Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION TO CATERING
INDUSTRY

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 Introduction
Hospitality is probably the most diverse but
specialized industry in the world.

It is certainly one of the largest, employing millions

of people in a bewildering array of jobs around the
globe.

Sectors range from the glamorous five-star resort

to the less fashionable, but arguably more
specialized, institutional areas such as hospitals,
industrial outfits, schools and colleges.

Yet of these many different sectors, catering has to

be the most challenging. 2
 History of Food Service and restaurant

About the same time that hotels were gaining a strong foothold
on both sides of the Atlantic in the seventeenth century,
restaurants were also achieving prominence. According to food
in history, professionally cooked food was not a new concept.

In France the first restaurant where customers could choose

from a selection of items presented on a menu was opened in
1765 by A. Boulanger. He placed a sign scripted in Latin over his
establishment that translated to: ‘come to me all whose
stomachs cry out and I shall restore you.’
Thus the word restaurant was derived from the word restore.
Food Service Pioneers

As well as encouraging the growth of hotels, the railroads were

responsible for America’s first restaurant chain. In 1875 a 40 year old
English immigrant, Fred Harvey, opened two small restaurants along
the Kansas Pacific Railroad.

In 1925 Howard Johnson purchased a small drugstore in Wollaston,

Massachusetts. He soon started selling a chocolate Ice-cream product
he developed to supplement his drugstore’s revenues. The Ice-cream
did so well that Johnson added other flavors until he had developed the
“28 Flavors” that became his trademark.

Finally, no discussion of food service pioneers would be complete

without mentioning Ray Kroc, the man who founded McDonald’s. Mr.
Kroc was a milk shake machine salesman who, at the age of 52, called
on two brothers who had set up a hamburger stand in San Bernardino,
California.

The success of McDonald’s is due largely to its commitment to QSC&V

Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value combined with a simple
standardized concept utilizing many of the same ideas originally
pioneered by Howard Johnson.
 Mr. Ray Kroc,
Founded McDonald’s
Hamburger, Cheese Burger, Beef Burger, Big Mac
are the creation of Mr. Ray Kroc
 CATERING INDUSTRY
The food service industry (catering industry in
British English) encompasses those places,
institutions and companies that provide meals
eaten away from home.
This industry includes restaurants, schools and
hospital cafeterias, catering operations, and many
other formats, including ‘on-premises’ and ‘off-
premises’ caterings.
Catering management may be defined as the
task of planning, organizing, controlling and
executing.
Each activity influences the preparation and
delivery of food, beverage, and related services at a
competitive, yet profitable price.
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 CATERING INDUSTRY
CATERING SEGMENTS
Military Segment Commercial Segment Non-commercial
Segment
1. Military Functions 1. Independent 1. Business / Industry
2. Diplomatic Functions Caterers Accounts
2. Hotel / Motel 2. School Catering
Caterers 3. Health Care Facilities
3. Private Clubs 4. Transportation
4. Restaurant / Catering (in-flight
Catering Firms catering)
5. Recreational Food
Service (amusement
and theme parks,
conference and sport
arenas)
6. College and
University Catering
7. Social Organizations
(fraternal and social
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clubs)
 TYPES OF CATERING

On-premise catering for any function - banquet, reception, or

event - that is held on the physical premises of the
establishment or facility that is organizing / sponsoring the
function.
Off-premise catering, whereby the function takes
in a remote location, such as a client’s home, a park, an art
gallery, or even a parking lot, and the staff, food, and decor must
be transported to that location.

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 Off-premise catering
Off-premise catering is serving food at a location away from the caterer’s food
production facility.
They generally fall into one of three categories:
Party Food Caterers:
Party food caterers supply only the food for an event. They drop off cold foods and
leave any last-minute preparation, plus service and cleanup, to others.
Hot Buffet Caterers:
Hot buffet caterers provide hot foods that are delivered from their commissaries in
insulated containers. They sometimes provide serving personnel at an additional
charge.
Full-Service Caterers:
Full-service caterers not only provide food, but frequently cook it to order on-site.
They also provide service personnel at the event, plus all the necessary food-related
equipment— china, glassware, flatware, cutleries, tables and chairs, tents, and so
forth.
They can arrange for other services, like décor and music, as well. In short, a full-
service caterer can plan and execute an entire event, not just the food for it. 12
 C
TYPES OF CATERING

Social catering includes such events as weddings, bar and

mitzwahs, high school reunions, birthday parties, and charity
events.

Business catering includes such events as association

conventions and meetings, civic meetings, corporate sales or
stockholder meetings, recognition banquets, product launches,
educational training sessions, seller-buyer meets, service awards
banquets, and entertaining in hospitality suites.

