What are the challenges of operating a high-end restaurant after passport control at a major airport? M&C Report went airside at London City Airport to look at City Bar & Grill, the restaurant from travel concessions operator SSP, and spoke to Martyn Barrett, operations manager at SSP Air.
Customers
City Airport is predominantly used by business passengers during the week, which has been the major influence behind City Bar & Grill. Eight out of 10 people who use the restaurant are single-occupancy males. “It’s a really phenomenal statistic and we have to be set up for that,” says Barrett. A lot of single occupancy tables have been set up. There are plug sockets for laptops and other devices on the row of window seats, while a row of bench seats includes charge points. A high proportion of meals are put on expense accounts. Barrett says: “They are very demanding in terms of quality but happy to pay for quality as long as it’s served in a quick time frame.” Design points including bowler hats hanging from the ceiling and the use of brief cases in the decor also point to the customer base. Despite its location, Barrett says that in some cases staff will get to know regular customers by name.
Peak trading
City Bar & Grill has two distinct trading period each week day: 4.30am to 8.30am and 6.30pm to 8.30pm, due to the timings of flights. Barrett says 3,500 covers are served each week at the 90-cover restaurant, with around 600 on the average day, of which around two thirds would be between 5.30pm and 7.30pm. About 150 covers are served per hour at its peak, with one transaction every 45 seconds. In addition, around 100 to 150 breakfasts are served each day. Barrett says the restaurant takes c£50,000 per week, up from around £30,000 when the site was a pasta restaurant before SSP opened the site in August 2011. In April 2011, SSP won the contract for the airport and operates five sites there, including an Illy franchise, the cafe concept Panopolis (one airside and one landside) plus the restaurant brand Rhubarb.
Service
Barrett says that 95% of meals are served within seven minutes. “It’s a premium quality offer, effectively, at fast food speeds.” Customers are generally pressed for time - the average dwell time from reaching check in to the flight departing is just 37 minutes, although check-in times are comparatively quick because few people check in luggage - aside from one route to New York, all flights are to Europe. Nevertheless, the average time a customer spends in the restaurant is between 20 and 25 minutes, Barrett says. Staff have a few techniques to tell how much time the customers have. They can either ask directly if they’re in a rush or how much time the customer has, or they can ask where they are flying to and reassure them about how long they can stay at the restaurant. Passengers will often ask to have their bill at the same time as their food. Dessert sales are “gradually growing”, Barrett says, despite time constraints.
Food
The main menu mixes a selection of half a dozen grill options with as many small plates, which Barrett says sell well at lunch, plus tasting boards and salads. A selection of hand-made pasta with sauces cost £13.95 and prove popular in the evening. Grilled dishes vary in price from £17.95 for the grilled corn-fed chicken breast to £32.50 for the “Cote de boeuf”, while small plates include confit of heritage tomatoes (£9.95), pulled Hertfordshire salt beef (£11.95) and foie gras and ginger bread terrine (£15.95). Barrett says sales are split roughly equally among different dishes. Barrett says the idea is for the food to be of the same quality as a restaurant in the City. Executive chef Robbie Lorraine said the idea is to take fine dining to the airport. He said local suppliers are used as much as possible; for example, the fish comes from Billingsgate Market and the pasta is also from a local supplier.
Summer changes
The nature of the customer base changes somewhat over summer, when there are more leisure customers; for example, daily flights to Ibiza operate for five weeks from 25 July. The menu is adjusted during that period with a reduction of the premium offering and an increase in pasta dishes. the layout of the menu is also changed to reflect this. “We’ve got the flexibility to change and react very quickly. We can turn that around in a couple of days.” The main menu changes twice a year, in April and September.
Service: pre-payment
SSP is currently working with the airport on a plan to introduce a function that allows customers to pay in advance. There are also plans to trial hand-held terminals for placing orders.
Wines
Barrett described the selections of wines as “spectacular”, and highlighted the fact that time constraints mean a far greater proportion of premium wine sales are by the glass compared to standard high-end restaurants.
Staff
To work airside, staff need to provide employment references dating back five years and also complete a criminal record check. There is some leeway at the start, however, with new employees issued with a non-renewable 60-day pass, effectively giving them a two-month window. Shifts are unsurprisingly arranged in accordance with the two peak periods. Four waiters work between 9am and 4pm and this number rises to 14 for the evening shift. Staff are employed on 20-hour contracts. “It works surprisingly well. You would be surprised how many are studying.”
Airport restrictions
Barrett discusses some of the most challenging aspects about operating airside. There are just three slots each day when deliveries can be made from landside. Restrictions on sharp objects mean that knives used by customers are blunted off. If potentially dangerous objects are required - Barrett gives the example of corkscrews - a “tools of the trade” pass must be applied for, which requires three to four hours notice. Dishes are prepared in a central production kitchen and finished off on-site. There are restrictions on what equipment can be used in the on-site kitchen, which deep-fat fryers among the pieces of equipment that aren’t permitted. This can lead to challenges. for example, crab-coated quails eggs are served with the char-grilled smoked salmon (£14.95). The key is to warm the eggs without drying them out. The kitchen is significantly smaller than at a standard restaurant, with four chefs in the kitchen at peak time, perhaps one third or one quarter as many as in a high-end restaurant on the high street.
