Lindley Heritage – The Lindley Group division created in 2011 to offer a bespoke, high quality catering service for museums, historic houses, arts and leisure venues, and visitor attractions – staved off competition from 19 potential contenders to be awarded a seven-year, £5 million-plus catering contract by The RAF Museum in Colindale, North London.
It marks the first venture into the museum market for Lindley Heritage which has built a portfolio of prestigious clients including The Hepworth Wakefield, the Theatre Royal Bath, Malvern Theatres and the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London which opened to much acclaim last year.
220,000 visitors a year
As well as operating and developing the two restaurant/cafés at the RAF Museum – which attracts over 220,000 visitors a year and is running a series of special events in 2013 to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Dambusters raid – Lindley Heritage will work closely with the RAF Museum’s in-house events team providing sales and marketing support to promote the venue as the perfect setting for business and private event organisers looking to create a point of difference and impress guests and delegates.
The wide variety of facilities enables the venue to cater for up to 400 guests and includes a 224-seat tiered Lecture Theatre and the 480 sq m Dermot Boyle Wing which are suitable for larger gatherings, while the recently refurbished Boardroom can accommodate 20 delegates.
As an added bonus, the RAF Museum is a registered charity so hire rates are VAT exempt and all profits are reinvested in the museum.
The Wings Restaurant
Lindley Heritage will be re-fitting and re-branding the current Wings Restaurant and the caterer will also be introducing a completely new quality food offering and table service format to enhance customers’ dining experience.
The new restaurant menu will focus on home-cooked British classic dishes using seasonal and locally-sourced ingredients, along with a choice of themed sharing platters bearing names such as The Spitfire, The Royal Wessex and The Westland Whirlwind. A series of signature dishes are also being created specifically for the RAF Museum and these will be showcased on weekly ‘Wartime Specials’ menus. The wartime theme will continue through to a ‘Children’s Evacuee Menu’ and a children’s light snack offering which will be packaged in a ‘gas mask-style’ lunchbox.
Lindley Heritage is also under-taking a full refurbishment of the Wessex Café to create a premium grab-and-go/light lunch offering. A self-service counter designed in the shape of a Wessex helicopter will provide the focal point for the new Wessex Café décor.
Vicki Hibbert, Corporate Events Manager at the RAF Museum, says:
“The concepts and ideas put forward by the Lindley Heritage team are bespoke to us. They weave the history and atmosphere of the museum throughout the entire catering offering from the themed menus to the new décor in the Wessex Café, all of which will combine to offer our visitors a unique and memorable experience.
“They also have a proven track record in generating incremental business from attracting corporate and private events at other venues, and their sales and marketing expertise will be invaluable in assisting us to maximise revenue from this additional income stream and reinvest the profits in the museum.”