After completing five previous projects for Robin Gill, we were super-excited to be involved in this wonderful location.
WITH SUCH A DIVERSE DEMAND ON THIS KITCHEN, WE KNEW THAT A GREAT SPECIFICATION WAS EVERYTHING
Set in 55 acres of landscaped gardens, the Theobalds Estate in Hertfordshire dates back to the 15th Century and has a very colourful history.
Queen Elizabeth 1st was a frequent visitor to the original palace on the land, King James used it as a country seat and subsequently died there and King Charles 1 also favoured it. The palace was largely demolished by the mid-17th century and in 1763, the mansion house, with Grade2* status, that now stands on the land, was built.
In the 1990s, the magnificent building was converted into a hotel and its stunning setting, combined with its proximity to London has made it a popular venue for meetings, functions and weddings.
Now under new ownership a refurbishment process is underway which will ultimately see Theobalds become one of the UK’s most luxurious country retreats. As part of this major project, the new owners wanted to make some radical changes to the food, focusing heavily on quality, provenance and sustainability. Plans include devoting several acres of Theobalds land to creating an in-house farm for raising home-reared livestock and growing vegetables and herbs.
Robin Gill (Darby’s, The Dairy, Sorella and Counter Culture) has been brought in as executive head chef to oversee the menus and, together with head chef, Ben Rand, specified Nelson Catering Equipment to design a new kitchen scheme befitting the changes. Having worked with Nelson on all his other restaurants, he knew we would interpret his ideas into an effective and efficient scheme.
We retained the position of the original kitchen but modified the function of some of the surrounding areas to create dedicated zones for meat and fish preparation, pastry, warewashing and, most importantly, a large bakery and coldroom for the bread that Robin is renowned for.
A bespoke, 3.8 metre Athanor island suite takes central position in the kitchen. Set flush within the top is a gas solid top, a plancha, both single and twin zone induction hobs, a multi-cooker, a twin well fryer and a robata grill. Beneath the top is a cast iron lined roasting oven, a set of 3x 1/1Gn hot holding drawers and refrigerated drawers.
The suite is flanked by a general preparation area to one side and a marble-topped pizza preparation area to the other. This includes undercounter refrigeration, thermowells and a single deck gas pizza oven. In front of the cooking suite is the pass and a further area with a vacuum packing machine and a blast chiller.
A large pastry zone is situated within a separate room which allows cool temperatures to be constantly maintained. It’s kitted with undercounter freezers and a nine-drawer fridge, a countertop induction hob and a 6-grid combi oven. Next door to this is the meat and fish preparation room which, like Darby’s, will also be used for meat aging.
Over his career, Robin has built a reputation for making delicious bread – Darby’s even has a wholesale facility! Therefore, it was no surprise that a well-equipped bakery would be on his wish list for Theobolds and, to create sufficient space for both the bakery and a dedicated coldroom, we were able to re-purpose a staffroom.
The bakery comprises a run that includes both a floor-standing mixer and a bench-mounted spiral mixer adjacent to which is a prover, a 20 grid combi oven, a four-hob induction cooker and a large, 3-deck baking oven.
It feels like you’re working with a small, family run business – but with global scale professionalism! They’ve helped me with designs for modest to, frankly, grand kitchens and they work meticulously to get the best outcome. They respond fast, follow up every call and never miss a detail.
SEPARATE DEPARTMENTS – DEFINED ZONES – OUR DESIGN STUDIO
WAS TASKED WITH CREATING A HARMONIOUS WORKFLOW IN A
INTENSE, BUSTLING ENVIRONMENT
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