Cafeideas at Urban Paddock
A veteran of 30 years in hospitality, Julian Amore is a trained pastry chef who has owned multiple cafes and restaurants including CBD venues for the last 25 years. His latest venture is Urban Paddock, an indoor/outdoor café and restaurant nestled between three office towers, a stone’s throw from Cockle Bay. Established in November 2015, Urban Paddock serves the neighbouring corporates and needs to be on point with service, quality and appearance. Julian turned to Cafeideas for kitchen equipment and furniture and has much to say about the businesses’ shared values.
Having dealt with Damien at Cafeideas numerous times before, Julian knew that in terms of quality, pricing and customer service, he was going to enjoy the same benefits. “I knew exactly what I wanted because we had the place architecturally designed in great detail,” Julian says. “But in this case, I was determined to get lots of quotes because at Urban Paddock, I’m working with a business partner, Stan Loupos.” Eight requests for quotes went out and none could beat Cafeideas on the three abovementioned points, so the decision was made.
“Cafeideas have always been competitive on the particular brands of items I was looking for,” Julian explains. “Competitive to the point that they have beaten all the other quotes. I know they’ll always look after me.”
Ordering for the kitchen equipment was straightforward for Julian because his planning had incorporated all the specific items that would be needed. The furniture however was another matter and he felt a visit to the Cafeideas showroom was imperative.
“It’s the real thing,” he explains. “You go into the showroom and it’s all on display so you get a real feel for the comfort, the quality and the durability. They display a huge array of chairs and you can mix and match, sit at tables to gauge the height and get an idea of how heavy items are for staff to carry.”
For Urban Paddock, Julian selected short and tall stools, high back chairs, normal chairs, stackable and non-stackable ones as well as outdoor, weatherproof furniture.
“I could feel how they’d move across the floor, how comfortable they are and whether they felt like they were of good quality.” For Julian, country of manufacture is also important so being able to discuss such details with the knowledgeable staff at Cafeideas was valuable.
How Cafeideas helped
“The service is always amazing,” Julian tells. “We had some problems with a couple of chairs and Damien had them replaced within two days. In a venue that seats 165, it’s not like two chairs are going to be a huge problem but still, you also don’t want to have to deal with it back and forth. It was resolved immediately.”
The toaster too was organised to be repaired by the manufacturer and was fixed within two days. Julian says this kind of service is not the norm. “I’ve bought bits of equipment in the past from other companies and they just don’t want to know you. Even though price points are an enormous deciding factor, you also need to be able to count on prompt service because your business depends on it.”
Julian is also pleased with the follow-through provided by Damien and Cafeideas. “They’ve checked in on how happy we are with our purchases and I’m really pleased that Damien himself has been in for lunch to have a look.”
“I feel one hundred per cent looked after by Cafeideas,” Julian smiles. “It’s good to deal with a company that has the products, the variety, the quality and the know-how, and you can genuinely count on the level of service they provide.”
From Cafeideas, Urban Paddock purchased: Veneto chairs, Rons table bases, Brown table tops, Darlinghurst stools, Darlinghurst bar stools, Darlinghurst chairs, Clifton bar stools, Vintage bar stools, Dome table bases, Exquisite chiller, Hobart glasswasher, Austune undercounter fridge, Baron oven, Goldstein salamander, Hobart dishwasher, Hamilton ice blender, Woodson toaster, Scotsman ice maker, and Unox MIND.Maps oven.