Changes are afoot in the Cube & Star kitchen. After working together for six years, proprietor Mark Turner and head chef Gustavo Agreda are parting company.
"It was a difficult decision, but I can't afford to continue as we are," says Turner. "Although nuevo Latino is a wonderful cuisine, we're certainly missing something and I need to focus on what the clientele demands."
Turner's decision was prompted by the fact that the food and general kitchen costs were getting out of hand - staff costs in the kitchen last month stood at 10,000 alone - and the food offering wasn't delivering sufficient return, with the business currently trading on a 70:30 wet-dry split.
"I think the split is a true reflection of how we've been missing our dining market," says Turner, who admits to feeling bored with the menu himself, which has been unchanged since the restaurant opened in May. "Our lunch business simply stalled. Although our offering was unique, my greatest fear became how long we could expect to trade off the novelty element of our menu. Our target market of local businesses and the City simply haven't bought into it. It was too much of a departure from their expectations."
The absence of comfort zones or familiar dishes on the menu was another problem identified by Turner. "Fried oysters served on a plantain mash with Swiss cheese is different, but fresh oysters served ceviche-style would have been more of a comfort zone. I love our red snapper stuffed with paella, but a simple and good paella is something people can more immediately associate with."
Sadly though, Agreda altering his style of food to better suit the business was not really an option. "He has his style and that's what he knows," says Turner. "I just felt that the style was not particularly suited to our market." The pair remain good friends, however.
A new head chef, Arnaud Stevens from the Duke Street restaurant in Reading, has been appointed and will be on board within a month. He's bringing with him sous chef Benoit Bretaudeau, and together they will change the menu over the next six weeks.
Their brief is very specific - to create a menu offering contemporary European cooking with a Latino twist. So it's out with dishes such as the deep-fried snapper with paella rice and the shrimp with wild mushroom risotto and in with the likes of marinated pork loin in black mustard seeds and lime served on roast honey plantain with ginger jus, and quail salad with avocado and chorizo oil, two dishes destined for the Christmas menus currently being rewritten by Stevens.
"We're planning a trip to Cuba at the end of this year," says Turner. "I don't want Cuban dishes, but I want to challenge his creativity to pick up some of the flavours of the Caribbean and encompass those into his modern European style of cooking."
Fortunately, when the kitchen was originally designed by Nelson Catering Equipment, it wasn't specifically set up for Latin food, apart from the tobacco leaf smoker. It covered a wider brief, so there won't be a problem with a change in style of food, although a few additional pieces of kit may be necessary.
Turner expects the changes to have a dramatic impact on the business, and has the lunchtime trade in his sights. Throughout September an average of 20 covers a day were served. Although it was a tough month, with turnover down to 37,000, Turner remains positive and is looking for an increase to an average of 40-50 covers a day once the new menu kicks in.
He says: "Business is starting to pick up, and with the opening of our cocktail lounge next month, a new menu will complete the circle."
Cube & Star
- Address: 39A Hoxton Square, London N1
- Owner: Mark Turner
- Opened: May 2005
- Seats: Restaurant 32, bar 36
- September tunover: £37,000