is optional. "Diners find it hard to complain and once a charge is on the bill many prefer just to pay up and not make a fuss." He added: "The inconsistent way in which service charge is applied and the different rates used by restaurants is too confusing for the consumer."
Many restaurants automatically add a service charge if a large party comes in for a meal, the survey found.The practice is commonplace in 17% of restaurants in England and Scotland and 13% of those in Wales.
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01/10/04 - Disabled Access law
From today, every business should be more user-friendly for Britain's 10 million disabled people. But according to a new report, businesses on 80% of Britain's biggest high streets are ill-prepared.
The Disability Discrimination Act was passed in 1995. It came into force in different stages. For instance, obligations on web site operators to make their sites accessible have been in force since 1999.
But the Act's biggest change is today, when businesses will finally have to address the problems their buildings cause for disabled people - such as steps, heavy doors, bad lighting, lack of signage and lack of colour contrast.
In addition, from today, small employers for the first time have the same duties towards disabled staff and job applicants as larger firms. This means not discriminating against employees or potential employees because of their disability and making reasonable adjustments to the workplace.
The law requires reasonable adjustments by businesses such as adapting premises, removing physical barriers or providing the service another way so that disabled people can use the service. The legal changes will affect over two million British businesses and failure to act could result in legal action.
An NOP survey published this week and commissioned by the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) reveals major problems on the high street: the majority of shops, cafes, restaurants, cinemas and pubs are still problematic for disabled people and have not made substantial improvements to comply with today's changes in the law.
New guidance was also published today, to explain the tax allowances available to business to help them make accessibility adjustments to their premises.
Many of the adjustments that businesses may make to their premises already qualify for tax relief. The new guidance clarifies the reliefs available in relation to several of the most common types of adjustment in order to assist businesses and encourage them to comply fully with the new law.
For more information follow the link below
http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/specialist/disability-act-guidance.htm
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27/09/04 - Ritz Carlton to develop Dalquharran Castle
Construction of a £40 million luxury class hotel, spa and golf resort will start next year, according to the project developers.
It is to be created from the derelict Dalquharran Castle near Dailly which has been decaying for decades.
The project team says the American-owned Ritz Carlton organisation is committed to creating a 300 acre resort and 140 rooms. The company only operate five star resorts and up to 200 full-time jobs will be created.
If it does happen it will be among the biggest projects not just in Ayrshire, but in Scotland. Only neighbouring Turnberry could match its attraction to wealthy tourists looking for the resort experience on the west coast.
There have been various plans put forward over the years for the stunning Robert Adam designed mansion, all of which turned out to be fantasy. Seen from across the valley it looks lived in, but all that remains is a shell of stone. The roof was removed several decades ago to avoid rates and all the floors have now caved in. Part of what remains is possibly the most stunning and would lend itself to a spa the barrel vaulted basement which was the former servants floor. There would also be interest in salmon fishing in the River Girvan which runs below the castle.
Developer Bill Wright will enter into a further round of planning talks with South Ayrshire Council next month. Surrounding farmland has already been bought, surveys carried out and the site cleared, ready for the Jack Nicklaus designed 18-hole golf course .
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20/09/04 - The government is getting tough on sugar - hot on the heels of its recent salt crackdown campaign.
Britons will be persuaded to limit their sugar intake and industry will be urged to cut levels in our foods. Sugar will be top of the government's hit list to improve the health of the nation through what people eat, an obesity conference heard this week.
Imogen Sharp from the Department of Health spoke at the Royal College of GPs conference in London.
Sweet tooth
Head of Health Improvement and Improvement, Ms Sharp said: "Sugar is next, once the present campaign on salt is over, we will be looking at a campaign to reduce the amount of sugar people are eating." The campaigns aim to cut obesity and its related health problems.
Current estimates for England suggest 70% of men and 63% of women, 24 million people in total, are obese or overweight. It is also a growing problem with children and young people. Around 16% of two to 15 year olds are obese.
Obesity brings its own health problems, including hypertension, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Treating ill-health caused by poor diet costs the NHS at least £4 billion each year, according to the Department of Health.
Getting tough
A White Paper on public health is expected next month. Ms Sharp said it would see the government "getting tough" on school meals and the start of a clampdown on inappropriate food advertising for children.
She said ministers had been "shocked and horrified" to find that what children were eating at schools bore little relation to existing guidance. New guidelines will be much stricter and better enforced, she said.
Dr Graham Archard, RCGP obesity spokesperson, said: "It is good news that the government is going to take this problem seriously at last. "Sugar is a major problem that leads to obesity, diabetes and other serious medical conditions."
Speaking at the conference Dr John Wilding, an obesity spokesperson, from University Hospital in Aintree, Liverpool, suggested fizzy soft drinks could carry health warnings, similar to those already found on cigarettes.
"American research has shown a clear link between fizzy drink consumption and conditions such as obesity and diabetes. Maybe we should start thinking about having warnings on the cans themselves."
16/09/04 - The Best Representation for Women at Competion in 20 Years
The Young Chef Young Waiter competition which is to held on the 4th October, will have the highest representation of women in the final since the competition began.
Three female chefs and two female waiters will take part in this year's final .
The competition, now in its 20th year, is organised by the Restaurant Association in partnership with American Express and the Savoy Educational Trust.
The chefs and waiters will be paired and will have to cook and serve a three-course meal to a specially invited audience with the winners announced at a dinner the same evening .
The finalists are:
Chefs
Oliver Lesnik, Whites Club, London
Nathan Green, Thyme, London
Sam Miller, Le Champignon Sauvage, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
Franco Caruso, Lucknam Park, Colerne, Wiltshire
Heidi Pearce, Sharrow Bay Country House Hotel, Ullswater, Cumbria
Amy Ballin, Fernhill Hotel, Portpatrick, Dumfries & Galloway
Lisa Allen, Northcote Manor, Langho, Lancashire
Adam Brown, Gallery Restaurant, Coventry, West Midlands
Waiters
Jean Jacques Danilo, Lucknam Park, Colerne, Wiltshire
Samuel Pitcher, Tylney Hall Hotel, Hook, Hampshire
Nicolas Mori, the Greenhouse, London
William Cristanelli, the Ritz, London
Leah Fellstad, Rhodes 24, London
Christopher Peck, the Red Lion, Leicestershire
Shaine Ohrt, Winteringham Fields, Lincolnshire
Trudy Mallin, Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles, Perthshire
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