CASE STUDY AT HEATHROW'S TERMINAL 4
The Commission, a new, 175-seater casual dining and cocktail bar concept sited at Heathrow’s Terminal 4 opened just a few weeks ago. A Drake & Morgan site, the kitchen was designed by the Airedale Group, while the restaurant is operated by hospitality and food service company Delaware North.
Since the restaurant is airside, operations are subject to restrictions, meaning processes, such as getting service engineers in for breakdowns, takes time. The outlet is also a high-pressure site, open 16 hours a day, with an often constant stream of customers looking for quick service. The catering equipment therefore has to be reliable, efficient and capable of delivering a high performance.
Nils Braude, operational director for Delaware North’s travel sector, explains what was chosen and why:
“Space in an airport is at a premium, so the kitchen had to be as small as possible. For example, with the refrigeration we needed maximum storage in the smallest possible space. With the cooking equipment, it had to be fast and compact.”
ON REFRIGERATION
“With refrigeration, reliability is key. Particularly in an airport, due to our huge workload and because we can’t just get engineers airside at the drop of a hat. Williams is top of the range and is known for its reliability. We also know if it does go wrong it can be easily fixed.”
Chose: Williams counters and undercounters for both chilled and frozen storage, a Thermowell and bespoke coldroom. ON COOKING APPLIANCES
“We looked for equipment that fitted in a very small space, with high production outputs and accurate, consistent cooking temperatures. Longevity was also very important for us. We don’t want to have to replace the equipment for a good few years. The Falcon appliances are well built, and very neat. They’re easy to keep clean. They’re also compact and have the high production and temperature consistency that we’re looking for.”
Chose: Falcon induction range, rise and fall grill, among others. ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY
“Being in an airport, the equipment also had to be electric-powered. In the current market electricity is very expensive. So we needed energy efficient refrigeration, and cooking appliances that gave instant heating
power, without costing a fortune and creating an unworkable environment.” ON DISHWASHING EQUIPMENT
“So with our warewashers, cleanliness is the key, along with reliability and consistency, over a long period of time. Plus, there’s the need for speed and labor-saving. We don’t want to have to double-wash anything. We looked at having sustainability built-in, in terms of power usage. However, we also looked at performance – we didn’t want to slow things down.”
Chose: Winterhalter passthrough hood warewasher and glasswashers