FOR THE SOUL Conference News chats to Mark Constable , new executive head chef , Party Ingredients , about how he delivers for clients
ood is the great translator , across cultural lines and civilisations , food is the unifying passion . When you talk to Mark Constable , new executive head chef , Party Ingredients , it ’ s this passion that comes across most clearly , you ’ re likely to come out of the conversation knowing more about how to smoke meat and make custard than you thought possible .
In-between the chef ’ s sage cooking advice however , you ’ ll uncover glimpses of a people-first strategy that incorporates his back-of-house team seamlessly with the delivery of top-class events .
“ My team writes the menus . I ’ m a real firm believer that I want them to buy into the ethos . What that does is it gives people ownership and then they almost self-regulate and quality check it without even knowing , because they ’ re personally invested in the food . So , you ’ re building a team that actually owns what they do ,” he says .
“ The team enjoy themselves so therefore the guests have a better experience . If you ’ ve got a happy team rolling in and just being positive , it makes our lives a lot easier back of house .”
It ’ s not just the chefs surrounding Constable that have his attention , he says that the key to his success is the ability to “ recognise different people ’ s skill sets ” and incorporate them into the big picture . “ Some
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“ My whole ethos is I want to cook good food to make people happy . Happy people and good food go hand in hand .” |
people can sell , others can cook , some people are customer focused and some people are absolutely brilliant behind the scenes .”
“ They ’ re the unsung heroes in my team . Take the kitchen porters for example , I can ’ t do my job without them . If you don ’ t give these guys that recognition that they deserve , we can ’ t do our thing , so front of house can ’ t do their thing and ultimately , the guests don ’ t get the experience they are expecting from us ,” he continues .
New beginnings In his new role at Party Ingredients ,
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Constable will focus on the people that the business has brought in and how to progress alongside them . Hoping to replicate his people-first mentality across the company and leading by example .
He says : “ Party Ingredients has some great young people , being given really good opportunities . So far , from what I have seen , they ’ re really grabbing it . I want to build my team with them in mind and focus on the bigger picture .
“ My whole ethos is I want to cook good food to make people happy . Happy people and good food go hand in hand .” CN
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