Business

Everything You Need To Know About Alcohol Licensing

August 13, 2018

Ever thought of opening your own restaurant or pub?

It’s a dream that many hold: running a pub or restaurant – whether it’s an ultra-modern gastro pub, a cosy inn with a log burner, or a top of the range eatery. However, for many, the first stumbling block for any business wanting to sell alcohol can be the licensing procedures.

Here, Flogas, who specialise in business gas, have broken down some of the key points:

General rules

If you’re opening or running a business in England and Wales that is going to sell or supply alcoholic drinks, you must have a licence that has been authorised by the licensing authority. This is usually a local council and the legislation is overseen by the Home Office. It is defined as follows:

Businesses that sell or supply alcohol on a permanent basis, such as pubs, need to apply for a premises licence.
Those who plan to authorise the sale of alcohol must apply for a personal licence, alongside the premises licence, if they are also the owner of the business in that premises.

Alongside the payment that’s required, you’ll also have to complete an application form and send it to your local council. As well as the local authority, you will also have to send your application to the police and other responsible authorities; these responsible authorities can include:

Local fire and rescue
The primary care trust (PCT) or local health board (LHB)
Environmental health authority
Planning authority
Local trading standards
Any other licensing authority in whose area part of the premises is located.

Premises licences

This licence, simply put, authorises the use of any premises for any activities that involve the sale of alcohol. To successfully apply for this licence, you will have to provide the following information:

General information regarding the premises such as the address.
Your details as an applicant.
The operating schedule, including the date you want the licence to start from on the premises.
You should indicate what licensable activities you wish to carry out by ticking the appropriate boxes on the form. You should also indicate what days and times you want the licence to be active from. This also includes the provision of regulated entertainment, such as indoor sporting events, live music and recorded music.
Under the new licensing laws, you should also stipulate who you wish to be the designated premises supervisor (DPS).
The opening hours of your premises.
How you intend to promote the four key licensing objectives, which are: the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, the protection of children from harm.
The planning of the premises and any advertising on or around the premises that you wish to use.

Personal licences

In a pub, your general staff aren’t required to hold a personal licence, but it is necessary that all pubs do have to have a premises supervisor that holds a personal licence.

You would also need to apply to be a personal licence holder if the pub was your own business. Furthermore, anyone who works in a pub should be authorised to do so by the personal licence holder.

But note, it’s important to take into consideration before applying that anyone running or managing a pub or restaurant should do so in a professional fashion.

With the information provided, you should now know all you need to get started with your application in the hope that one day you’ll be pouring the pints in your own pub or eatery — cheers!

Food

How to Cook Frozen Chicken Breast – DIY Style

August 13, 2018

Any of the next cooking methods can be sure to result in some juicy, tender and moist chicken breasts. Anyone interested in getting to know how to cook frozen chicken breast should read on and find out exactly how. Ensure to follow these instructions armed with a meat thermometer and you will successfully carry through with the recipes for your home electric smoker. Any of the following cooking methods can be used in conjunction with other ingredients and especially seasonings. Some favorite ingredients include thyme sprigs especially the fresh ones and thinly sliced lemons.

Let’s start off with the brining cooking method which is a favorite due to its ability to draw in water into the chicken flesh and enhancing the flavor. Take up a large bowl and mix some 2 tablespoons of sugar, 3 tablespoons of salt and 4 cups of water. Ensure that the salt and sugar dissolve completely by stirring up the mixture.

Take chicken breasts that have been thawed and immerse them into the mixture and then cover it up and refrigerate for an hour. After the lapse of the one hour, have the chicken out of the brine and rinse it thoroughly with cold running water before preparing it using any of the following methods. Frozen chicken breasts can also be brined in much the same way like that of the normal chicken.

Simply mix the chicken breasts that are frozen and the brine solution and refrigerate them overnight so that the chicken gets to thaw. Ensure to cover the mixture well with some lid as it thaws out. Have the chicken rinsed well and patted well with some paper towels before you start cooking it. Let’s begin with the baking in parchment method.

