Did you know that 2023 marked the 30th anniversary of the first combi oven we produced? Maybe some readers even remember the company’s beginnings. But don’t be fooled. The first combi oven was made in 1993, but RETIGO s.r.o. wasn’t incorporated until a year later, in 1994. Its anniversary will therefore be celebrated in 2024.

Since that time, a lot has changed. That includes the design of combi ovens, expansion of the model ranges, remote control, tweaks to the appliances’ software, arrival of new employees and the expansion of the company premises. The most recent extension took place in 2021. The new hall has helped us expand production capacity. But let’s linger for a moment to the time when the first combi oven was created, and the company soon after that. Let’s take a trip down Memory Lane with three of our five owners. Jiří Zátopek, Jaroslav Kudela and Libor Pavelka shared their facts and experience with us.

How did Retigo’s five current owners get together?

Zátopek: We all worked together at the old Tesla plant in Rožnov, where single-purpose machines were built.

Pavelka: Mr Zátopek and Mr Kudela worked in electrical design, and I worked in mechanical design with Jirka Jaroň and Vašek Miller, who are also Retigo owners.

Kudela: We were mainly friends at work. At the time, we worked on smokers. They’re similar to combi ovens. They heat up, there’s a control unit, a fan, but the temperatures aren’t that high, and the smoking cabinets produce smoke.

Where did the idea come from to produce a combi oven?

Zátopek: After the revolution, Tesla understandably looked for other lines of business, and one of them was culinary technology, and we were tasked with putting together a combi oven.

Pavelka: Combi ovens didn’t succeed there, though, and we got the idea to produce a combi oven outside Tesla.

Zátopek: Tesla knew that marketing was what was missing, which is necessary when you have an idea and a product, but there was nobody selling the appliances. Nobody knew how to do it at the time, least of all the factory. So it “died”. And that was an opportunity to figure out what to do next.

Kudela: We liked the fact that the appliance was expensive and couldn’t be produced or copied easily. So at work we said we’d try to put it together. We were led to that by changes in the company and a less than positive outlook for the future. The plant sold only a couple of combi ovens, and in a few years was bankrupt.

Did you know what a combi oven was?

Kudela: I didn’t. I started gathering information and researching the market. We didn’t have any competition, just Eloma in Germany and one more manufacturer. Their combi ovens cost up to 300,000 crowns, which at the time was unimaginable — almost the price of a new house. These appliances already had some history, so after the revolution, they were among the first to start appearing.

Continue reading about Retigo’s beginnings here

Counterline are delighted to have joined ceda, the leading trade organisation for catering equipment project engineering, service and maintenance in the UK.

“ceda has a strong history of commitment to its members, associates and partners.  As an innovative and creative manufacturer, Counterline like ceda has been setting standards within the food service industry for more than 40 years. 

We are excited by this partnership and the positive impact ceda will bring to our business and services. We look forward to working closely with the membership in the future and helping them build fantastic hospitality venues across the UK and Ireland.”

– Paul Purslow, Sales Director

With a national and international presence, Counterline are the go-to name for outstanding quality products and design solutions. From Buckingham Palace to Yahoo, our products are found in global offices, on board cruise ships and in the headquarters of some of the world’s leading and innovative companies.

Our wide range of counters and food servery displays are designed to meet the needs of our customers, wherever they happen to be. We are well established in India and Asia and have a growing portfolio of clients. Over the last 30 years, we’ve seen our client base increase and export accounts for 23 per cent of our turnover. Given the growing export market, we now have a dedicated Dubai office.

Find out more about what we do here.

Blue Seal Ltd are very mindful of the future equipment requirements for efficiency and carbon footprint and sustainability, with this ever-changing food industry and the cost of gas and electric usage.

We currently produce a new range of free-standing & bench models of heavy-duty induction hobs with two or four zones. Each hob has the versatility of 3.5KW or 5Kw round zone generators for focussed power or 5kw power full area zones to accept multiple pans across the cooking area. The induction technology is incredibly responsive, with hardened 6mm thick glass cooking surfaces.

Blue Seal R&D are conscious of the ever-increasing demand for induction product, and we are in the process of preparing new induction- convection ranges, and wok induction hobs ready for launch 2024.
Many commercial chefs are trained at college with gas appliances and do love the instant heat & control of gas. However, they are slowly breaking this habitual comfort and being convinced to make the change, once they experience using Induction, the fantastic responsiveness, instant heat direct to the pan & superb controllability, speaks for itself.

