Year 12 Enjoy real-life fine-dining Chef experience at the Greyhound in Beaconsfield

Four of our Sixth Form students got a taste for fine-dining hospitality recently when they spent the day cooking in the kitchen and experiencing all aspects of a professional ‘service’ at The Greyhound in Beaconsfield.

Year 12 students; Maddie, Mary, Ellie and Eva are preparing for their Level Three Food Science and Nutrition qualification assessment and were invited to spend the day helping the chefs in the kitchen prepare and serve dishes during a busy lunch service.

The students helped to prepare Smoked Trout Rillette, Smoked Potato with Milk Loaf and Chive Butter and Pink Fir Potatoes with Truffle.

This invaluable experience was part of the Greyhound’s Hospitality Programme. Launched by co-owner Daniel Crump, the team at the restaurant have been visiting local schools as well as inviting students in to give them a feel for operations in a commercial kitchen and inspire the younger generation to pursue a career in the hospitality sector.

Each student that does work experience at the restaurant can take part in a tailored schedule of activities depending on their interests, with opportunities to shadow chefs and other kitchen staff, as well as the front of house team.

Mr Crump said: “The idea behind the Greyhound Hospitality Programme is to inspire the younger generations to hopefully want to join our amazing industry, whether it’s front-of-house, back-of-house, or any area of hospitality. We want to showcase what it is we do day-to-day as well as what opportunities our industry can bring.”

Graham Blower, Operations Director at The Greyhound, said: “Students studying food technology in an educational setting are now making decisions about what career they’re going to follow. We want to invite them in, get them interested in what a real kitchen looks and feels like and recruit the next generation who we can teach, train and inspire to be future chefs".

Ms Daniel, Head of Food and Nutrition at Pipers, added: “The students at Pipers follow the Level 3 Food Science and Nutrition course, and as part of the Year 12 assessment, they have to prepare a three-course meal for two covers in three-and-a-half hours. They have to present as many skills as they can within that – making sauces from scratch, dough, pasta, filleting fish, so it’s really great to get them into a kitchen with some real-life chefs, experiencing what proper lunch service is like, with the aim of developing their skills and showing them some of the things we can’t do in school because of timing or not having the same facilities as a commercial kitchen. It was a real eye-opener for them and I’m sure it’ll set our students in good stead for their final assessment.”

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