amadeus_glorious_final

HOW WAS IT FOR YOU? RICOH WOMEN’S BRITISH OPEN
RICOH WOMEN’S BRITISH OPEN HOW WAS IT FOR YOU?
How was it for you
Darren Proud?
Executive Chef Darren Proud is in charge of making sure all external
Amadeus events have the very best catering in any location. From
a historic abbey to fields in the middle of Scotland, Darren is leading
the brigades to ensure a successful event. However, his job doesn’t
start in the kitchen – it can start months, even a year, before the
event takes place and is at the concept stage
“As a chef, the limits are
job only and what whatever you put you into put the
in,
OVER THE FOUR-DAY EVENT…
Amadeus fed over 170 managers and staff
Provided 1,000 media lunches
1,200 hospitality packages
(breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea)
1,750 players’ meals
15,000-plus beverages
and 4,500 public hot meals
“As a Chef, the limits are only what you put into the
job and whatever you put in, you will get back”
Having worked at Amadeus for more than
10 years, he is one of many long-serving
team members who constantly pushes
boundaries and thrives under pressure.
How did joining Amadeus come about?
I celebrated 11 years working here on 1 August
this year. Before that I worked four or five-star
hotels and two-rosette-awarded restaurants.
I was working as Head Chef at a golf club hotel
and had been awarded a rosette in the first year,
but I decided I needed something new. Hotels
and foodservice are like chalk and cheese.
I applied to work for Amadeus at the NEC,
which I only knew as the venue for the
Motorcycle Live show – I didn’t realise it hosted
more than 700 events each year! I took part in
a ‘cook off ’ and, to be honest, I thought I hadn’t
done very well, but I was called back for a third
interview and was given the job.
The way of working here was completely
different – I mean every aspect was different.
In a hotel, as a Head Chef you have to do
everything yourself, but in foodservice you have
great teams around you. There are hygiene
experts taking that workload from you, you have
purchasing people who help with suppliers.
I felt Amadeus was very posh when I was first
shown around. I’ve enjoyed every second since
that first day – no day is the same. I can be
working on a wedding, organising the food for
a golf event, arranging menus for a 300-person
function in a field – it’s so diverse and you really
do have to think outside the box. I’ve worked in
old kitchens the size of a broom cupboard, set
up in fields with no electricity and had to get
ovens into spaces that weren’t designed for
them! I love that every day here is different.
Coming from the hotel sector, Amadeus was
a world away. I was working 15-hour days and
didn’t feel rewarded. Here, I work hard and
feel appreciated. In hotels you can hide
and work can become pedestrian, but
here you have structure and support,
and it’s so diverse.
What’s the most memorable
Amadeus event?
That has to be working at the
Scottish Open for the first
time. I had worked with
you will get back”
Amadeus for a year and the catering for
this event was now mine to run. There
were about eight kitchens with 40-plus
Chefs and it was manic from the day it
started till the day it ended. I loved every
minute of it – seeing the teams working
for you in the middle of field with heaps
of happy visitors. Every year gets better
and better for me. I’m trying new
things, bouncing ideas off my Chefs.
I stand back and look at some of this year’s
events and feel so proud, and we received
great comments, so we know we’re
doing something right.
Hitting the client’s brief and going
beyond it is always the aim. It can be
different to showcase what we do sometimes
without seeing it first-hand. Hearing comments
such as ‘it’s the best food they’ve ever had at an
event’ is special to me, and to the team. Honest
feedback from both the team and visitors helps
us grow. Recently, Marc Frankl, our Food and
Beverage Director, said he just couldn’t believe
what we do and wished he saw it more often.
I took this as a great compliment, because it can
be difficult for all of the team to come and visit
our sites when we’re hundreds of miles away.
What’s your favourite dish?
For me it has to be pork belly. I just love cooking
it – it’s not praised enough and there’s so much
flavour in it. That’s what I enjoy the most about
38 GLORIOUS
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