Patrick Guilbaud is the only restaurant in Ireland to have two Michelin stars. Located in the heart of Dublin, it bears the name of the Paris restaurateur who founded it in 1981 and has in time become one of the best known restaurants in the country.

In 1997 the restaurant relocated to the Merrion, a luxury 5-star hotel and an enduring byword for elegance and exclusiveness.

Cooking in the restaurant is in the expert hands of the French executive chef Guillaume Lebrun, who has used Ambach for years.

The brief

• An integral part of the extensive plan for renovation of the hotel was the creation of a new restaurant and a new building. The Patrick Guilbaud restaurant was located in the old building which had to be demolished to make room for the construction of three basement floors.
• A complex situation to handle for the restaurant team but one to which a solution was found immediately.
• Throughout the works, lasting 18 months, Lebrun and his team moved into the garden where a temporary kitchen, identical to the original one, was set up. “In this way all the equipment in the old kitchen could be disconnected and moved to the temporary one”, explained Gerry Kane, joint owner of Kaneco, a company specialising in food service equipment and a partner of the restaurant for almost 20 years.
• “Although he realised he would not have worked for much longer, the chef wanted to leave the best kitchen possible for his team”, added Kane. No doubts about the choice: like the old kitchen, heavily used for as many as 14 years, the new one also had to have the Ambach name.

The solution

• In order to best meet the needs of the Guilbaud, the choice went to the Ambach System 900 Exclusive Range, with polished black steel finish for the utmost in elegance and exclusivity.
• Together with Kaneco, who had also dealt with the old restaurant kitchen, Ambach therefore redesigned the kitchen in a more modern style, aiming at the number one priority: temperature.
• “One of the most important features of a kitchen is the quality of the air. In order to provide a healthier working environment we tackled and solved the problems that have always been linked to ventilation, cooling and the flow of air, advising the chef to change from gas to induction”, said Kane.
• The chef and kitchen team are enthusiastic. “I should have changed to induction a long time ago!”, said Lebrun. “The air quality in the kitchen has definitely improved. There’s no heat, we can control the cooking better and cleaning is much simpler and faster. It’s fantastic”.

The new Comera restaurant in the Schwabing district of Munich delights its guests with dishes inspired by the genuine Italian tradition. The ingredients, all very fresh, come directly from Italy, as do the wines on offer, carefully selected from small wineries.
For his restaurant owner Simone Pitanti has opted for a modern and elegant design brightened by Mediterranean colours to create an atmosphere showcasing the quality of the menu.
Comera is structured into different areas and offers seating for around 100 people inside and a further 80 on the terrace. An Ambach open kitchen stands in the centre of the restaurant for guests to watch the preparation live. There is a view of the outside too thanks to the large window surrounding the restaurant area.

The requirement

For Pitanti interaction with customers is crucial. “We try to advise them in the choice of menu and drinks, allowing them to watch the preparation of the dishes live”, he said.
The range, on view and the heart of the kitchen, had to meet the needs of Comera. Not just elegant, but also very rugged, efficient and easy to clean.
Pitanti is from a family of restaurateurs who own Italian restaurants in Weimar and other cities. He already has experience of Ambach horizontal cooking and wanted to use this again in Comera.

The solution
 

• The choice fell on the Ambach System 900 Double Service Exclusive Range. An island made to measure, with H3 hygienic base units, single hygiene top and possibility of working on both sides.
• The island was supplied and installed by the firm Distler Gastro from Erfurt with which the Pitanti family had already worked in the past with great satisfaction. Detlef Fischer, leading the project, was also in charge of planning and designing the kitchen.
• The supply included: an electric induction cooker, a steak grill in compound, a pasta cooker, bain-marie and fryer.
• The island is also fitted with four induction woks, a very unusual feature for an Italian restaurant.
• “We’ve found that the Ambach induction woks are perfectly suitable for the needs of our kitchen”, said Pitanti. “For example we can prepare our sauces for pasta à la minute in a very short space of time. In the woks all the ingredients, like the homemade pasta, always stay perfectly al dente”.
• “We’re very pleased with the great efficiency and speed from the woks, as also with all the Ambach equipment”, added the chef´s Giuseppe Franzese and Paolo Vitale.
• All the equipment is surrounded by work tables. The black control panel with drip-proof profile and rounded corners is also made in stainless steel with drop shape.
• Additional ideas also go to simplify the work flow. They include a plate rack with support for the salamander and plumbing fittings on both sides, right and left.
• The island was built as a single part to be rotated vertically through 90° and facilitate transport into the Comera restaurant as far as possible.
• Cooperation among all partners involved in the project was optimal. Pitanti is convinced: “with such a reliable and high-quality kitchen we are confident in achieving outstanding results and not having problems”.

Locanda Locatelli is one of London’s finest Michelin-starred Italian restaurants. Founded by renowned Italian chef Georgio Locatelli, Locanda Locatelli’s menu emphasises fresh, quality produce that is brought to life by Georgio’s creative touch. Locanda Locatelli received its first Michelin star in 2003 and has retained it every year since.

