Midlands contract caterer Olive Catering Services, which was set up by some former Catering Alliance bods and a PwC accountant three years ago, has grown the business to more than 50 contracts and £6m-plus of turnover off the back of a no-compromises commitment to excellent food, in the main locally sourced.
Although based on premises at a working farm in Ratcliffe Culey, Warwickshire, efforts to impress upon clients that Olive's focus on quality ingredients is a sincere one, at a time when everyman and his food-miles friendly hound seems to have hopped on the locally sourced bandwagon, must be hard work.
Kitchen Rat hears a recent visit by a Caterer journalist left the aforementioned writer in no doubt about Olive's locally sourced credentials, as on leaving the caterer's base of operations he was confronted by two friendly, bleating lambs that had made a bid for freedom.
These were immediately christened Mint and Jelly by Olive director Andrew Norrie, who no doubt was already thinking ahead to next week's braised lamb special. Such was the director's hunger for this portable produce he remained on the ball when those around him were not and displayed footwork footballer Cristiano Ronaldo would have been proud of to block the escapees running through an open gate and into the lanes beyond.
All in all you have to admit that produce doesn't come much more local, or fresh than that.
Leave a comment
What a user pic? Get a Gravatar!