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Pub Industry’s Fish and Chip King is Red Hot

Travelling across Asia and Australia to expand his culinary knowledge, Harry Kodagoda has explored many diverse dishes and flavours in his time, rustling up everything from Tom Yum Goong in Bangkok to grilled ostrich and kangaroo steak fillets in Australia. Which is why scooping the Heinz Foodservice-sponsored award for the best fish and chips in the pub industry is even more poignant for the Anglian Country Inns' director of food, reaffirming his deep-rooted love for great British classics and the importance he places on putting them on menus. Some national treasures are just too good to put in the corner…

Classics keep 'em coming
As a lip-smacking dish, fish and chips has come a long way in its 150 year history, as proved at the high profile Great British Pub Food Awards 2010 at London's Plaisterers Hall.

Once solely the staple of chippies, fish and chips now have a firm place on pub menus and can both be part of a value for money family menu and a high end pub restaurant specials board, as Harry Kodagoda showed a panel of top food critics at this year's competition cook-off.

His award-winning beer battered cod dish fell into the latter category, comprising mouth-watering cod loin from local waters coated in beer batter, served with fresh garden pea puree infused with truffle oil and chunky hand cut chips made from Maris Piper potatoes.

Harry's inspirational take on classic fish and chips can be found on the menu at The Fox in Willian, Hertfordshire, the Best Cask Beer Pub in the South East 2009, and The White Horse in Brancaster Staithe, two of three very different pubs belonging to Anglian Country Inns.

Recently promoted to director of food for the trio of pubs after working at The Fox and owner Cliff Nye for five years, Harry also serves up fish and chips in the more conventional, child friendly format at The Jolly Sailors, Brancaster Staithe, an 18th century village pub serving good, honest food in an area renowned for its terns, oystercatchers and ringed plovers.

"However we serve it, it's a classic dish that requires a high level of care in preparation and, if you get it right, it's out of this world," he said. "The texture and flavour has to be just right and it needs to have the same appeal as chip shop fish and chips without being greasy or too heavy.

"What also makes our fish and chips so good is the fact everything is sourced on home turf, where possible. We buy our cod, freshly caught in coastal waters, from Channel Fisheries in Brixton, our Maris Piper potatoes from Bedfordshire and meat locally sourced from East Anglia. "Each of my chefs puts a different twist on our great British classics across the three sites, but sourcing seasonal British produce where we can is a constant we are incredibly proud of."

At The Fox, inspired classics with a twist include trio of Hertfordshire pork sausages with creamed mash and onion gravy and 'Sacombe Hill Farm' braised beef and venison pie, creamed potato and spiced red cabbage.

At The White Horse, you can get twenty-eight day matured Norfolk beef with garlic and green peppercorn butter, mushroom and hand cut chips, and a signature fish stew with sauce rouille.

The Jolly Sailors, meanwhile, does a mean Jolly Cheeseburger with chips and relish, Norfolk gammon, duck eggs and chips and homemade pie which is rotated daily.

There are some other wonderful touches at each of the three pubs too. The Jolly Sailors has a hatch to stone baked pizza oven for takeaways and a micro, five barrel brewery, while The Fox kitchen has its own food label, local artwork on the walls and a now annual Oyster Festival.

At The White Horse, you can tuck into 'Cyril's mussels' in the two Rosette restaurant and stay in one of the stylish, spacious, seascaped rooms that look across the Norfolk Coastal Path and the tidal marsh beyond.

As for each pub's food offering, it may be individual in its presentation and style of food, but the concept is the same across the company. "My job is to maintain consistency working alongside the chefs and managers, and to make sure flair is not confused with ego, motivating and encouraging individuals to drive the business and increase turnover at each site," said Harry. "And, of course, to make 100 percent sure the customers are happy at all times."

Why it has to be Heinz
It's not just the dishes themselves that have to be right to achieve this. To ensure customers receive a first class experience from start to finish, the right extras also have to be in place.

At The Fox, The White Horse and the Jolly Sailors, Heinz Tomato Ketchup is a must, especially with Harry's award-winning beer battered cod loin and hand cut chips.

As standard, Heinz Tomato Ketchup can be found on tables in its iconic 342g glass bottles, harnessing the power of the UK's most-loved food brand(1). With its inimitable taste, the best seller is a natural partner to all manner of pub classics, whether complementing burgers or as an ingredient in a prawn cocktail.

At the Fox, for example, Heinz Tomato Ketchup is a particular hit with 'The Fox' beef and pork burger with caramelised Guinness onions, cheese, hand cut chips and mixed leaf salad.

"Heinz is recognised as a leading brand and customers know it like the back of their hand," said Harry. "Our customers expect it and we would not lower our commitment to quality by opting for a lesser brand or own label. The Heinz reputation basically precedes itself."

Of a foodservice tomato sauce market worth around £65.4m, Heinz Tomato Ketchup has a 64.7 percent value share(2). It's rich flavour and thick consistency is achieved not by artificial colours, flavours, preservatives or thickeners, but seeds that yield high-pulp, low-water fruits.

Heinz Tomato Ketchup is one of a line-up of Heinz 'hero' products currently being explored in the biggest combined retail and foodservice campaign from Heinz in five years.

'It Has To Be Heinz' focuses on the deep connections the Heinz brand holds and the fact some things 'have to be'. For example, a new report shows caterers remain fiercely loyal to the brand because of their own personal beliefs or because they don't want to alienate customers3.

According to the survey of UK caterers by market research company Cambridge Direction, Heinz Tomato Ketchup loyalists, for example, perceive the iconic Heinz best seller and bacon butty's buddy to be the 'gold standard' and believe there is no better tasting product available.

Head of marketing for Heinz Foodservice Chris Cannon said that the findings were a great insight into caterers' motivations behind buying brands at breakfast in foodservice.

"What this report clearly shows is that, on top of unique taste and appearance, there's a definite emotional connection with the brand, which caterers acknowledge is inherently important to customers. They do not want to jeopardise this by switching to an own label or other brand, especially so front of house, where the power of the brand is really felt."

For more information, visit www.foxatwillian.co.uk, www.whitehorsebrancaster.co.uk and www.jollysailorsbrancaster.co.uk.

References
1. FreshMinds survey 2009
2. ACNielsen DCW & C&C data, 52wk to Sept 09 extrapolated to Total Market Heinz share based on Heinz delivered sales
Cambridge Direction UK caterer research – October 2009

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