If we’re not careful, a business like ours can produce a criminal amount of waste. We work hard to ensure that’s not the case, cutting down on single-use plastics and finding new ways to extract flavour and goodness from the perfectly good stuff that most kitchens throw away (600,000 tonnes a year in the UK alone, according to the latest research).
You’ll see some of our tastier innovations popping up on our lunch menu from time to time: anything from freshly baked cookies that put the day’s spent coffee grounds to good use, to kofte skewers made from retired hens that are no longer laying eggs. We’re proud to be part of Food Chain’s #feastfairly campaign and will continue to find innovative ways to make great tasting food from perfectly good ‘waste’ produce.
When it hits dinnertime we try our best too. Pre-paid set menus mean we know exactly how many people are coming and what they’ll be eating beforehand so we only order in what we need. There’s rarely much left over but what little food and biodegradable waste we do produce is collected by Pale Green Dot, to be converted into fertiliser, compost and renewable energy. Everything else goes towards our staff meals, which can be pretty epic…
Meanwhile, our bar team turns fruit peelings and herb stalks into refreshing cordials and syrups to use in our signature cocktails. We’ve ditched branded soft drinks altogether and now make our own to cut down on all that packaging. These are sipped through fully compostable straws. And we’ve just installed a water filter so we can do away with bought-in bottled water.
Special mention must also go to our suppliers (the likes of Food Chain, Duchess Farm, Mash Purveyors and Wild Harbour) who we rely on to bring us amazing seasonal, British produce, all year round. While we do fly in some of the very best chefs from around the world, we try and make up for it by keeping our ingredients as local as possible and supporting small farms and producers as much as we can.
There’s always more to be done, however, and we promise to keep exploring new ways in order to do our bit.