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Willen Dragon, Whitbread

Foodservice Solutions

Building on a 14-year relationship with Whitbread, Gratte Brothers Catering Equipment Ltd was once again appointed to design, supply and install the commercial catering facilities required to bring their latest ‘Brewers Fayre’ outlet, Willen Dragon, to life.

Project Information

Client:
Whitbread plc
Sector:
Leisure/Hotel & Restaurants
Duration:
2 Months
Services:
Foodservice Solutions

The Site

Whitbread PLC is a multinational British hotel and restaurant company which owns and operates the largest hotel brand in the UK; Premier Inn. Within its hotels, Whitbread operates various restaurant chains such as Beefeater, Table Table and of course, Brewers Fayre. Willen Dragon is the latest addition to the Brewers Fayre chain and was a collaboration between Gratte Brothers and Whitbread which considered the needs of the customer, chef and the environment at every stage.

Gratte Brothers’ involvement spanned across the whole catering offering and included commercial catering equipment for the main restaurant kitchen, a bespoke carvery counter for the restaurant’s buffet area and a chilled display counter for the restaurant’s breakfast buffet area. Within each area, a great deal of time and research was undertaken to ensure that each chosen product not only helped deliver superior food quality but also reduced energy consumption.

Energy Efficiency

The project included the supply and installation of a range of catering equipment including Rational 6-grid combi ovens which boast a variety of self-cooking and combi modes for different foods and cooking styles in a single unit, FriFri freestanding fryers and an on-demand Lincat salamander grill with inbuilt plate detection to ensure that energy is only utilised when needed.

The design also called for induction hobs throughout the facility. These hobs automatically turn off when a pot is removed and additionally deliver more controllable heat and power, which is equal if not greater than a traditional gas solution. Two Synergy chargrill ovens, which use 40% less gas than traditional chargrills, were also incorporated as well as a hot hold unit, which was designed in collaboration with Whitbread to ensure that all food was kept hot and remained at the highest quality prior to serving.

Ergonomic Design

For the refrigeration, modular Williams and Adande units were installed as well as a Victor Synergy drop-in refrigerator air well for the breakfast areas and a Winterhalter pass-through dishwasher which washes efficiently with low water consumption to optimise energy use. Additionally, the Adande draw units can be utilised as a fridge, freezer or blast chiller and are therefore an ergonomic storage solution which also delivers reduced air loss when compared with traditional appliances.

To ensure that the customer was the priority during the design, the buffet area was designed ergonomically to allow customers to get to the food without the risk of burning their hands. Integrated serviette and condiment dispensers as well as space behind the carving station for utensils were just some of the additional details which ensured that at every station, an ergonomic and pleasing aesthetic was delivered without risk to the customer.

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