Simply Committed To You
At Simply Commercial Kitchens, we offer a comprehensive range of services to meet all your commercial kitchen needs.
Our Services
We have teamed up with Stuart Downie to offer our clients expert guidance when stepping into the world of hospitality. Whether you’re new to the industry or a seasoned professional seeking reassurance, Stuart’s proven track record of success can provide the support you need. Below are some of the ways he can help you. Get in touch with us to tailor a bespoke package based on your specific requirements.
We specialise in menu development across various hospitality sectors, including French cuisine, classic pubs, steakhouses, seafood restaurants, and cafés. From developing new menus to implementing fresh restaurant concepts, we bring expertise and innovation to elevate your dining experience.
We provide expert training for head chefs, including performance reviews and target setting, to enhance kitchen leadership. Our front-of-house training includes mystery shopper reports, ensuring exceptional service and customer experience.
We specialise in developing new and innovative concepts for existing or upcoming offerings. Our service includes creative direction, hands-on training with kitchen teams, and expert guidance on the daily operations of hotels, pubs, restaurants, and cafés.
Our menu development service goes beyond simply curating dishes—we provide a strategic approach to ensure your offerings are innovative, cost-effective, and perfectly suited to your brand and target audience. Whether you’re launching a new menu or refining an existing one, we help balance creativity with profitability.
In addition to menu creation, we offer comprehensive support across all areas of your business, including purchasing, staffing, and menu planning. We assist with food production supervision, troubleshooting operational challenges, and optimising table placement and settings to enhance customer experience. Our expertise extends to equipment procurement, uniform selection, beverage consultation, and supplier recommendations, ensuring every aspect of your operation runs seamlessly. We also provide guidance on food and beverage margins, helping you maximise profitability without compromising quality.
With our tailored approach, we help businesses streamline operations, elevate their offerings, and create exceptional dining experiences.
Stuart’s career began in 1999 with his first role at the Master Builders hotel in the New Forest as an apprentice chef. After a few stints in various Hampshire hotels and restaurants, he decided to move to Devon and embrace his journey into Michelin star kitchens. He worked at The Horn of Plenty Hotel and Restaurant in in Gulworthy, near the market town of Tavistock. This award-winning hotel is where he spent the next three years developing his culinary craft.
Stuart decided to take a break from the kitchen and travelled around the world with friends for 6 months visiting South East Asia and Australasia. On his return he was quickly back into work taking his first Head Chef role at the age of 23. He worked at a small boutique hotel, St. Elizabeth’s house near Plymouth, where he spent the next two years learning life as a Head Chef, in between undertaking stages at Michelin star restaurants – The Vineyard in Newbury (2 stars) and the Hand & Flowers in Marlow (2 stars) were the main highlights.
Stuart was then head hunted to return to the Horn of Plenty as Head Chef, under the guidance of Chef Patron Peter Gorton, a MasterChef of Great Britain. In his time at the country house hotel, he maintained the restaurant’s 3 AA rosettes and Good Food Guide ratings.
He was then approached by a former colleague about a Head Chef position at a newly renovated seaside hotel in Salcombe, South Devon. He took the job at South Sands Hotel which had a real focus on serving seasonal, brasserie style dishes – a contrast to his previous classical cooking style. The hotel company expanded over the years acquiring two gastro pubs which Stuart oversaw too as Executive Chef. His time at South Sands he also spent time on the side as an associate lecturer at Plymouth university teaching hospitality management for 3 years.
He loved his time here but then had decided to take a position at the Cricket Inn in Beesands, a seaside pub with rooms. Here he stayed 6 years moving from Head Chef through to Front of House Manager, learning all aspects of the business and during his time also helped open another site, The Church House Inn in Stokenham.
In January 2020 Stuart was approached to move back to Hampshire, after three local investors bought their local village pub in Curdridge and asked Stuart and his wife to run it! Stuart and his family decided it was the right time to run their own business and became the new landlords of the Cricketers Inn in Curdridge which opened in July 2020. A tricky time Stuart became a company director in 2023 reinvesting into the business. In January 2024, Stuart and his partners wanted to expand taking the helm at the Brewery bar in Botley, a few miles down the road from the Cricketers Inn. In 12 months, The Brewery bar has had a brand-new kitchen installed, newly-renovated living accommodation and a complete face lift in the front of house areas.
After 25 years’ experience in hospitality, Stuart would like to give his knowledge and own experiences back to the trade.
