The Challenge of Crockery Selection

8/11/2019 The Challenge of Crockery Selection

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Bus inessHOTEL Business Review

It is said that food is first eaten or forthat matter savoured with eyes, that is,if the food is nice to look at then the

appetite grows. For the food to look nice alot of importance is given to the plate inwhich it is dished out so that it is good tolook at and at the same time convenient

for the customer to have food from.No wonder, in a hotels or a restaurants

kitchen and as well as in hotels roomservice, crockery plays a very importantrole. Presenting your food to your guestcan be a tricky proposition, especially ifyou are not used to making it look prettyon the plate.

Before you begin styling your food,you need to decide on what you willpresent it on. You wouldnt want all yourefforts in the kitchen to be ruined by yourchoice of plates. Plates should complement

your food presentation and heighten yourculinary skills.

Adding Delight to EatingThe various types of crockery used inhotels and restaurants kitchens and hotelsroom service depends on the type of menu/cuisine that is being served. For example,the requirement of crockery for soup variesfrom the crockery required for serving

pastas (depending on its nature-consistencyand texture of food).

If the right crockery selection is made forthe right food then this facilitates the eatingexperience, as ideally eating should not onlyinvolve satiating of hunger and palate, butalso a celebration of all the senses.

Good food with appropriate crockeryselection could result in wonders. The rightselection of crockery helps to put the rightimpression on the guest, making her/himdelightful and inducing her/him to thinkabout a repeat visit to the establishment,

which may eventually increase the numberof footfalls at the restaurant.

Nowadays, crockery is used extensivelyin India in the hospitality sector and due tothe evolving hotel industry, the use ofcrockery has been not only restricted toserve food but also extended in terms of eyeappealing presentations and in terms ofserving food in a style which lasts long in

the minds of the guests and gives valueaddition to the overall meal experience.

Crockery brands now have uniquefeatures to showcase. Preferably, they giveopportunity to the Chef to present hissignature dish in something whichcombines and completes the array of dishescoming straight from the kitchen to thetable, explained Alok Dubey, AssociateConsultant, Cilantro Hospitality Inc.

As compared to the earlier half of the lastcentury, the recommendation and buyingprocess of the crockery has become very

important in the hospitality sector, whichtakes into account of the hospitality

The Challenge of

By Kanishka Gupta

SelectionCrockery

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Crockery


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establishments theme, interior decor, etc.Overall, institutional crockery purchase hasbecome a more professional exercise for

both the buyer and the seller.The shape and design of the crockery is

rated quite highly in the process of crockeryselection. Although, durability andshipping together plays a vital role inmaintaining the crockery for long, moreemphasis on the selection process ofcrockery is placed on how the crockery willbring life to the food and the venue, andhow different will it be from others in thecompetition.

Applications of the Crockery

RangeThe requirement of crockery in hotels variesaccording to the operational status. Forexample, star hotels banquets and roomservice spaces require economical crockery inporcelain, etc.

We make available Patra Crockery fromThailand for this space and the price of thiscrockery varies from Rs. 130-Rs.160 perdinner plate, and it varies as per the SKU.For premium dining spaces/premiumlounges/bars, etc. more expensive crockeryis preferred in Bone China and Perception

China. We make available crockery fromNikko, Japan for these spaces. Average costof a dinner plate in premium dining spaces/premium lounges/bars ranges from Rs.450-Rs.1000, depending on its style anddecoration. The price varies as per theSKU, said Nirmal Khandelwal, ManagingDirector, FCML Projects. Khandelwal saysthat the crockery they market ismanufactured in Japan and Bangkok.None of it is manufactured in India.

The various types of crockery being usedin a hotels restaurants or other restaurantsare salad plate, appetiser plate, soup dishes,pasta plate, round dinner plate, rectangular

or oval dish, simple wooden boards, servingplatters, enamelware, stoneware, pewter,dessert plate, etc. Besides in tandem withthe operations, the type of crockery chosenshould be in harmony with the theme,cuisine, menu and decor of the restaurant,whether be it a stand-alone restaurant or arestaurant in a hotel. But most importantly,the choice of crockery perhaps depends on

the types of food which are expected to beserved on it.