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 TYPES OF CATERING ESTABLISHMENTS
1. Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment that serves the customers with prepared food and
beverages to order, to be consumed on the premises. The term covers a multiplicity
of venues and a diversity of styles of cuisine.
2. Transport Catering
The provision of food and beverages to passengers, before, during and after a
journey on trains, aircraft and ships and in buses or private vehicles is termed as
transport catering.
The major forms of modern day transport catering are airline-catering, railways
catering, ship catering and surface catering in coaches or buses which operate on
long distance routes.
2.1 Airline Catering
Catering to airline passengers on board the air craft, as well as at restaurants
situated at airport terminals is termed as airline catering.
Catering to passengers en route is normally contracted out to a flight catering unit
of a reputed hotel or to a catering contractor or to the catering unit operated by the
airline itself as an independent entity. 14
 TYPES OF CATERING ESTABLISHMENTS
2.2 Railway Catering
Catering to railway passengers both during the journey as well as during halts at
different railway stations is called railway catering.
On-board meal services are also provided on long distance trains.
2.3 Ship Catering
Ship catering is catering to cargo crew and passenger ship passengers.
Ships have kitchens and restaurants on board.
They range from room service and cocktail bars to specialty dining restaurants.
2.4 Surface Catering
Catering to passengers traveling by surface transport such as buses and private vehicles
is called surface catering.
These eating establishments are normally located around a bus terminus or on highways.
3. Outdoor Catering
This catering includes the provision of food and drink away from home base and
suppliers.
Outdoor catering includes catering for functions such as marriages, parties and
conventions. 15
 TYPES OF CATERING ESTABLISHMENTS
4. Retail Store Catering
Some retail stores, apart from carrying on their primary activity of retailing their
own wares, provide catering as an additional facility.
This type of catering evolved when large departmental stores wished to provide
food and beverages to their customers as a part of their retailing concept.
5. Club Catering
Club catering refers to the provision of food and beverages to a restricted member
clientele.
Some examples of clubs for people with similar interests are turf clubs, golf clubs,
cricket clubs etc.
6. Welfare Catering
The provision of food and beverages to people to fulfil a social obligation,
determined by a recognized authority, is known as welfare catering.
It includes catering in hospitals, schools, colleges, the armed forces and prisons.

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 TYPES OF CATERING ESTABLISHMENTS
7. Industrial Catering
The provision of food and beverages to ‘people at work,’ in industries
and factories at highly subsidized rates is called industrial catering.
It is based on the assumption that better fed employees at
concessional rates are happy and more productive.
Catering for a large workforce may be undertaken by the management
itself, or may be contracted out to professional caterers.
8. Leisure-Linked Catering
This type of catering refers to the provision of food and beverages to
people engaged in ‘rest and recreation’ activities. This includes sale
of food and beverages through different stalls and kiosks at
exhibitions, theme parks, galleries and theatres.

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 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CATERING INDUSTRY AND ALL
OTHER INDUSTRIES

Importance of food for the human beings is amply, accurately and appropriately
stated in the following age old sayings: “hungry man is an angry man” and “even
the army marches on stomach” where stomach implies food Employment of largest
number of people in the world in general terms (at home) and in commercial terms
(catering) is in food preparation and servicing.
Roughly half the world population (women) is actively engaged in the art and
science of food production and then alone comes reproduction.
Unlike all other living organisms, man has to “buy” food by paying money.
Where does the money come from? It comes only from industries.
Money so generated by the industrial activity is shared between the employer and
the employee, however disproportionate it may be.
Money so generated by the industrial activity is shared between the employer and
the employee, however disproportionate it may be.
Money so shared is used to take care of the three important objectives: food,
clothing and residence.

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RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CATERING INDUSTRY AND ALL
OTHER INDUSTRIES

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 The future of the food service industry

 Restaurants are expected to continue the shift

toward more nutritious menu items and increased
delivery and takeout facilities.

 Labor shortages and environmental issues.

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 Introduction to Cookery
Cooking has neither been a discovery nor has it been an innovation; it has been an
evolution and food has changed with times and societies.
Food is one of the basic requirements of survival for humans and in the past all
wars have been fought for mere survival only.
The accidental discovery of fire change the way we eat food today.
Food grows naturally in the forms of grains, nuts, and vegetables; but with the
advent of technology in the sphere of agriculture, various types of pesticides and
insecticides and hybrid technology gave birth to new kinds of vegetables and fruits
which even have colour and shape.
Now with awareness of the harmful effects of pesticides and insecticides, people
are restoring back to naturally produced vegetables and fruits and now we call them
organic food.
In the prehistoric times and untill very recently men went hunting, while the
women would stay back to cook meals and look after kids and it became a norm
that woman of the household will cook while the man earns and brings
commodities.
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 Cookery
Cookery is defined as a “Chemical process”, the mixing of
ingredients; the application and withdrawal of heat; decision making,
technical knowledge and manipulative skills.
Cookery is considered to be both an art and technology.
Food preparation is a modern term in professional cookery.
It follows a flow pattern which commences with the purchasing and
selection of materials, their handling, processing and the ultimate
presentation of the dishes to the customer, where food service take
over.
In French, the word Cuisine denotes the art of cooking-preparing
dishes, and the place- the kitchen in which they are prepared.

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 Classes of professional cookery
There are three classes of professional cookery associated with the
craftsman and they are graded according to the quality of the
materials used. The classes are:
1.Cuisine simple, or plain cookery, where the basic necessities are
used and the craftsman produces dishes of the highest standard
possible with 5 possible numbers of materials.
2.Cuisine Bourgeols or middle class cookery, This types of cookery
provides better materials and in the hands of craftsman, these
materials produce more complicated dishes of a better quality.
3.Cuisine Houte or high cookery is that in which the very best
possible materials are used. The craftsman uses these materials to
their best advantage and produced dishes of the best quality.

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Level of skills and experiences

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"People who love to eat are always
the best people.
- Julia Child"

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Thanks

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