This method is a type of moist heat cooking method which leaves for a good error margin and which has the chicken breasts cooking really well without necessitating rearrangement. The oven has to be preheated to a high of 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Have your work surface spread with heavy duty foil or parchment and then bring over the well thawed chicken breasts and have them arranged on it.

Put some bay leaves, spices, herbs and lemon slicing on top. Fold the foil well together and then crimp it up to hold some steam inside ensuring that the chicken is in a single layer with some expansion room. Have the chicken bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for some 30 to 35 minutes or 50 to 55 minutes which will be dictated by the type of chicken and add some more time if you are cooking more than four breasts.

You can also decide to use the crock pot, microwave, pressure cooker, saut? them, poach them or just steam them. Poaching the chicken breasts will require you to have a skillet and then add some 2 cups of chicken broth or water before boiling them for some 10-14 minutes. You can also decide to poach with the oven where you will need to pour some boiling water on the chicken, have it bake in the oven at 400 degrees F for 35 minutes. Garnish using some good chicken salad recipe.

Food Gadgets

How To Set A Table For Formal and Informal Dinner Parties

August 13, 2018

Dress to impress: dinner party table settings

Dinner parties are a wonderful social experience, both to attend and to host. But, like with any fashionable trend, the expectation changes by the year. How should you dress your dining table when hosting a dinner party? What are the key differences between formal and informal parties?

In the following guide, provided by AC Silver, retailers of antique silver we’ll give you pointers for a perfectly presented dinner party table, whatever the event.

Formal parties

Perhaps you’ve invited your boss over for dinner, or you’re the host of a special occasion within the family; perhaps a relative has popped the question to their significant other with a beautiful antique engagement ring, and you want to host a party of equal elegance to celebrate! In this instance, you might wish to lean towards a more formal table setting. A formal table will have pre-set cloth napkins — and potentially antique silverware and glassware — as well as a quality tablecloth and elaborate centrepiece. Candelabras, sterling silver wine ewers and antique claret jugs ae also perfect for setting an elegant dining tone.

In-keeping with tradition, an empty plate is set before the guests for each course. A server would then bring in the food and offer it to each person in turn, rather than placing plated-up food on the table. However, this is quite old-fashioned, so you may prefer to serve your guests already-filled plates/bowls for each course. If you’re hosting a formal dinner party, preparing up to six courses is a generally accepted rule, which will often include a starter, fish course, meat course, dessert, and cheese.

Setting a table for a formal dinner party

Cutlery placement is important when setting a formal dinner table.

The plate should be in the centre, with the forks to the left and the spoons and knives to the right. When it comes to the dessert fork and spoon, these must lie above the plate — the fork below the spoon — with the former pointing to the right and the latter, to the left. Next, all side plates go to the left of your dinner plate, while napkins go on the side plate — or you can put these on each dinner plate, if you prefer.

Here are some important points to consider when setting a formal table:

All cutlery must be placed in the order it will be used — starting from the outside and working in.
Your knife blades should face the plate, while all fork prongs must face the ceiling.
Serving salad and soup? The salad must be served on a salad plate, which is placed on top of the dinner plate. The soup bowl then goes on top.
If you’re serving red and white wine, they must have their own glasses. These should sit above the table knife, on the right-hand side.

Each dish should be tidied away when the course is over, and it’s vital that your guests have everything they need to dine already on the table.

Informal parties

You may be hosting a less formal affair, such as a dinner party for some friends. The entire atmosphere will be more relaxed and there’s less of a need to use your finest china and silverware. However, that doesn’t mean your table shouldn’t look nice and you could still use attractive centrepieces — such as an LED vase or decorative wooden bowl, if you wish.

Your table will have less cutlery and flatware than for a formal party, as all the food will be out for the guests to pick from. An informal dinner party can also be comprised of a single course or standard three. Go for the typical ‘starter, main and dessert’ dining structure, or simply cook up a hearty main meal and let your guests chat, laugh and drink as they dine.

