Making it small

20 January 2003 by
Making it small

Think of Ludlow and, if you have more than a passing interest in food, it's hard not to think of Shaun Hill. Of course, he's not the only culinary star in this remarkably blessed Shropshire town, but you get the feeling that, if you took his Merchant House restaurant away, the bonds holding this gastronomic cluster together would be that much looser.

This is no reflection on the relative merits of other notable Ludlow chefs - Claude Bosi (Hibiscus) and Christopher Bradley (Mr Underhills) are special talents in their own right. It's just that it's hard to imagine the place having quite the same allure without Hill's remarkable restaurant.

And yet, the operation that has had such a magnetic effect is of Lilliputian proportions. As you walk through the doors of the half-timbered restaurant, just out of the centre of town, you can never be quite sure which Shaun Hill you're going to encounter. Right now, he's in receptionist mode and, typically, his technique for dealing with enquiries can best be described as individual.

"Yes, we are open that night and we do have a table available," he says, in response to a phone enquiry about New Year's Eve. It soon becomes clear that the caller is hoping that there will be some extra pomp incorporated into the evening's proceedings - perhaps a piper or a troupe of acrobats.

"No, we won't be doing anything like that," Hill says. "We're a small restaurant and we'll just be offering our usual sort of menu." Then he adds, drily: "But the good news is that we won't be charging anything extra, either."

Clear ideas This incident goes a long way to encapsulating Hill's approach to running his restaurant. It's readily apparent that he has a very clear idea of what the Merchant House is all about, and there is no chance of him falling into the trap of trying to be all things to all men. "You need to have your own priorities rather than cooking to impress the guests in a superficial way," he says. "Things like spun sugar are an easy wow, and I could cook like that, but I wouldn't enjoy it."

The idea that it's actually harder work and more of a challenge to keep things simple is a recurring theme with Hill. "The degree of intricacy is in the eye of the beholder," he says. "The complexity in my cooking is not in ornate presentation or elaborate flavour combinations. The layering in my dishes comes earlier than that - with the preparation of stocks and sauces, for example. These are things that show themselves in a less obvious way on the plate, in terms of depth of flavour and balance."

The guiding principle is that Hill cooks food that pleases him, with the hope that it will please other people enough that they fill his restaurant. Happily, it does, and there is rarely an empty table to be seen on any of the five evenings and two lunchtimes each week that the Merchant House is open.

The restaurant has just 22 seats, and there are four choices at each course on the menu, but that is only one half of the equation. The other side of the calculation is that there are only three members of staff - Hill, his wife, Anja, and a single waiter. The secret of their success is the way that they make the most of these limited resources. "I try and set the menu just the right side of what is possible," says Hill. "The aim is to get the most that is realistic from our particular set-up. Inevitably, if that's your objective, it makes for a tense business and, for me, that's where the showmanship comes in. That's the challenge."

This makes the Merchant House something of a contrast to his previous kitchen at Gidleigh Park, where he was Michael Caines's predecessor. "I came here eight years ago and some people thought I was going into semi-retirement," Hill says. "I imagine some still think that's the case. Well, the truth is that I've never worked so hard. The quantity of jobs in relation to the menu doesn't diminish. Anja makes the bread and the majority of the puddings, but the rest is down to me."

Complete control There is an enormous upside to this self-reliance. It means that he has complete control over the quality of the cooking, and a degree of independence rarely found in a Michelin-starred kitchen. "It means I have only myself to blame, which is a bit frustrating," he says. "I don't have the option of being stern with a commis or bawling at the kitchen porter."

It means no recruitment problems, either, which is another potential headache eliminated. "Getting crew can be desperately difficult, but fortunately I'm sheltered from all that," he says. "The problem is that there is a tendency to think the job is just about arranging things on a plate, and there is much less enthusiasm for doing the washing-up. That is perceived as something students do for a bit of extra cash."

Washer-up is another of his regular guises. He may be celebrated by the guides, acclaimed by the critics and revered by other chefs, but he sees nothing odd about donning the Marigolds at the end of service. "I'm still here and there's little else to do at that point, so I might as well do it," he says. "It's as simple as that."

Surely there can be few better lessons than that on how to make it small in the restaurant business.

From the House's mouth

How to raise the cash
Raising cash for any catering business provokes grim responses from those on the lending side of things but eventually - and provided there is some collateral for your borrowings, such as a lease or freehold to sell if things go wrong - you will get the money.

This may seem the problem but it isn't. The problem is paying back the borrowings later on. Borrow only for what's essential, and leave buying the rest for a time when you have cash generated by your trade.

What to do by way of marketing Absolutely nothing - never waste money advertising, and don't have an expensive PR firm unless you have a huge number of tables to fill. Your best marketing will be the quality of what you serve and whether or not it represents decent value for money. People who turn up because they have seen an ad will go on to wherever the next ad points them.

Difficulties in this area almost always stem from having ignored the previous tip on not spending too much initially, and having forced yourself into a position where you need to claw back big sums early to avoid trouble. Try cooking good food and serving it at reasonable prices as a cunning marketing ploy.

Cash-flow Just about everyone, including myself, uses this month's turnover to pay last month's bills. Watch for fluctuations in whatever seasonal pattern you have. It's easy to feel rich when you are having a good month and paying the bills of a quiet patch, but the reverse can be more painful.

How to price and keep costs in line
Look at things from the punter's viewpoint. See what other places similar to your venue are charging, and what is being offered for the money. Accountants and bank managers may feel that big margins are a fine idea, but they don't have to lure in the paying public.

My system here is to offer big value on what's on the plate and very little in the way of service - nobody pouring wine and such like - thus shifting money that would be spent on payroll toward food cost.

But everyone must make their own judgements according to their own taste and preferences. The right answer is one that attracts enough people to be profitable, or at least viable.

Where to buy
It seems sensible that whatever is local to you should be freshest and best value. This is usually, but not always, the case. The best advice is not to purchase from the standpoint of anything other than finding what's best and best value - not even to support local suppliers, the organic movement or anything else. I do the shopping first and the menu after; that way, I have most chance of having ingredients at their best and some form of profit, also.

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