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Article in The Publican - Feb 2005
Tracy Harrison and BobHackett were newcomers
to the trade when they took over the tenancy of the historic
Dog& Duck in Linton, Cambridgeshire, three and a half
years ago. It was a small pub with no reputation for good
food. Within months of taking over, it was badly damaged
when a neighbouring river flooded its banks, giving the
couple the chance to reinvent the business as a pub serving
fine food.
Describe your food operation Once
we got to know our customers and the market , we decided
we wanted the Dog and Duck to be a fine dining pub. We now
have lunchtime and evening menus which cover both the bar
area and restaurant, plus a daily specials board and homemade
pudding board. We use fresh ingredients, sourced locally,
under head chef Carole Mackie who has years of experience
in pub catering. We have table service and a great emphasis
on standards of cleanliness.
How have you developed your food
operation in the last 12 months? When we arrived,
we added a small dining area next to the bar but this seated
no more than 18 people. Our reputation for food started
spreading and we were having to turn people away.
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So last year we completed a £200,000
refurbishment to incorporate a new kitchen and restaurant
area with seating for 50, as well as disabled facilities.
We have a weekly Steak Night where we offer six different
types of steaks, and a weekly Fish Night, where we use use
fish that our customers may not have had before, such as
mahi-mahi.
What kind of customers does your
pub attract? We attract a mix of young, middle-aged
and older people as well as tourists and walkers. We are
a community pub but have also become a destination for people
who travel from as far away as Norwich, Ely and north London.
We chat with our customers to find out what they think and
offer comment cards. We attract new customers through word
of mouth although we have a website and have started advertising
in local publications and on the radio. We have become part
of the community and the pub is involved in local events
as well as a meeting place for clubs.
How do you train your staff?
When we started there were only four people working here
including ourselves. Now there are 30, including 18 on the
catering side.
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All our catering
staff have completed the CIEH basic food hygiene certificate
and are trained in food service and preparation. Our restaurant
manager is in her second year of NVQ day release study
for food and drink service at catering college and another
member of staff has just completed the NLC. We have regular
assessments as well as meetings where staff can give us
input about the business, including menus and food. One
sous chef developed a passion for catering while working
here and is now training at Claridge's.
What plans do you have for the
future? We are working on bringing in customers
in the mornings and lunchtimes. We have started opening
the restaurant separately at 9.30am, six days a week,
as a coffee shop, serving a broad range of teas and coffees
as well as cakes and pastries, which is helping to bring
in people who normally never visit pubs. We are also promoting
the pub to local businesses for quick lunches or meetings.
We also want to attract small conferences and functions,
such as weddings. The local authority turned down our
plans to add accommodation but we will look at that again
in the future.
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