For instance, for an Italian restaurant

deep dishes would be used for the food ason a flatter plate it would not be easy forthe guest to have food. Another examplewould be if the restaurant is serving orientalfood and if the theme of the restaurantrelates to red colour, then the dishes can behand made and be red in colour.

Similarly, for hot beverages, cups orthermal glasses are used and for solid fooditems, pasta plates or flat plates are used.Similarly, salad plates are generally used inhigh-end restaurants for serving varioussalads, while appetiser plate is the right

choice for serving various appetisers likefish, chips or tandoori chicken tikka, etc. B&B plates are the right option for placingbreads and butter that accompany themain course, cheese plates are generallyused for the serving of cheese, fish plate canbe used for serving of an array of dishes,soup dishes are the preferred choice forserving of soups, dessert plate is used forserving various desserts, etc.

The location of serving also influencesthe crockery selection. For example, if thefood is to be served in room for the guest,

then the dishes have to be smaller in size sothat they can fit into the hot box so that allthe food can be presented in a single shotwithout disturbing the guest. These aresome of the various factors to be kept inmind while choosing from the wide rangeof crockery options available in the market.

One of the important players in thecrockery segment is Royal Porcelian PublicCompany Limited, which is one of Asiasleading manufacturers of high-qualityceramic tableware. We are one of thelargest ceramic tableware manufacturers in

South-east Asia. Our products consist offour ceramic bodies, including Porcelain,

Nirmal Khandelwal

Tanapong Vamananda


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later use, elaborated Arora. In this contextArora advised that, The most importantthing to keep in mind while placing theorder for chinaware is the easy replacementof them as chinaware is prone to chipping

off and breaking.

R&D and TechnologyTraditionally, crockery was and still is madeof ceramic materials such as earthenware,stoneware or porcelain. However they couldalso be made of other materials such aswood, pewter, silver, gold, glass, acrylic andplastic. Now these different materials ofcrockery could be best used as per thetheme and design of the place. Forexample, the unbreakable crockery made ofacrylic or melamine definitely gives an edge

where there is possibility of rough use.Leading brands keep flexibility when itcomes to accommodating change of design,colour, and theme, with the use oftechnology, asserted Sharma.

Due to advancements in technology,these days the process of making crockeryhas become very intricate and scientific.The plates are made with machines and

Kesri advt

moulds and baked to certain temperaturefor strength and durability so as to lastlong. There are certain themed restaurantswhich still use hand made plates but theyare very costly and less durable as

compared to the chinaware made infactories, informed Arora.

Various factors drive technologicaldevelopments in the manufacture anddesign of crockery and suppliers usuallyuse the inputs/feedback from hotelskitchens/restaurants to improve theirproducts.

The crockery we market to hotels,restaurants, etc. each has its productstrengths. For example, some of theseproducts are very India specific and are notused worldwide. We are very careful about

any feedback from F&B Managers andChefs regarding the style and size of thecrockery, confirmed Khandelwal. Weshare the feedback on a continual basiswith our associate companies overseas whothen implement the changes and developcrockery, based on those specificrequirements. It is our and our associatecompanys sustained endeavour to design

and develop products as per the changingconcepts and requirements, he added.Khandelwal views that new developmentsand improvements in the realm ofcrockery are an ever evolving process and

companies nowadays are very sensitive tothe new requirements and conceptsgenerated by the industry.

The most important thing whichdrives our strategy is based on customerssatisfaction. Thus we put much effort inresearch to gather the data and get backwith the product and service that fulfillsthe requirement. This helps us in ensuringour competitive position, pointed outVamananda. Our designs and productsmust also keep up with the market trend.Thus, it is important for us to always

come up with new designs of ceramictableware as well as be innovative enoughto be among the leaders in the industry.There are continual demands from ouragents and clientele to come up with newdesigns and innovations and we alwayscome up with new designs every yearboth in terms of shapes and patterns, hearticulated.

The Challenge of Crockery Selection

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