FOOD & BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT BTR102

Working at home or overseas this course is designed for people who are enthusiasts of dining.

You don't need to work in the luxury market, as this course has fantastic practical components to cover all levels. From hands-on in the kitchen to management level.  

A sound foundation for working in a restaurant, catering or other food service enterprise. Topics covered vary from kitchen and food management to planning a menu, restaurant staffing and waiting skills.

Our Food and Beverage Management students comments on the course:
"I have enjoyed the course and would study with ACS again" D. Hennessy

Confidently Manage a Catering Business, Restaurant or Cafe -

Online Learning Courses - Add to Your CV Today

Perfect Course for Working in the Food Service Industry - Stand out from the crowd

Managing a food related business requires very broad based knowledge and skills. This is not easy.

This course provides a foundation in all the skills you will need.

Be prepared to add to your studies with experience and further learning.

This is an industry where expectations are constantly changing, the best operators are the ones who are always discovering, learning, and trying new things. Is that you? 


Course Structure

This subject has 9 lessons as follows:

1. Human Nutrition - This covers all the major food groups and their importance in a nutritional diet. Also including factors in nutrition from compatibility and range of ingredients through to healthy cooking and eating methods.

2. Cooking - Includes various cooking methods for a variety of different foods, covering both palatability and digestibility through to the nutritional value in processing foods.

3. Kitchen & Food Management - Learn to maximise efficiency and service through proper management of kitchen facilities, including the handling of food storage and preparation, hygiene and ethics.

4. Planning A Menu - Covering menu planning for the needs of special groups in different situations, including children; adolescents; elderly people; expectant and nursing mothers; immigrants; vegetarians and other health related diets.

5. Alcoholic Beverages - Learn how to provide adequate variety and product knowledge in order to manage the provisions of alcoholic beverages appropriately for different situations.

6. Tea, Coffee and Non-Alcoholic Beverages - This lesson provides an understanding of non-alcoholic beverages available in the catering industry and how they should be made and served.

7. Scope & Nature Of Catering Services - Learn to understand the differences in appropriate management and catering for a variety of situations from pubs to a-la-carte.

8. Personnel Management - (table waiting skills, staffing a restaurant, kitchen etc). This lesson covers the management of people in the food and restaurant industry, including training programs, job specifications, recruitment etc.

9. Management Of Catering Services - By consolidating the skills developed throughout this course you are given a comprehensive understanding of marketing through to food purchasing in order to effectively manage in the food and beverage industry.


Course Aims

  • Explain the role of different food types in human health.
  • Understand the alternative cooking processes, in order to make appropriate decisions about the cooking of different foods
  • Manage the provision of kitchen facilities, and the handling of foodstuffs (including food storage and preparation), in order to maximise efficiency, hygiene and service with the restrictions of facilities available.
  • Plan menus or list of food products for sale, appropriate to different situations.
  • Manage the provision of alcoholic beverages appropriately, in different situations
  • Manage the provision of non-alcoholic beverages appropriately, in different situations.
  • Describe differences in appropriate management for catering in a range of varying situations.
  • Discuss how to manage staff in the food and restaurant industries.
  • Consolidate skills developed throughout this entire course into an overall understanding of management of catering services.


Nominal Duration: 100 hours (plus exam) 

Qualification: Statement of Attainment


Examples of Assignment Questions

Here are some of the assignment questions you will explore:

  • As the manager of an expensive hotel restaurant, what five rules would you impress as being the most important procedures for a new waiter to follow, when they first commence work?
  • Purchasing is an important aspect in the successful operation of any catering facility Give reasons why this statement is likely to be correct, and say how you would ensure that purchasing was effectively carried out if you were responsible for purchasing food for a small country pub?
  • Discuss the points of law which protect the purchaser in food which he buys, in your country?
  • What is involved in buying and supplying wine or beer to clientele?

 

How Do You Start a Catering Business
If you are planning to start catering on a large scale, you should initially give great consideration of where your skills and interests lie, as this will in turn ensure you go into the right kind of catering enterprise. Here is a brief overview of some of the different types of catering:


Special Event Catering 

Special event caterers offer catering for specific events such as wedding, christenings, reunions, anniversary and birthday parties and other large scale celebrations. This type of catering may allow you to be based from home initially but will require a great deal of skill in terms of event planning and management. If you enter into event catering you will also need to be prepared to work ‘unsocial’ hours such as evenings and weekends. Special event catering may also fail to provide a regular source of income, particularly in the early days, as it will take time to establish a client list and become known in this field. To increase your chance of contracts it is a good idea to establish links with other businesses such as wedding planners, photographers, local party venues etc.


Business Catering

Business caterers are frequently used to provide meals for business meetings/ training sessions etc. These events may be smaller than special event catering events and may, therefore, be particularly suited to a new business where food preparation/ cooking facilities may be limited. Another advantage of these events is they typically take place during working hours. If you are hoping to work in this area it is a good idea to advertise your services to local businesses e.g. by mail shots, telephone marketing etc. 


Industrial Catering

Industrial catering is much more wide scale. These businesses provide meals for hospitals/ schools/ factories etc. If you enter industrial catering you are likely to require extensive cooking/ storage / transportation facilities and a larger permanent workforce. You are also likely to be required to work to a contract. It can be difficult to initially break into this field unless you have connections with the industry concerned.


Where Will You Prepare Food?

Having decided the type of catering you wish to embark upon, you will also need to decide on where you will prepare and cook foods.  In the beginning it is likely the majority of this work will be done in your home kitchen. Catering from home will allow you to use existing equipment and, therefore, reduce costs, while it will also allow you to work around time/ family commitments. If however, you choose to start a business venture it is possible that your business will outgrow your home environment. There may also be legal restrictions to running a commercial catering business from your house, these restrictions may be specifically related to where you live in terms of area/ road links as to food safety considerations. 

To prepare and cook food outside of home you may wish to buy or rent a shop/ restaurant or industrial unit. Remember though that this will add to your financial outlay and eat into your profits. 

If a fixed venue is not suitable to your needs you could also consider opening your own mobile catering outlet where foods are served directly from your vehicle. Mobile units are generally modified vans with a built in grill, fryer or other cooking equipment. Mobile units can offer flexibility in available menus as foods can be cooked to order while fresh foods can be prepared in advance and refrigerated. Mobile units also offer an advantage that they can be moved to where customers are found e.g. on industrial estates/ at festivals or entertainment events. As with fixed catering establishments initial outlay can be expensive and being ‘on the road’ is not for everyone. Renting a business help to reduce costs while it is also a good idea to gain experience working for an established trader

 

ARE YOU THINKING WHAT NEXT ? 

 

You have questions? We have answers. 

If you're unsure if this course is suited to you, that's okay. You can speak to an enrolment advisor for help in choosing the right course. 

Take advantage of our complimentary COURSE COUNSELLING SERVICE, you're not obliged in any way to continue with your enquiry. 

We are offering a free ebook to anyone who calls to enquire.

 Call us on 01384 442 752 and we will send you a ebook today. 

 

I'm Ready! 

To enrol, simply go the the enrolment box at the top right-hand side of this page. That is is the most secure way of enroling with us!