The first thing you notice when you walk through the kitchen door at Plateau is something that isn't there. The clattering of pans on stoves is conspicuous by its absence. And the reason? There aren't many pans in the kitchen.

There are some pans, of course, for stocks and sauces. But for cooking the meat and fish, there are none. Actually, there's one: for the Dover sole, which is cooked in the oven. But that's it. The rest of the meat and fish is cooked directly on five planchas, set within three Bonnet Maestro Modern bespoke cooking suites which were brought up to the fourth floor of Canada Place in sections and welded on site.

The cooking suites form the basis of two main cooking areas, each dedicated to one of two dining rooms: an 80-seat fine-dining restaurant, and a 60-seat bar and grill. Both sections have their own passes. All fabrication was by Carford and a design requirement was that the passes and gantries were at a height so as not to obscure the view to all parts of the kitchen.

In total there are 18 chefs in Tolley's brigade, although the maximum on at any time is 11. They rotate to work across both kitchens, which operate separately during service.

The two cooking suites serving the fine-dining kitchen are equipped with double planchas, electric twin radiant hobs and a salamander. The main suite, used for meat on one side and fish on the other, also has a solid-top and an oven on either side. There is an abundance of under-counter refrigeration by Williams to keep all ingredients close at hand for the chefs and some of the work surfaces are marble-topped.

The third cooking suite is L-shaped and forms the kitchen for the bar and grill. An impressive 14-pin rôtisserie sits at one end with a salamander - spring-loaded so it can be easily moved up and down from either side - at the other. In between is a twin-basket single-tank fryer used for French fries and squid, a lava rock chargrill, a single plancha, solid top, electric twin hob and another oven.

Backing on to the bar and grill kitchen is a small prep area with tilting bratt pan and stock kettle, two Rational combi-ovens, a Sammic vacuum-packer and Williams blast chiller - used to pack mise en place to keep the freshness - and a Williams freezer - the only one in the entire kitchen - for ice-cream and staff food. Two sets of lifts deliver goods from the loading bay. Supplies are then decanted into three Tri-call coldrooms - one for meat, one for dairy, one for veg - and a dry store.

A requirement by Canary Wharf, was for a Britannia UV and Hepa ventilation system with the highest odour control, so that no smells would leave the building.

The designers made the most of the limited space in the dishwashing area by fitting a Meiko rack machine, necessary for the large volume of dirty dishes produced by two restaurants, and stainless steel tabling. There's also a Robot Coupe magnetic cutlery saver on the bin chute.

The design of Plateau's kitchen has been lauded by the catering equipment industry, with Carford picking up two of this year's CESA Grand Prix Awards (for the restaurant category and the overall winner).


The Brief
Plans for Conran's £250,000 kitchen project were well under way by the time Tim Tolley (left) came on board, but the Plateau head chef immediately liked what he saw. Tony Perkins, project manager for designers Carford, created a central open kitchen as the focal point of two separate restaurants. And with the kitchens being on full display to the public, the quality of the finishing was paramount.


Favourite bit of kit - plancha
Tolley is a huge fan of the kitchen's five planchas. He first came across this particular bit of kit at New York's Vong restaurant about six years ago and is now completely smitten. "It's a moderate technique of cooking which treats produce with great respect," he says. "I wouldn't like to be without them now."

Meats such as lamb, duck, veal and guinea fowl and fish varieties including sea bass, scallops and John Dory are cooked directly on the 22mm-thick polished solid stainless steel top which covers a ceramic casing housing an electric coil. No pans are necessary, the surface gives excellent conductivity and is just brushed with olive oil for meat and with clarified butter for fish.


Chargrill
A gas-fired lava rock grill sits in the bar and grill cooking suite and is used to chargrill entrec“te, sardines, quail, tuna steaks and lemon sole.


Most expensive individual bit of kit - rôtisserie
The gas-fired rôtisserie was something Terence Conran was particularly keen to have in the kitchen. Apart from looking impressive to watching customers, it is used to great effect on the bar and grill menu. Suckling pig takes 40 minutes of turning in front of the ceramic wicks to cook to perfection. It cooks at 180°C and because the fat of the pig doesn't absorb the juice of the meat, it becomes crispy while the meat stays tender and doesn't dry out. Salmon, wrapped in caul fat with a basil leaf, turns on a hook for 6-7 minutes and blanched potatoes doused in oil are put in trays on the shelf in front of the rôtisserie for crispy roast potatoes.


Pastry area
The pastry area serves both restaurants and is equipped with a Rational combi-oven and a Bonnet induction hob so the four pastry chefs don't need to venture into either of the main kitchens to do their cooking. Other equipment includes a Zanussi mixer and a Pacojet machine, which Tolley says is "great for sorbets". Work surfaces are marble-topped.


BBQ area
Both restaurants have their own terraces seating 25-30 people and the bar and grill terrace houses a bespoke barbecue area. Chefs take it in turns to cook on the Hobart Ecomax grill, which is connected to the gas mains (the local authorities wouldn't allow LPG). The barbecue menu offers the likes of merguez sausages with couscous and marinated quail with watercress.


Contacts
Bonnet 01494 464470; Britannia 01926 811300; Carford Group 01202 851920; Hobart 07002 101101; Meiko 01753 215120; Pacojet 020 8812 3777; Rational 0800 389 2944; Robot Coupe 01707 265465; Sammic 0116 246 1900; Tri-call 01763 243666; Williams Refrigeration 01553 817000; Zanussi 0121-220 2800