The induction technology lends itself to a myriad of concepts, especially QSR restaurants where they need quick heat up on demand, which is also remarkably simple for the operator to use and maintain.

The feature benefits of induction far outweigh the initial out lay, which is currently still relatively high for commercial heavy-duty product. Induction for prime cooking is still relatively fresh to be accepted into the general commercial kitchen environment, however the big energy savings and high efficiency far outweighs the cost of changing the cookware and initial higher cost outlay for the product. This cost will no doubt reduce and become more competitive as the trend & demand for induction manufacture inevitably increases. Induction equipment also avoids the additional very costly legislation requirement involved with gas canopy extraction/make up air and interlock systems.

When you compare the efficiency of using induction over gas, the induction is at approx. 85% efficient compared to approx. 45% efficiency for gas. This is achieved by the magnetic fields heating up the entire surface of the cookware with virtually all of the energy transferred into the pan. Where gas disperses the heat, licking around the sides of the cookware more so, losing energy into the ambient air around the pan.

Using induction massively reduces heat transfer into the air flow, lowers the overall temperature in the kitchen promoting a more comfortable working environment, as well as the practicality of a simple wipe down of the glass cooking area at the end of a shift, which is very appealing to an operator. The appliances are much safer to use, reducing injury potential as well as being very simple to service & maintain.

The commercial, brand, customer and labour implications of climate change are increasingly evident – and progressive business leaders across hospitality are taking action.

The Planet Peach sustainability Summit will interrogate the very latest data and a dynamo line-up of experts will provide real-world strategies to help organisations accelerate their sustainability goals. The afternoon conference takes place 5 March at 30 Euston Square, London.

Find out more and book HERE.*

*ceda members will receive a discount so contact Adam Mason for further details.

The Planet Peach Sustainability Summit, a co-production between Peach 20/20 and leading communications agency Fleet Street is a new event aimed at c-suite executives, founders, entrepreneurs and investors.

Speakers will consider the moral, reputational and brand challenges as well as the opportunities for customer and employee loyalty, reducing costs and attracting investors. Find out more about the summit and speakers HERE​​​​​​​.

“This is a vital issue. Make no mistake, sustainability is rising up board agendas and directors and investors all need to be engaged,“ said Peter Martin.

“This is not another talking shop. The summit sessions will rigorously interrogate the data, explore practical solutions and invite debate and discussion from executive level operators, major suppliers and independent subject matter specialists,” added Mark Stretton.

The agenda will cover the challenges of the supply chain, investment, politics, technological advances and communication, as well as examining how individual businesses and the sector collectively can build on the progress and commitment already made.

Following the afternoon conference session discussions will continue over drinks. Expect the usual Peachy mix of board-level, actionable insight and unrivalled networking.

Brands​​​​​​​ that have already booked their place include; Caffè Nero, Chipotle, Gail’s Bakery, Gaucho, Greene & Fortune, JKS Restaurants, Marugame Udon, Mission Mars, Pizza Pilgrims, Punch Pubs, Rare Restaurants, Revolution Bars Group, St John’s, The Restaurant Group, Time Out Group, Turtle Bay, Wingstop and Young’s.

The Planet Peach Sustainability Summit is supported by the Zero Carbon Forum and UKHospitality. Nutritics, the food data management specialist, is headline sponsor.

Professional kitchens are under increasing pressure to find operational economies, and Hobart has a range of innovative solutions – machines designed and built on the core principles of simplicity and performance – to help provide tangible, real world savings on operational costs.

From high capacity, cost-effective, energy smart warewashers, to multifunctional cooking solutions that save on time, energy, water, and costly food waste, no matter the budget, there is a machine purpose-built for the requirements of every operation.

Explore Hobart’s Smart Saving Cooking Solutions here.

Explore Hobart’s Smart Saving Warewash Solutions here.

Hobart, redefining innovation to make kitchen life easier.

Keziah Whittaker, the talented winner of Young Master Chef 2023 was invited to the Rational Customer Experience Centre to cook on the iVario Pro.

A former law student, Keziah Whittaker decided to follow her passion for cooking, embarking on a journey that led her to the title of Young Master Chef 2023. Keziah’s cooking style is characterised by her signature “fun fusion cooking,” heavily influenced by Caribbean flavours. In an upcoming episode on RATIONAL TV, she recreated her mouthwatering recipes, curry goat and crispy chicken jerk bites with the intelligent Rational iVario Pro advanced bratt pan.

