This hot snack food station event at Scone Palace in Scotland was a rare event; it was catering for the BBC. Executive Coach and Catering were privileged to be asked to cater for the cast and crew of the BBC’s Great British Bake Off programme.
This was an all day job with breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea all being served from the same station. The breakfast consisted of cereals, Danish pastries and croissants. The lunch bacon sandwiches, sausage sandwiches and beef burgers with the afternoon tea consisting of tea, coffee, scones and cakes.
To make sure they could be set up in time to cater for 120 hungry bodies the two members of staff working this event arrived on site around 6am, with the aim of serving breakfast at 8am.
They erected two gazebos, picking the perfect spot in the car park area of the palace before decorating the outside of them with the relevant banners.
Next the staff set up tables, erecting enough tables to both serve from and store food on. They positioned the tables within the gazebos, allowing enough room for customers to access the service area to use the self service facilities.
The first meal, breakfast was very straight forward with customers helping themselves to the food, tea, coffee and fruit juices available. These had been laid out in the area of the gazebo which could be easily accessed by all customers.
After breakfast the focus was then cast towards lunch time, it was here that the hot snack station was used to its full capability. As a pair the staff used the griddle machine to cook bacon, sausages, and beef burgers, enough to serve 120 people.
Once cooked the food for dinner was placed into chafing dishes which had been set up on the tables inside the gazebos. These were heated and therefore kept the food hot until lunch time, allowing the two members of staff to continue cooking, knowing they had somewhere to store their cooked food.
Customers were served by both members of staff when they visited the station. With all the food cooked service was easy. All options were served with the choice if onions and cheese, with customers adding their own sauces. The tea, coffee and fruit juice facilities remained in the self service area.
Once the lunchtime rush was over with the staff then looked towards afternoon tea. This was to be another self service meal option set out in the same area of the gazebos as the breakfast was in the morning. A selection of cakes and scones were presented with customers helping themselves to tea and coffee.
Although this event initially seemed a logistical nightmare, thorough planning and good organisation ensured the day ran smoothly. With most of the meal options self service the staff on this job only really had to prepare the breakfast and afternoon tea and cook and serve the lunch.
Hot Snack Food Station Catering at Scone Palace Scotland
