Catering operator appointed
29 September 2016
Heritage Portfolio has been appointed to run the café, restaurant and events for V&A Museum of Design Dundee, the first V&A museum in the world outside of London.
The catering operation at V&A Dundee will be an essential part of the visitor experience with a welcoming café in the main hall, a spectacular restaurant with outdoor terrace overlooking the River Tay, and a range of unique spaces throughout the museum that are able to host events and dinners through into the evening.
The Edinburgh-based company runs highly successful cafes, restaurants and events at a range of visitor attractions including the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, the Scottish Portrait Gallery, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Signet Library and Scone Palace.
Heritage Portfolio is also the only catering company in Scotland to have been awarded a Royal Warrant as an official supplier of catering services to Her Majesty the Queen.
Philip Long, Director of V&A Dundee, said: “Heritage Portfolio is a world-class catering company that creates delicious food and stunning events.
“They will help us to develop V&A Dundee as a food destination, attracting local people and tourists to spend time in our café, enjoy the river views from the restaurant terrace, or organise special events for businesses and private celebrations.
“It’s very important to V&A Dundee that our catering partner can look after all of our visitors, from healthy children’s meals to after-work drinks, from business events to celebrations, and run this business sustainably to support the museum and the new jobs this partnership will create.
“Heritage Portfolio has a strong record of creating new jobs, and is committed to developing apprenticeships and graduates, and training its staff throughout their careers. It’s a great partnership for us and for Dundee.”
The contract to run the café, restaurant and events at V&A Dundee is intended to create up to 30 new permanent jobs in Dundee, plus many more flexible roles for catering large-scale events.
Mark Miller, Executive Director of Heritage Portfolio, said: “V&A Dundee is one of the most important and exciting developments happening in Scotland at this time and we are delighted to be a part of it.
“We’re delighted to be joining Dundee’s emerging restaurant scene. There is some fantastic local produce and we are looking forward to creating great dishes so that the residents of Dundee and further afield can enjoy delicious home-grown food in spectacular surroundings.”
Heritage Portfolio will work with local colleges and universities to provide training and development for students, and give them opportunities to join a world-class business which also caters for large events for well-known fashion houses.
Louisa Kingham, Head of Hospitality, Professional Cookery and Travel & Tourism at Dundee & Angus College, said: “We look forward to working with Heritage Portfolio not only in their staffing to fulfil their roles, but to work closely with them to tailor, develop and refine the learner experience for the community to everyone’s benefit.”
The ground floor café will be in the main hall of V&A Dundee, where visitors first enter the museum. The upper floor restaurant, which includes a roof terrace overlooking RRS Discovery and the River Tay, will celebrate Scottish produce and cuisine. Menus in the café and restaurant will change with the seasons and the availability of high-quality produce locally.
Seventeen companies applied for the contract through an open tender process on the Public Contracts Scotland service.
