Gastropubs are popular. In fact, they have been popular for a long time. And the new love of craft ales that’s spread across the country has only enhanced the attraction of the gastropub. Particularly in more affluent areas, where an afternoon trip to the gastropub is a regular activity of a wealthy, upwardly mobile population.
And who doesn’t enjoy a good pub, where good beer and good food are combined to great effect?
Unfortunately, that very same population of wealthy, upwardly mobile people, are increasingly less likely to put up with the on-going effects of food cooking. Namely, the smoke, odour and grease that commercial kitchens like those in the gastropub produce.
Keeping the Neighbours Happy
The 2005 / 2010 DEFRA Guidelines are clear about the control of grease, odour and smoke. It is the responsibility of the commercial kitchen owner to make sure that they don’t cause a nuisance.
Where gastropubs and local residents housing is in close proximity, there is always the potential for nuisance. And recent evidence seems to suggest that local authorities are more likely to back residents and come down hard on the commercial kitchen where there are repeated complaints.
The dilemma is clear – gastropubs want to be in those residential areas where customers will be able to benefit from their presence, but at the same time, can not afford to cause nuisance to those same residence, for fear of being closed down.
Reducing the Nuisance – Plasma Clean Case Study
Increasingly, Plasma Clean are being brought in to design complete grease, odour and smoke solutions for both new gastropubs in busy residential areas and existing sites where there have been complaints from local residents and EHO intervention.
Wanting to retain a positive relationship with the local residents, one particular gastro pub chain approached Plasma Clean to survey and solve the problem.
A wide variety of cooking activities plus high volumes of covers meant high levels of grease, odour and smoke were being produced at the site. In addition, the extract ventilation system was only 10 metres away from local residential properties.
The potential for causing a problem was high. With this in mind, the pub chain decided on a complete Plasma Clean Eliminair system.
The beauty of the system is that it can be installed as a single unit or in separate sections depending on the space available.
As a result, the air being emitted from the discharge point is now free from odour and smoke, and the ductwork from the canopy to the discharge point is free from grease and oil, reducing the need for duct cleaning.
In this case, a simple solution was available to keep EHO, residents and the pub chain happy.
With more and more residents wanting a nuisance free environment, it’s vital that DEFRA guidelines are adhered to, through the best technology from the best providers.
