Stocking up for Christmas: Christmas crackers

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IF YOU think Christmas menus tend to be a bit on the predictable side, remember that if they're done well, festive favourites are exactly what...

IF YOU think Christmas menus tend to be a bit on the predictable side, remember that if they're done well, festive favourites are exactly what customers want to see.

Dave Howarth, trading director at Woodward Foodservice, says: "Christmas is a time when customers can enjoy food they don't normally eat at other times in the year, such as Brussels sprouts, pigs in blankets, Christmas pudding and mince pies."

A glance through Woodward's Taste of Christmas brochure shows the scope of Woodward's range. Game birds are a traditional Christmas favourite, pre-dating the popularity of turkey. For many customers, game will be an interesting and relatively unusual choice, ideal for pushing the boat out at Christmas.

"Game is a popular meat in winter and works well as an alternative to turkey. Rich seasonal favourites include partridge, pheasant and venison," says Dave. "Our fresh meat service offers a wide range of cuts, delivered clearly labelled and vacuum packed for freshness." Seasonal game from Woodward also includes guinea fowl, wild duck, quail and pigeon.

Canapés and buffets are ideal for Christmas parties and functions, allowing pubs to charge per head and take advantage of afternoon events that would ordinarily only require drinks.

Desserts are also often eaten at Christmas by customers who nobly avoid them for the rest of the year.

"Christmas is a time when customers are more carefree with their diet and are willing to splash out on a treat," says Dave. "We have launched nine new desserts. Our festive choice would be the mincemeat, apple and cranberry crumble slice which is a premium alternative to a mince pie and can be served with cream, ice cream or brandy sauce."

The 3663 Christmas brochure features more than 600 products. 3663 frozen, fresh and chilled division marketing controller Julie Moore says: "We pull out all the stops to put together a selection that will make Christmas menu planning easy, fun and profitable for publicans.

"You can see industry food trends reflected in our range. Food manufacturers are taking traditional Christmas flavours and ingredients - turkey, cranberry, stuffing, mulled wine, cinnamon - and using them to produce all kinds of different dishes, everything from sandwiches and Oriental-style snacks to sauced entrées."

One consumer trend reflected in the range is healthier dishes, with fish a lighter alternative to roast joints, as well as risotto choices. The new fresh fish collection features gilt head bream, red snapper, seabass, halibut, sole, monkfish, trout, cod, swordfish, tuna and salmon. All can be prepared to the pub's specification - whole fish, fillets and steaks; gutted, scaled, skinned and pin-boned.

There's an abundance of party food, including bruschettas, breaded cheese wedges, spring rolls, samosas, puffs, parcels and wontons.

Woodward Foodservice: 0870 600 6465, www.woodward-foodservice.com

3663: 0870 3663 000, www.3663.co.uk

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