Gregory Atkinson, Commercial Director at the busy family-owned takeaway, explains how the system is boosting efficiency.
Established in Huddersfield in 1985, Marstons Chicken Shop has become a renowned institution across the local area, due largely to the high-quality food it offers, along with friendly, speedy service. Producing large quantities of fried chicken and chips every day, the kitchen goes through a lot of cooking oil – so managing the use and disposal of it is vital to the smooth, profitable running of the business.
“Changing the oil in the fryers regularly, and dealing with big volumes of waste oil, used to be a problem for us,” says Gregory. “We had 60-litre drums for collecting the waste – and these were extremely heavy, so difficult to handle. Also, there was no way of changing the oil quickly. It was all done manually, and we couldn’t do it during service. We had to wait till after 9pm, when we were closed.
“We would fill six drums a week. And, as the recycling collections were weekly – and we don’t have that much spare indoor space – we had to leave the drums outside. Even though they were fenced off, they would still be stolen, for the recycling value of the oil.”
How Frontline solves these problems
“Now, with our Smart Oil Management System, all our waste oil goes automatically into one tank. The collections are still weekly, but the tank holds as much as the six drums. And it takes up much less floor space, due to its vertical design, so we can store it securely indoors – which means we’re no longer losing recycling income through theft.
“Oil changes are much quicker and easier too. It now takes just 15 minutes to empty and refill a fryer, so we can do it mid-service if we need to, even when we’re really busy. That saves us about six hours a week, which we can spend preparing food for the next service, rather than trying to avoid getting messy with used cooking oil!
“As well as saving time, the system’s automated oil changing means the oil we use is always in the best condition. That in turn keeps the quality of our fried food consistently high, which is obviously critical, and the main reason our customers keep coming back. Plus, the system ensures we change or top up the oil only when we need to – and with cooking-oil prices being so high these days, that’s saving us a lot of money.”
Choosing the right system
“We’ve worked with Jestic Foodservice Solutions since 2016. They supply most of our equipment, including Henny Penny fryers. So when we were looking for a solution to our oil-management problem, we talked to them first. We’d seen what the likes of McDonald’s and Five Guys were doing, but we needed to know what would be right for us. We went to the test kitchen in Manchester to run through the options, and bought the Frontline system early in 2022.
“We’ve known for years that Jestic don’t just install the product and wave goodbye. You get all the after-sales help you need – and with this equipment, they provided training for everyone in the team. They came here to do it, so we could all learn how to use the system in exactly the right way for our kitchen, and see at first-hand how to get the most benefit from it.”
Long-term partnership
For Jestic Foodservice Solutions, setting up the Frontline International system at Marstons Chicken Shop was part of an ongoing relationship. “We were delighted to help Gregory and his team get up and running with Smart Oil Management,” comments Michael Eyre, Product Director. “It’s a key part of the process for high-volume fried-food businesses – so, having already supplied four Henny Penny pressure fryers and a Henny Penny Evolution Elite, along with holding equipment at Marstons, it was great to see the quality of the cooking being matched by efficiency in managing the oil with the Frontline storage tank and pump station.”
To find out more about Frontline International Smart Oil Management, visit www.jestic.co.uk or call 01892 831960.
For more information on Marstons Chicken Shop, visit www.marstonschickenshop.co.uk or email marstonschicken@outlook.com