Keziah shared her perspective on the evolving landscape of modern cooking and the role of technology: “Technology plays a massive part in modern cooking, but I feel like at the same time, times are changing, and not everyone is willing to change with it. But if you don’t change with the times, it’s easy to get left behind.”

Speaking specifically about the iVario Pro, Keziah notes, “As a young chef, it can be quite daunting, but this definitely made my cooking experience very easy today. It doesn’t take years of experience. You don’t have to go to culinary school to be able to use this equipment. You can literally be in any kind of profession.”

Keziah concludes, “I feel like as a young chef or someone that’s not as advanced as cooking as other people that I might be in a kitchen with, technology like the iVario Pro definitely gives people like myself an advantage because it’s so easy.”

Don’t miss the exciting episode featuring Keziah Whittaker on RATIONAL TV, where innovation meets tradition in the kitchen, showcasing the future of cooking: https://www.rational-online.tv/

Commercial Catering Products (CCP Ltd) are pleased to confirm that they have signed an exclusive agreement to represent Scrap Drain Bio, in the UK.

Rob Gibson from CCP explained, “Everyone in the Food Service Industry has been aware of the big issues surrounding waste and FOG, we are really excited to bring a new innovative solution to the UK.”

“When Doug Horner the CEO of ScrapDrain approached us with his company’s solution to waste and FOG and explained that chains such as Starbucks and Tim Horton’s were already starting to use this system in the States, we had to sit up and listen. The solution is easy to install and operate at the fraction of the cost of other Bio Enzyme solutions.”

The system is firstly designed to stop waste going down the drain, then an easily replaceable Bio Enzyme Puck sits in a basket, below the waste attacking the, Fats, Oils, and Greases, within the Drain.

Doug Horner from ScrapDrain said, “We were looking for a partner in the UK to bring this great solution. FOG is a big an issue in the States as it is in the UK, we know that the team at CCP Ltd with their contacts in the Chain Accounts and the Distributor supply chain will quickly establish ScrapDrain as a viable solution to waste and FOG within the Commercial Food Service Sector.”

Simon Callus from CCP Ltd continued “It’s been a great year for the team at CCP taking on the master distributorship and establishing Mychef with its leading innovation and solutions in vertical and accelerated cooking. It makes logical sense in 2024 to expand our port-folio in offering great solutions to FOG to to our customer base.”

Hobart would like to invite you to our Service training events that will be held at our Peterborough head office throughout 2024.

Places will be offered to CEDA members on a first come, first served basis. We’ll offer training on either our hood and undercounter dishwasher ranges, including Ecomax.

As Hobart’s investment in our CEDA partnership we will be providing the training free of charge, further dates will be available via Parts Town at £200pp*.

*Please note that no shows at Peterborough will be charged at a rate of £50 per person. PartsTown training costs may change from time to time, full details for bookings can be found here.

Session 1 – FX Undercounter Dishwasher Range- 13th March 2024

• Training will include install, maintenance, troubleshooting and more
• Lunch will be provided
• Places are allocated on a first come first served basis
• Open to Service Technicians and Technical staff

Maximum 8 spaces per date

To request a place on this or a future session, please click here.

Bookings are restricted to one technician per company per session. All accepted bookings will be confirmed in writing.

Caterparts are celebrating the new year with free delivery on all website orders throughout January 2024!

Visit the Cater Parts website now!

In a continuation of our commitment to excellence, Cater-Bake is thrilled to announce the extension of our renowned 3-year warranty to include Zanolli Deck Ovens.

This milestone follows the successful introduction of the same warranty to Zanolli Conveyor Ovens last year, marking a significant moment in our 30-year journey and 25-year partnership with Zanolli.

The decision to extend the warranty coverage to Zanolli Deck Ovens reinforces our dedication to providing customers with unmatched quality and support. As the sole worldwide partner offering this extended warranty, we are proud to set a new standard in the industry.
Steven Lilley, Sales Director expressed his pride in the achievement, stating, “To offer our customers a 3-year warranty on Zanolli Conveyor Ovens was an honour. Now, extending it to Zanolli Deck Ovens is an exciting progression. We are grateful to Zanolli and our incredible customer network for their continued support over the past 30 years.”

The extended warranty is a testament to Cater-Bake’s commitment to customer satisfaction and confidence in the durability of Zanolli products. For more information, contact info@cater-bake.co.uk.