Question time

In light of the many and varied questions we are asked from our clients and customers we have dedicated this section of our website to trying to answer as many of them as we can.  We hope you find them informative and interesting.

Got a question???  Click here to ask us!

Where are Gary Bates & his Exec Team based

Although their base for correspondence purposes is Deepdale Stadium in Preston, Gary and his team can be found at any of our locations dependant on business demands and events schedules.  The team are supported by Gary's PA, Lisa Thompson who can track us down should you wish to speak to us.  Lisa can be contacted on 01772 512360

How does Paul Heathcote Manage to be in every kitchen at every event?

As you will appreciate, it is impossible for Paul to be at all his Heathcotes locations at any one time.... so he has a team of Heathcotes trained chefs who adhere to his ethos of creating mouth-watering dishes for all clients at a location of their choice by using local, fresh ingredients and adopting stringent food, health and safety guidelines.  Paul can often be found at our locations be it a race day at Chester, a major event at the ACC Liverpool or just passing by Deepdale on his way to his restaurants in Preston.

Food Safety & Food Hygiene is very important how safe are you?

Extremely safe!  Our company emphasis is on food safety and is of paramount importance to us.  The majority of our venues are accredited with a 4 stars under the local EHO "Scores on the Doors" scoring system and the ACC Liverpool has a 5 star award.   The vans we use to transport our food to venues for our Outside Events are refrigerated and follow strict guidelines so you can rest assured that your food will arrive safely.

Your staff are brilliant - where do you get them?

The majority of our staff join via word of mouth and stay with us throughout their college or university term.  We also have a number of members of staff who worked for us during their college days and return during their vacation time.  We develop and maintain excellent relationships with colleges and universities at all our locations and we empower staff to encourage like behaviour.  We have stringent guidelines and although we can be quite strict with our staff they will agree that they are treated well and are trained, developed and nurtured which makes working fun... or so they tell us!

How do you serve restaurant quality food on such a large scale?

Simple - quality ingredients, first class training, safe practices, no cutting corners and thinking outside the box.  We are not reinventing the wheel - not trying to go the moon - we are just trying to get really good quality food from one place to the other and our clients tell us we do it very well!

Do you work long hours?

Yes - although we are not complaining - no-one in this industry complains about it... if they do, they are in the wrong industry.

Can we find you outside the North West?

Absolutely we will go anywhere!  We have catered in the South of France, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and London.  Dependant on our clients needs the food we take is mainly from the North West although on occasion we have sourced food locally for example a wedding we catered for at Leeds Castle had its menu ingredients sourced from Kent and Ireland.  In addition we have a large network of staff that we have worked with through the years and although we normally take our personnel with us, if we need additional staff we will utilise our extensive contacts.

What is the hardest part of Working for Heathcotes Outside?

Time... there are never enough hours in the day!

What is Heathcotes Outsides View on Locally Sourced Produce and Food Miles?

This appears to be the "new black" but here at Heathcotes Outside we have been supporters of this ethos, mantra and mode since 1997.  Although we are all for it and do absolutely support it quality is the deal breaker - if we can't source quality ingredients locally we will go elsewhere for it! 

What's next for Heathcotes Outside?

As ever, we continue to strive to be the best at what we do so next for Heathcotes Outside is reviewing the service we provide to each and every client; reviewing training needs and opportunities and developing our team to ensure we are continually exceeding the expectations of our clients.  We want to continue to grow, more venues, more events and as ever we still want to break barriers with food techniques and food service styles. 

Did you know we were the first to do mini fish and chips? 

Did you know that at Preston North End we invented modern day food service for football clubs?