Saturday, January 19, 2013

Pony & Trap chef Josh Eggleton hails 'front of house heroes ...

Josh Eggleton is the Michelin starred chef and owner of the Pony & Trap in Chew Magna, who is also one of the driving forces behind Eat Drink Bristol Fashion, returning to Queen Square in May. In this blog on his pub?s website, he praises the often undervalued front of house staff.

Josh EggletonPeople often ask me how important is service to a restaurant? Well, in my opinion it is just as important as the food on the plate. However, in this country it always annoys me that service is not given the respect it deserves as a profession. All too often, we hear people in the restaurant striking up nice conversations with our front of house team before asking those awful questions, ?So are you at university??, ?What are your career plans?? or the ultimate, ?So when are you going to get a real job then?!?

Of course, assuming the front of house role is a stopgap is not insult enough, the biggest irony is that a high level of service is still expected! And woe betide if it isn?t ? for the TripAdvisor barbs are quick, sharp and plentiful.

To me, this just doesn?t make sense. In the kitchen we can vent and be miserable, but you have to be the consummate professional out front. Respectful, calm under pressure and have a vast amount of knowledge. You must know about aperitifs, wine, spirits, food, coffee, possess excellent timing skills, personality, stamina and be able to juggle a huge amount of requests. There is no let-up and many know that the industry is both a drain on your social life with punishing hours. Nope, a restaurant is nothing without a front of house personality and when I say that I don?t just mean one person.

So ? why is it not considered a real profession? Or more importantly, what can we do to change this outmoded view? On mainland Europe, front of house staff are respected and we must do more to encourage talented young people to forge careers in the front of house industry or we will all suffer in the long run.

The programme Service with Michel Roux was brilliant summing up the complexity of the front of house role. So if you didn?t see it, watch it here, show your friends and show your kids! And next time you?re out, remember that the people serving you are professionals ? and doing a very good job already.

The Pony & Trap

www.theponyandtrap.co.uk

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Source: http://bristolculture.wordpress.com/2013/01/18/pony-trap-chef-josh-eggleton-hails-front-of-house-heroes/

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