Meet our Head Chef, Robert Rakoczy
Hi, my name is Robert, and I am the Acting Head Chef here Atfield House.
Food and Nutrition at Atfield House
The catering team at Atfield House has 3 very dedicated chefs who offer nutritional and delicious meals and snacks. They take great pride in the food that is served to our residents and use the feedback comments cards wisely to adjust the menu. We have a Food Committee comprising of residents, relatives, friends and staff who discuss all aspects of catering at Atfield House to enable us to continuously improve this service for our Residents. For a taste of what we offer, see our example menus below.
Dietary requirements
For residents that have difficulties in swallowing we modify the menu of the day so that is it a soft, palatable dish. To support our chefs in producing these dishes, our hospitality and Chef Academy organises theory and practical workshops. Working in partnership with Nutricia, our practical workshops involve all chefs and deputy managers learning about dysphagia and producing these modified menus. The chefs work with the chef trainer to prepare fork mashable and thick puree meals to the correct consistency, taste and presentation. The deputy managers can then ensure all modified menus served are presented correctly for our residents.
Attracting top chefs
Our chefs are recruited on the basis of an interview with the regional hospitality support team and the manager for the home. Selection also involves a practical element where potential cooks are asked to cook for and meet a panel of people living in the home. Chefs take their job extremely seriously and our annual Chef competition sees our chefs battle it out in regional heats and then at a national final for the accolade of 'Barchester's Chef of the Year'.
