The Poultry Pour With Spirit

Since Essential Cuisine launched its No1 Beef Gravy last October, sales have gone through the roof. Feedback from chefs has also been phenomenal, prompting a request from Spirit Group for a chicken version that could bring equal class to dishes and inject renewed zest into food at its infamous Chef & Brewer and Two For One pubs amongst others.

Gravy is the top main course sauce when eating out, according to research. And with Sunday lunch jumping from 6th to 3rd place and roast chicken overtaking three meals in the top 20 most frequently listed dishes in the past year, the need for a superior ‘pour’ is imperative.

Consumers expect quality and crave that unmistakable homemade taste, which is why largest UK pub operator Spirit Group asked stock and jus maker Essential Cuisine to create something special to turn ‘paltry’ dishes into mouth watering masterpieces.

In the same vein as the brilliant ‘two meals for the price of one’ concept, Spirit Group’s strategy is simple: to meet customer appetites for quality and value with a new menu based on healthier choices, improved favourites and new dishes.

Implementation of this strategy began with a revamped seasonal menu at its portfolio of pubs including City Metro, which is where No1 Beef Gravy first made its mark.

Paul Farr, head of food at Spirit Group, which has 8,400 leased, tenanted and managed pubs, explained: “For us, it’s very much about value for money but customers now expect quality too. As the top 10 pub dishes don’t really change and are essentially those that can’t easily be made at home such as steaks and fish and chips, we have been primarily concentrating on retaining and improving our best sellers while providing a wider choice.

“Our value food business is showing year on year growth and part of that success is due to understanding what our customers want. For example, through quarterly feedback groups, we now only use British meat in Chef & Brewer.

“Our approach to gravy has also changed. As a big accompaniment in our business, we knew we had to invest in delicious, homemade tasting gravy that could be prepared quickly.

“We were really impressed with No1 Beef Gravy and with sales of poultry dishes such as half a roast chicken consistently high, not even dropping during bird flu, we approached Essential to see what they could do for us. This had to be cost effective to enable us to continue with the likes of two chicken meals for £8, but an improvement on the ‘starchy’ products we were using at the time. We also wanted consistency across the board.”

NEW No1 Chicken Gravy
After consultation, No1 Chicken Gravy was hatched, perfectly filling a gap in the competitive gravy market for a premium gravy base with roasted chicken stock. In other words, gravy as it should be.

The new product has a rich, meaty and homemade taste and is perfect for roasts, grills, and pies. Costing £11.50, it is available in 1.5kg pots, making 20 litres of gravy.

Paul is just one satisfied customer. “I was initially attracted to Essential Cuisine because of its ‘natural ingredients’ philosophy and I have to say, I have not been disappointed,” he said.

“Unlike some products which are like brown porridge and skin up, the new No1 Chicken Gravy has a clean appearance, starch levels are good, consistency and flavour is fantastic and it goes a lot further. It is also great value – in the past, you would have had to fork out a lot of money to get this kind of quality.

“Our chefs have also been positive and say it’s a great product to work with. If there was negative feedback, you can rest assured we’d have heard about it. All in all, I would say this is the leading product on the market and we will happily continue to invest in it.”

Nigel Crane, managing director of Essential Cuisine3, said: “Most gravy products currently available don’t contain any meat stock; however they do contain MSG so they don’t actually taste like a real gravy. We wanted to create a premium gravy for chefs who want a good quality, rich tasting meaty gravy that tastes as it should. It is also very versatile so it doesn’t compromise a chef’s creativity; they can add their own touches to it.

“It is well known that for diners, the gravy is one of the most important parts of a meal, and memorable great tasting gravy will always ensure customers return. For just a penny a portion more, you can be confident that the gravy will taste as it should.”

No1 Chicken Gravy was developed by Nigel, a Dorchester-trained chef, and technical development director Alan Metcalf, who have a wealth of experience working with a leading brand in the gravy industry.

25/03/2008|