Two-star Michelin chef out to make Scottish pub grub the best bar none

HE IS a double Michelin-starred chef, renowned for helping transform Scotland’s fine-dining scene over the last decade.

Now Martin Wishart has been charged with revolutionising the quality of food served up in the nation’s pubs.

He was urged by the new chairman of the British Beer and Pub Association to offer expert advice on what could be served up in Scotland’s hostelries.

And now Wishart has unveiled his own cut-price menus, which landlords unused to serving hot food are being urged to embrace. He has joined forces with brewing giants Molson Coors to promote the menus, tailored to be cost effective.

A 14-page guide – which includes recommendations on which drinks to sample with each dish – is being made available to all pubs in Scotland. However, it is targeted at those with a turnover below £300,000 – those the industry body believes are most at risk of closure.

Wishart’s recipe for Ham Hock Terrine with Apple Compote should cost a pub 52p a portion to produce, but would sell at a recommended price of £2.48. Wishart’s Venison Casserole can sell for £10.94, but should cost just £2.28 to create. And his Steamed Ginger Pudding should only cost £1.22 to make, with a selling price of £3.66.

The prices are in sharp contrast to those charged by Wishart at his celebrated eatery in Leith, on Edinburgh’s waterfront, which won a Michelin star in 2001. His six-course “tasting menu” costs £70 a head, while the three-course à la carte selection comes in at a mere £65.

Wishart, who won his second Michelin star for his restaurant at Loch Lomond last year, said: “Pub food is so emotive – it’s about comfort and having an everyday luxury. That is what I’ve aimed to achieve with my menu – great hearty food that appeals to a public with ever more discerning tastes.

“When designing the menu it was important the dishes were practical and easy for pubs to produce. It is fully costed, reasonably priced and, importantly, returns a healthy profit.”

Molson Coors decided to get the venture off the ground after research it commissioned found that, although two thirds of pubs in Scotland were now serving food, less than 10 per cent of their customers would eat there more than once a fortnight.

The British Beer and Pub Association recently calculated that pubs in Scotland are closing at a rate of three a week as they struggle to cope with the downturn. Phil Whitehead, Molson Coors’ managing director, said: “Food is absolutely vital to the pub trade but is very much under-represented in Scotland.

“This menu is part of our effort to help our customers and pubs make the most of the opportunity. With money tight, the public is looking for affordable, everyday treats and pub food is very much one of these.

“Martin has produced a brilliant menu, which lives up to his reputation as a re-interpreter of traditional Scottish dishes.” Patrick Browne, chief executive of the Scottish Beer and Pub Association, said: “There has certainly been a vast improvement in the number of pubs serving up food since the introduction of the smoking ban in Scotland in 2006, but there is certainly room for improvement.

“Until recently, it was pretty much only bar snacks that were available, but more pubs are serving up food because of growing competition for the customer’s pound.”