The Yan – Bistro and accommodation​

The Yan, award-winning accommodation and a rustic bistro, is set in a 17th-century converted sheep farm in the Lake District National Park. With a mix of serviced rooms, self-catering and glamping on-site it makes for a busy breakfast service. The Bistro is also open to non-residents and has gained a strong reputation amongst locals and visitors alike.

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HOW IT STARTED

During Covid, The Yan introduced compulsory pre-ordering in their on-site bistro to help meet covid regulations and continue to operate. ​

Unexpected outcomes​

This had a significant impact on the amount of wasted food being produced and have encouraged pre-ordering since. ​

An added challenge was operating in a compact space with only one person in the kitchen. This led to creative thinking around designing their menus to minimise storage requirements and prep time. ​

They found that by designing their menu with common ingredients, and re-purposing unwanted elements they not only saved space and time, but reduced food waste as well.​

Ripple effect of actions​

Whilst a lot of actions were born out of necessity and a desire to be more sustainable, they have had a positive impact in lots of other areas. Storage requirements and associated costs have been reduced, staff prep time has reduced and costs have reduced by re-purposing what would have otherwise been wasted.

TIP

  • Plan and pre-order where possible.​
  • Use everything, pickle dry and preserve what you can.​
  • Plan your menus to limit ingredients needed.​
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“Being environmentally conscious without sacrificing our guest experience is embedded ​within our DNA.”

Jess Manley​
Team Yan

KEY LEARNINGS

  • Pre-ordering for groups of 5+, during special occasions and encouraging staying guests to pre-order prevents food waste.​
  • Menus are planned to share common ingredients across dishes minimising waste.​
  • Room only rates with an a la carte breakfast option encourages more mindful ordering.​
  • Fresh ingredients are processed as soon as they come into the kitchens. These are, cooked, portioned and frozen in batches. The rest are pickled, dried and preserved.​
  • Unused items from prep are de-hydrated and served as drinks garnishes, infused to create syrups or even dried for teas. ​
  • Investing in heat-based composting allows for faster and more effective processing of organic waste (peelings etc).​

IMPROVEMENTS MADE

  • The pre-ordering of dishes has significantly reduced wasted food. Post-covid, this was relaxed to only be compulsory for groups of 5+ but is still actively encouraged through communications. ​
  • Roughly 10% of staying guests pre-order as they understand it is part of a wider sustainable ethos. ​
  • A recent study, alongside ECO-I North West and Cumbria University, found that if all guests to The Yan were to pre-order their meal, it would provide an annual carbon saving of 1.174 tons and reduce kitchen waste by 50%.

 

  • They successfully received 100% pre-orders during Easter, allowing them to plan accordingly and achieve zero food waste, whilst increasing covers by 31%. ‘This further proves how pre-ordering not only reduces waste but can help a hospitality business increase revenue.
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