Best of British pub classics

John Porter looks at how pub caterers can pull in the punters with some comforting classics.

There is, we are often told, a resurgence in classic pub grub. Traditional dishes such as bangers & mash, shepherd's pie and fish & chips have increased in popularity, the argument runs, because consumers are looking for comfort food in response to the general doom and gloom that dominates the headlines.

The next time someone puts that argument forward, look at them carefully. If they strike you as the kind of operator who likes to drizzle dishes with infused oil, garnish them with a dash of pesto and possibly even sprinkle on a few crushed pine nuts, the chances are they're simply missing the days when they could charge 25 quid a head for such fare and get away with it.

The fact is, classic pub food has never really been away. Undoubtedly, pub groups and individual pubs have expanded their menus over the years to include more European and Asian dishes — although lasagne and chicken tikka masala probably now have official British status. However, the best-selling pub dishes, such as steak pie, bangers, scampi, fish & chips and the carvery roast, have not changed over the decades.

What has changed is that the value-for-money that pub classics represent is even more important to consumers in the current market. At the start of 2009, Ashley and Kelly McCarthy took a careful look at the menu at their village pub, Ye Old Sun Inn at Colton, near Tadcaster in North Yorkshire. "We were looking at the whole business at the start of what was forecast to be a challenging year for everyone," says chef Ashley.

A British Classics section was added to the menu, offering dishes such as a pie of the week, battered fish and home-made chips, and grilled steaks, all priced at £10.95 compared to standard main course prices at Ye Old Sun of between £13 and £20. By working closely with suppliers, Ashley was able to maintain both product quality and, crucially, the pub's food GP on the dishes.

There was a strong customer response. "In a way, they've been too successful," says Ashley. "Like all the food we serve, the British classics are freshly cooked and locally sourced, and served with fresh veg. It's become one of the most popular parts of our menu, so the British Classics menu is here to stay, whatever happens to the economy."

At the Britannia in Hackney, east London, a pub classics menu is offered every Monday.

Five dishes including pie 'n' mash, hock of ham & pease pudding and bubble & squeak with poached egg are on offer for £9.95, which includes a bottle of lager, glass of house wine or pint of Doom Bar. The offer is marketed as: "designed for those whose weekend exploits have emptied the fridge or stalled the shopping trip."

Cheering people up​

The economic downturn was also the impetus for the Great British Classics menu introduced at the Sandrock in Farnham, Surrey, by licensees Carol Haime and David Walton. "We did a customer survey to find out what people wanted, and the result was that, while they loved what we offered, they wanted slightly cheaper meals," says Haime.

Even with main courses priced at around £8.95, the result was a higher profit margin, thanks to meals prepared with cheaper ingredients, as well as higher turnover. The best selling dishes are shepherd's pie, lamb's liver and smoked bacon with onion gravy, beef and beer pie with mash, home-roasted gammon ham with eggs and chips, and stews with dumplings. Home-made soups for starters and treacle tart for afters have also been a success.

"People need cheering up and want to treat themselves," believes Haime. "They want a dish that puts its arm around you and gives you a big hug. When people think of a traditional pub these classic dishes are what they expect to find on the menu and this is part of the appeal of going to eat at the pub rather than a restaurant.

"Many people see these dishes prepared on the myriad TV cooking programmes, but do not have the cooking skills or inclination to make them at home."

Bangers make cash​

With the variety of sausages available to pubs getting ever more diverse, a bangers & mash night can be a popular way of generating early week trade, as well as encouraging customers to enjoy a classic pub meal.

BPEX foodservice trade manager, Tony Goodger, says: "Sausage & mash has long been a traditional favourite on menus, so running a dedicated sausage & mash theme night is bound to be a hit. To really optimise the event, we would suggest that caterers source quality ingredients and experiment with a range of varieties and flavour combinations. The novelty factor will help to generate publicity, which will in turn attract new customers and ultimately, increase gross profit."

Another British favourite, scampi, is also enjoying a revival, with a recent study by NPD Group showing that more than 38 million portions were eaten out of home in the year to the end of October 2009.

The Duke of York Inn, in the centre of Whitby, North Yorkshire, has served scampi from Whitby Seafoods for more than 20 years. The company supplies free point-of-sale material, including window stickers, tent cards and swing boards.

Pub manager John Perkins says: "Seeing a swing board outside advertising Whitby Scampi catches the eye and attracts people in, boosting scampi sales."

At Nigel Haworth's Bull in Broughton, also in North Yorkshire, the dish is marketed as Fleetwood-caught battered scampi in a basket, real chips cooked in dripping, lemon and black pepper mayonnaise.

Pie nights​

The Keystone at Guildford, Surrey, was British Pie Week winner in 2009. Building on that success, chef Ashley Robins has turned pie nights into the pub's main attraction. "Pies make a fantastic addition to any pub menu, they're always popular and you can usually achieve a GP of at least 50% on them," he maintains.

"From a chef's perspective they are a really flexible dish — you can put anything in them and they're a great way of using up unused ingredients in your kitchen."

Pie Night is the busiest night of the week, offering two home-made pies accompanied by a selection of vegetables for £10, compared to a single pie at £9.

"It's quite the social occasion as our customers seek 'Pie Buddies' in order to get the £10 deal," says Robins.

Steak a claim​

A weekly or monthly steak night is a great way to drive business on quieter nights of the week. Peach Pubs run steak nights where they focus on creating a fun night for customers through the cow-shaped boards the steaks are served on, staff wearing cowboy hats and Friesian-patterned aprons, combined with serving some fantastic steaks and red wines.

EBLEX has developed a range of alternative steak cuts with master chef Pierre Koffman, which can offer pub caterers an economical alternative to rump and sirloin.

The cuts include flat-iron steaks, which are seam cut from the feather muscle, normally reserved for braising, dice or mince. This steak, when matured correctly, is an economically viable alternative to rump or sirloin.

Why not offer your steaks with different sauces and compotes, such as tangy Marsala sauce or rhubarb and chilli compote. Mole Face Pub Company runs weekly steak nights. The offer includes 8oz Herefordshire fillet steak (£18.50), 16oz double fillet (£36 for two) and 9oz rump (£9.95).

All steaks are served with watercress salad and proper chips in dripping. Sauces and butters are sold at £1.50 each, and include Dianne sauce, horseradish cream and Cropwell Bishop Stilton cheese butter. Sides cost £1.95 and feature garlic field mushrooms, grilled vine tomatoes and beer-battered onion rings.

Hole in one​

A dish that is seeing a big revival on pub menu's is toad in the hole. Ribble Valley inns' pub the Bull at Brough-ton's toad in the hole features Saddleback sausages, caramelised onion, mashed potato and gravy (£9).

As Essential Cuisine's Nigel Crane says: "Toad in the hole has to be the big com