Finding the finest free-range poultry for aqua shard

Posted on June 2, 2014 by admin

The provenance of the produce our executive head chef Anthony Garlando uses is extremely important to him. For Anthony, it’s not enough to buy from a supplier just because they have a good reputation or are considered prestigious; he prefers to take the time got to know a producer, meet the people behind the brand name, and forge lasting relationships with them based on trust and mutual respect.

One such supplier is Aubrey Allen, from whom Anthony recently started ordering the free-range chicken which will shortly appear in new dishes on the a la carte menu. They assure chefs and restaurateurs that the poultry and meat they supply is fully traceable ‘from farm to fork’ and that it has been reared raised and slaughtered ethically, kindly and respectfully.

To prove that they are true to their word, Aubrey Allen invited Anthony, his sous chef Sean Clarke and commis chef Dario, along with chefs from some of the other prestigious restaurants they supply, to visit Caldecott Farms in the West Midlands, which supplies them with the free-range chicken and, at Christmas, turkey, that they then distribute.

Over the course of a sunny morning, Anthony, Sean and Dario toured the farm seeing the large, well-ventilated sheds which provide the growing chickens with shelter and where they feed, and the large open pastures where they are free to roam (once they are of an age that it is safe to do so). They then visited the processing plant where the birds are killed and prepared, to see how humane and extremely hygienic it is.

Robert Caldecott, the third generation of the Caldecott family to farm in Wythall, and Simon Smith from Aubrey Allen escorted the group and throughout the tour their genuine passion for and commitment to ensuring that the birds are at all times treated with the greatest compassion was strongly in evidence.

The visit concluded with a barbecue lunch of – what else? – Caldecott Farm chicken, prepared by Aubrey Allen’s in-house chefs, and was absolutely delicious, boasting a texture, colour and flavour very different from less-humanely intensively-reared chicken, which Anthony is sure guests at aqua shard will appreciate.

Look out for Aubrey Allen free-range chicken on the menu soon!