With over 50 venues across the UK, Turtle Bay has quickly become one of the nation’s favourite Caribbean restaurants. Embodying the vibrant spirit of the Caribbean with authentic flavours, lively music, and an inviting atmosphere, the group is dedicated to brightening up dreary high streets.
David James, Head of Commercial at Turtle Bay, expands on the restaurants’ ethos:
“Turtle Bay is about showcasing the best of the Caribbean and all the things that make it aspirational to visit. The ambience, the music, the drink, the food. We take inspiration for our cuisine from across all the various islands and aim to make our menus easy to navigate so customers feel as if they have been transported to the Caribbean when they walk through the doors.”
Whilst sharing plates, clean eating, and hearty comfort food remain important, Turtle Bay recently revamped their menu to also incorporate more premium offerings, as David continues;
“There is a general industry trend of consumers dining out less, but trading up more, when they do go out. We therefore wanted our updated menu to reflect this to create opportunities for guests to treat themselves. By maximising our offering around the dinner occasion with elevated dishes, we’ve also opened the door for more creative and exciting options.”
Tying into this elevated dining experience, Turtle Bay also looked to re-evaluate their crockery across the menu, as their previous dark colours weren’t achieving the desired contrast with the food as Ben Hibbard, Marketing Director at Turtle Bay explains;
“We started with a very broad brief: we wanted new crockery and new shapes to bring our food to life in the restaurant. Our previous black options didn’t convey the vibrancy the food deserved. Our presentation isn’t overly elaborate, but we felt that by refreshing the crockery it could significantly enhance the look and feel of the dish. The crockery is the first thing you see when food arrives, so in many ways it drives that initial impression. We want customers to remain as excited, if not more so, when their order arrives, as they are after ordering.”
After speaking to a number of suppliers, Turtle Bay were impressed by the offering from Churchill Crockery, procured through Lockhart Catering Equipment. David explained why in the end it was an easy choice;
“The teams at Churchill and Lockhart understood our needs and shared multiple options across an impressive breadth of offer. That meant we could be as picky as we wanted and they still had plenty of options that would fit the bill.”
When choosing the final line up, Turtle Bay considered all aspects from shape and colour to functionality and breakage, as Ben explains;
“It’s getting that balance of style over substance and making sure items are robust and work operationally for the team. What you don’t want to do is compromise on the end result to make things work logistically, but equally you can’t have things that are so fancy and impractical that they cause the team headaches. We’ve achieved style and substance with Churchill’s collections.”
Having reviewed samples, Turtle Bay settled on three colour options from Churchill’s Stonecast collection; Duck Egg, Java, and Barley, and chose six styles of tableware, including modern walled plates, triangular lotus bowls, and oblong plates.
As well as the quality of the crockery, both Ben and David agreed that finding a supplier that aligned with their own sustainability goals was also imperative, with David commenting;
“The partners we work with need to have a good grounding in sustainable practice. It’s part of our strategy as a business. We’re putting scrutiny on the way we operate and the products we buy and bring in. It’s fundamental to the way we want to do business, and we hold our partners to those same standards.”
Amongst Churchill’s sustainability credentials, the Turtle Bay team were particularly impressed with Lockhart Catering Equipment’s proposal to remove the venues’ old crockery whilst delivering new stock and subsequently donating to charitable causes to reduce waste.
As part of Churchill’s Stonecast collection, all three ranges are hand finished with a fine speckle and rustic edge to help make the crockery pop. Barley offers a warm white with earthy accents, the perfect blank canvas for colourful dishes. Meanwhile the soft hues of Duck Egg blue provide a stunning contrast for darker meals. Finally, Java’s rich, denim blue is warm yet refreshing, and evokes thoughts of tropical coastlines. The use of a tonal colour palette helped Turtle Bay create a cohesive finish that still contributes to the vibrant, eclectic, and diverse effect they set out to achieve.
David is delighted with the results;
“The tableware looks brilliant! The feedback from the team is that it looks so much better, and we’ve heard nothing but positive things. It’s a change well overdue. The diverse selection of plates offers a great point of interest when food starts arriving at the table, and really gives each dish its own identity.”
With identity in mind, David went on to describe how the revamp had had a positive impact on long-term fan favourites;
“When dishes are on the menu for a long time – since we first started actually – it’s easy for them to become tired. The new crockery has given our sweetcorn fritters a new lease of life and helps them stand out compared to other appetisers, so they continue to remain a fan favourite.”
Summarising his experience throughout the process, David had nothing but praise for both Lockhart and Churchill;
“We’ve had great engagement with the team at Churchill and Lockhart through the whole project. They came in a few weeks ago so they could see how things have bedded in. It’s been really beneficial having a direct relationship with them, and they’ve been incredibly proactive with any hiccups along the way. They’ve both proven to be a good, reliable partners.”
Ben agreed, adding;
“Our teams love the new crockery, as do our guests. It makes our food pop more, channelling the vibrancy of our restaurants and what they represent, and bringing the Caribbean to life through our tableware. It’s also enabled us to bring a balance of standards and pride back into our kitchens.”
Looking forward, Ben also highlighted how they have future-proofed the project;
“We’ve got security for the future, not just in terms of supply to replace stock, but the ability to add in different shapes and colours. This was always Phase One, and there’s more we want to achieve with the addition of styles and hues to complement our evolving menus, as we adapt to emerging trends. The fact that Churchill and Lockhart Catering Equipment have that breadth of offer enables us to take that challenge to them in the future, and know they’ll be able to help us tackle it together.”
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