Ambach created a tailored cooking suite with a number of bespoke elements to meet the unique needs of the head chef and kitchen staff, within the confines of a small kitchen space. In a very quick turnaround, the project was delivered and installed within a month. Suppliers and consultants that worked with Ambach to deliver the project include: Humble Arnold, Keith Elkington Transport, Berkeley Projects, and McFarlane Telfer.

The requirement

• The Locanda Locatelli kitchen space was long and narrow, leaving little room for the kitchen team.
• As the kitchen began to receive larger table orders (upwards of 7 or 8 people) it became apparent that a larger cook line and pass was required to improve efficiency.
• A new kitchen suite was to be fitted as part of a kitchen refurbishment. The installation of new walls, flooring and ceiling required effective coordination between the various suppliers and consultants on the project.
• Humble Arnold project manager, Matthew Scottow said: “In designing the Locanda Locatelli kitchen, the chefs had big aspirations for the space, and it came down to a matter of efficient design to ensure we were able to support these. They had very specific wants and needs from the kitchen, and precise ideas about where exactly they wanted things to go.”
• The suite needed to accommodate specific equipment used by the restaurant’s wait staff, resulting in a number of bespoke storage elements being designed and integrated into the space.
• Access to the kitchen was restricted and this had to be taken into consideration when specifying the products to be installed.

The solution

• Locanda Locatelli wanted a similar format to the Ronda Locatelli Dubai kitchen, which was also fitted with Ambach equipment as specified by kitchen design consultants Humble Arnold.
• Locanda Locatelli head chef Rino Bono said: “The Dubai kitchen was a very busy kitchen environment, and the Ambach equipment was so solid and robust that when it came to refit the London site, Ambach was the obvious choice.”
• Ambach’s System 900 was installed within a long covered hot pass that ran down the centre of the space, with shelving, storage and bench space running along the walls on either side.
• This was the first suite of its kind fabricated by Ambach. In order to save space, Ambach specially fabricated a suite that combined the cook line and pass, with the standard 900 suite dropped in.
• In total, 25 Ambach cooking equipments were installed, including an induction stovetop, two four burner gas tops, a multi-purpose brat pan and multiple electric ovens.
• Ambach country manager, Alistair Farquhar said: “At nine meters, the suite for Locanda Locatelli is the longest we have created in the UK. The flexibility of Ambach products worked well, resulting in a bespoke suite that fully met the needs and expectations of Georgio, head chef Rino and the kitchen team.
• Bespoke elements designed by Stephen Arnold of Humble Arnold in collaboration with Locanda Locatelli, and fabricated by Ambach include:
  • Storage unit for wait staff trays – A series of vertical storage units were designed and fabricated on the service side of the pass. The trays remain neatly tucked away when not in use, and are easily accessed during busy service periods.
  • Foldaway pass shelves – During production the shelves fold down to save space. During service they flip up, and the trays used by wait staff are placed upon them for the chefs to plate up on.
  • Hot cupboard – Normally kept separate, the hot cupboard – used to warm plates during service – was built directly into the pass.
  • Stephen Arnold said: “What Ambach did for this project was very special. Space was limited, however they were able to create a suite that incorporated space saving, bespoke elements, as requested by the client, resulting in a more fluid and efficient work.”
• Head chef Rino said: “The experience working with Ambach was very, very positive. The suite is a very solid piece of equipment well up to the task, and despite its size we have significantly more space than in our previous set up. As a kitchen we are steps ahead of where we were, and we couldn’t be happier with the end result.”
• Keith Elkington Transport is a specialist catering equipment transport company who has worked with Ambach for over five years. They were tasked with establishing the best entry route into the kitchen, and safely manoeuvring the Ambach equipment into the kitchen.
• The nine-meter pass was delivered in three pieces and assembled by Italian Ambach engineers who welded the separate pieces into the final, singular unit on site.
• Keith Elkington said: “It’s always a pleasure working with Alistair and Ambach. Alistair places complete trust in us to do our job and to do it well.” Phil Denne led a team from Berkeley Projects who were responsible for installing and positioning the kitchen suite.
• Of working with Ambach, Phil said: “As a contractor we’re always happy when we see Ambach are on board with a project. They really work as a team player and the level of communication with Alistair throughout is second to none.”
• McFarlane Telfer is one of Ambach’s select, approved service and maintenance providers. In addition to specialising in installing, they also provide training to those who will use the suite.
• Once each piece of equipment was installed, McFarlane Telfer conducted the finishing touches, ensuring levels were all straight, the gas and electric were properly and safely installed and calibrating the kitchen’s thermostats.
• Of the critical importance of proper installation and thorough product training, Chris Craggs, managing director of McFarlan Telfer said: “It’s a common misconception that these kits can come out of a box and be ready to go. The customer will have a much better experience if the time is taken to install the product properly, to ensure they understand how to use it and how to look after it – and they know where to come as soon as they need any kind of help or assistance.”

Ambach’s fit out of such a small confined space, in which it was able to create more space and movability, speaks about its ability to customise its products to successfully meet difficult briefs. Of the finished Locanda Locatelli space, Ambach’s country manager Alistair Farquhar said: “The Locanda Locatelli kitchen is just a fabulous site. It’s a truly bespoke product that was built around the needs of the client. We’re proud of our work there, and regularly take clients to eat at the restaurant to experience what Ambach products are capable of.”