A menu with a difference: An Electrolux blog by Brendan Fyldes

Brendan Fyldes blogs on the importance of creating an innovative menu to capture the imaginations of customers young and old

With today’s diner having a wealth of different global cuisine available in a matter of minutes, it would be fair to say that as a chef, finding the right balance of innovation and quality is something we’re often looking to achieve. Ever since I started out working with my auntie and uncle as a teenager, I fell in love with the whole concept of being a chef, and using ingredients creatively to develop dishes people will feel an emotional connection to. Food is a subject everyone can relate to and we chefs are often found tweaking our menus to make this connection even stronger – not to mention inventing dishes that really are a joy to eat!

As the name suggests, the concept of Café Football gave us the challenge of developing a menu inspired by not only the beautiful game and our terrace experiences, but also the nostalgic flavours of our youth. The ultimate aim was to use this as a basis for a really nice menu that our customers, young and old, would enjoy. We make no secret of the fact that Café Football is heavily influenced by two greats of the modern game – Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs – both of whom give me invaluable input for the development of our menu. Having travelled the world and eaten in some of the best restaurants, who better to have on hand as we created a football-based menu packed with quality cuisine? Of course, a well-delivered menu wouldn’t be possible without a top of the range kitchen, and it is thanks to Electrolux Professional’s XP fryers and pre-programmable air-o-steam Touchline combi oven that we can guarantee consistency of output without compromising energy efficiency.

One of our biggest sellers is a homemade sausage roll, which rather than being made using the plastic sausage meat we’ve all eaten under floodlights, is minced pork shoulder braised with black pudding and a cider reduction, and served with smoked baked beans. For us, this was the perfect way to create a stand-out dish based on a concept everyone is familiar with. There’s more to a dining experience than fine food however. Surroundings can also help to bring a menu to life and from our location just a goalkeeper’s kick away from the Olympic Park, diners at Café Football can eat anything from ‘The Special One’, our José Mourinho-inspired piri piri chicken burger, to ‘El Clasico’, our pizza based on the vibrancy and colour of Spanish football’s biggest clash – all in the shadow of the Olympic Stadium.

Through a combination of some of the best kit available, quality ingredients, and a concept that really does capture the imagination, a varied menu really can be what pulls in the punters time after time.