Setting a table for an informal dinner party

With an informal dinner party, you have more room to let your creative side out, as there’s less rules involved. However, you still want to create an attractive setting.

A good idea is to pick a theme. Whether this is simply a colour, or you want to go for something quirkier — like the seaside or fairy tales — a theme can really bring your informal dinner party to life. Get tablecloths and runners that complement your chosen theme and put out handmade crafts on the table to add personality. Why not also tweak formal table setting trends to make them more casual? For example, you can use wine corks, toothpicks and paper to make fun place card holders for each guest or opt for colourful, simple tealights to illuminate the table without the need for ornate candelabras.

Informal parties are a great place to serve interactive dishes, like gourmet burgers or fajitas, so your guests can make their own combinations. Put everything out on the table in one go so that your guests can pick and choose which ingredients they want to eat and pass food around for a more sociable atmosphere.

It’s a wonderful social experience to host a dinner party. Simply choose how formal or casual you wish the evening to be and use the appropriate tableware and dining etiquette to set the ideal tone!

Food Gadgets

5 Small Appliances You Need in Your Kitchen

August 2, 2018

Are you a newlywed trying to figure out what you need in your new home? Or maybe you just want to add an item or two that will help you when it comes to cooking for your family. With a seemingly endless supply of kitchen appliances out there to choose from, it can be a bit overwhelming. Here are five products though, that your kitchen should not be without.

Stand Mixer

If you like your arms feeling as if they are about to fall off, you might not need a stand mixer. But if that does not sound appealing to you, you might consider getting one of these work horses for your kitchen. A stand mixer doesn’t just mix your cake batter, this multi-use tool can do so much more.

The flat beater can mix your dough for cookies and your meat for meatloaf, it can also break up cooked meat for shredded pork and chicken, and make chunky mashed potatoes are a thing of the past. The dough hook is great for yeast-based doughs such as pizza and cinnamon buns, and the whisk can be used to beat eggs for meringue or make homemade whip cream. On top of that, other attachments will allow you to slice apples, make pasta noodles, and even ground you own meat.

Bread Machine

While you do not need a bread maker to make good bread, when you begin to learn more about bread machines, you can see why they might be handy to have in your kitchen. Baking bread with traditional methods can take anywhere from 3 to four hours when you consider the time to knead the dough and allow it to rise.

A bread machine might take just as long start to finish, but it only requires 5 minutes of prep and the machine does the rest for you. Plus, you don’t have to tire your hands kneading the dough or heat up your kitchen with a hot oven while the bread bakes.

Instant Pot

Working late or having a crazy schedule should not hinder you from getting to enjoy a hot meal at home each night. If your job schedule has you running through the drive thru each evening for dinner, you should consider having an Instant Pot in your home. An Instant Pot is a pressure cooker, rice cooker, skillet, and oven all in one. It can cook elaborate meals in less than an hour and make rough cuts of meat tinder and tasty. It can even cook frozen meats safely, for when you forget to take your meat out of the freezer in the morning.

Immersion Blender

If you want to blend your soups to smooth perfection, but don’t want to transfer it to your blender to do so, an immersion blender might just be your new best friend. It’s lighter and easier to clean than a full-size blender and can do almost anything that it’s full-size counterpart can do. Smoothies, sauces, dips, and soups, this small appliance has got you covered.

Indoor Grill

Nothing beats a good grilled steak. But sometimes going outside to grill just isn’t doable. If you live in an apartment, for example, or just not wanting to step outside on a cold winters day. Sometimes you just want to grill without stepping outside, and a countertop grill allows you to do just that.

You can choose an electric grill, that cooks both sides of your meat at the same time, or a stovetop grill pan will do the job as well. These are usually made from cast iron and even come big enough to fit over two burners, so you can grill all your meat at once.

Food

Harvey Jones – The Evolution of UK Dinner Trends

August 2, 2018

How are dinner trends changing in Britain?

