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Parents James and Lucy St. Ville at the Duke of Cambridge pub with kids Lily, 3, and Laurence, 5 |
Gourmet grub for schools
Parents relish the result of catering deal with gastropub
PARENTS this week had a taste of the gastropub food their children will soon be enjoying at school – at more than five times the price.
As reported in last week’s Tribune, Thornhill primary school, in Thornhill Road, Barnsbury, has teamed up with the Duke of Cambridge pub.
They are fed-up with meals provider Scolarest and, from this September, dishes inspired by the gastropub will be on the menu.
But the lucky youngsters will get the gourmet pub grub for only £2 per dish.
Their parents sampling the school’s new menu at the pub, in Danbury Street, Angel, this week had to pay around £11 a meal.
Dishes on offer included chicken, asparagus and broad bean risotto, casserole and bubble and squeak with a poached egg.
Caroline Moore, Thornhill’s head chef, has spent her half term week slaving away in the Duke’s kitchen.
In September she will be serving up dishes from the Duke to most of Thornhill’s 425 pupils.
Parents James and Lucy St Ville had been sending son Laurence, 5, off to school with a packed lunch for fear of what they might be served in the school canteen.
Mrs St Ville, an actress and singer, said: “We’re very excited about the Duke of Cambridge’s involvement because nutrition for the children is incredibly important.
“What Thornhill is doing should be a model to the rest of Islington.
“At school at the moment, a lot of the food ends up in the bin.
“Also, having the same food every day is boring for the children.”
Pub owner Geetie Singh has been advising the school not only on menus but how to source the freshest, locally-sourced, organic, eco-friendly ingredients and – most importantly – how to hammer out a good deal with suppliers.
Ms Moore, 48, and a former dinner lady who is now Thornhill’s head chef, said: “At the moment, we cook some things from scratch but it’s about half and half.
“A lot of the meat for the roasts arrives in a roll, like Bernard Matthews turkey meat, and we really want to get away from that.
“Everything is really exciting for me and the children.
“Working at the Duke has been very educational and I’ve learned a few tricks, like how to keep vegetables fresher.
“There are a few differences though, like at school we have to do 220 meals in an hour.” |
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