It’s undeniable that the time we spend having our dinner has changed over time — with less people sitting around the table with their families and more venturing out to local restaurants. In 2017, just over 20% of British families sit down to dinner together just once or twice a week, and one in five have their ‘family meals’ whilst sitting in front of the television.

With figures like these, and the price of eating out becoming more affordable and more of a social activity, it comes as no surprise that eating out has become a popular social activity. The question remains, which is more popular: eating in or eating out? Designer and manufacturer of bespoke kitchens, Harvey Jones, investigates:

People eating out

According to a study released by Business Insider; millennials are the group of people that eat out the most. Over half of millennials, 53%, are said to eat out at least once a week, with The Independent also revealing that 16-24 year olds spend more on food than any other age group.

Social media is said to be the main cause of these increased statistics; with apps like Instagram revolutionising the food and drinks sector. 87% of 18-29-year-olds actively use social media platforms — with Instagram averaging over 500 million active monthly users. It has now become the norm to snap your food before eating it, and making sure you have an Instagram worthy snap has become hugely popular. For the younger generation, have you even been out for food without taking a photo and Instagramming it?

As a platform that prioritises visuals, Instagram has become a portfolio of epic food pics which has influenced our decisions on where to eat. According to research by Zizzi, 18-35-year-olds spend five whole days a year browsing food images on Instagram, and 30% would avoid a restaurant if their Instagram presence was weak — and if their food photos are poor. Some Millennials will only eat at a restaurant if they know they can snap a great food shot.

People eating in

Although restaurants are becoming more competitive and affordable; eating at home is still a lucrative choice for families. For families with young children, spending time together is vital for their development and building relationships in the family. Eating dinner together around the table is a time that can be taken advantage of for this, and is said to encourage healthier food choices. In fact, a survey found that 9-14 year olds that frequently eat dinner with their families consumed more fruit and vegetables, as well as less soda and fried foods, whilst figures show that homemade meals can contain as much as 60% fewer calories than meals outside the home.

If you’re looking to be slightly healthier, eating at home is probably the best choice. Studies show that when we are presented with more food, we feel the need to eat more. Restaurant portions are continuously expanding, and by eating at home you can control your portion sizes.

According to 71% of teenagers that eat their dinner at home, the best part about it is catching up with other family members. Social meal times are a great opportunity to get the family together for some quality bonding time. It’s important to make time to spend with your family to ensure healthier relationships between family members.

Not only has social media played a big part in our eating habits, but the rise of cooking TV shows too. We have become a nation obsessed with cooking programmes, which in turn, has contributed to a change in our cooking and kitchen habits. From The Great British Bake Off and Celebrity Master Chef, to Saturday Kitchen and Come Dine With Me, baking and cooking have become ‘cool’ hobbies to have and these cookery programmes help boost our skills.

What do the costs look like?

You probably won’t be surprised to hear that 2017 was the highest year of spending for eating out. However, on the contrary, the rise of informal dining, chain restaurants and pop up restaurants are making eating out more affordable. But how does the price of eating out compare with eating in?

Research from Horizons has suggested that the average three-course meal costs £28.59; excluding drinks and any tips! However, the average price can vary significantly when broken down by region. For instance, central London prices are likely to be significantly higher than prices in the North East. If you were to eat out five times a week, you would expect to pay on average £142.95 per person.

However, eating at home will cost families £85.50 a week; based on a home with 2.4 people. However, figures for supermarket produce are getting lower, too. Supermarkets now offer an array of money-saving recipes, often partnered with celebrity chefs. Families can no longer claim home cooking is too expensive for a family of four.

With this, supermarkets find themselves being more competitive to acquire most customers. Some supermarkets offer ‘feed four for under £10’ offers which restaurants simply can’t compete with. These money-saving recipes encourage families to utilise their kitchens to their full potential and cook homemade meals instead of eating out or choosing ready meals and takeaways.