Case study · Restaurants & cafés
South of England Rare Breeds Centre, Woodchurch
Restaurant and canteen kitchen refurbishment for the Canterbury Oast Trust at Woodchurch — full structural fit-out, Parry FlexServe servery, Samsung 360 HVAC, Maestrowave ovens, True refrigeration, new LVT flooring and neurodiverse-sensitive redecoration. 7 weeks.
Client
Canterbury Oast Trust
Location
Woodchurch, Kent
Project value
£100k+
Build time
7 weeks
The brief
Reviving a mothballed restaurant for a charity that depends on it
The South of England Rare Breeds Centre in Woodchurch is operated by the Canterbury Oast Trust — a Kent charity supporting adults with learning disabilities. Many residents live and work on-site, and the restaurant functions both as a visitor café and as a life-skills teaching environment for service users. When we were appointed, the restaurant had been mothballed since the Covid lockdown and had become an unusable space. The kitchen was still operational but meals were being served through a door to diners outside.
The brief was a full refurbishment of both the commercial kitchen and the restaurant area — new equipment, surfaces and heating throughout, and a redecorated dining space designed to be welcoming to neurodiverse visitors and residents. We had worked on multiple previous projects for the Canterbury Oast Trust group before this appointment. Seven weeks, entirely in-house.
What we did
Full kitchen and restaurant refurbishment in 7 weeks
Structural works, plumbing and electrical
Stud wall formation as part of the kitchen reconfiguration. Complete plumbing package throughout — new sink runs, drainage and service connections. Full electrical package to support the new equipment layout. All trades delivered in-house.
HVAC — Samsung 360 system
The existing heating system — gas space heaters and an open fire — was removed entirely. It presented both safety and environmental concerns and was no longer appropriate for a commercial food preparation environment. Replaced with a Samsung 360 HVAC system using high-level destratification to ensure even circulation of heated and cooled air throughout the restaurant. Samsung AC system also installed in the adjacent office block, replacing inefficient space heaters for staff and residents.
Kitchen equipment and servery
Parry FlexServe servery system installed — modular heated and chilled display for the canteen counter. Maestrowave accelerated cooking ovens for speed of service. Roband griddles. True refrigeration fridges and freezers. Maidaid glasswasher and dishwashers for warewashing. Chilled merchandisers for front-of-house cold drink and food display. Bespoke stainless steel serving counter, prep area and benches fabricated and installed throughout.
Restaurant area refurbishment
New LVT flooring throughout the dining area. Full redecoration using a colour palette chosen to be sensitive to the needs of neurodiverse customers and residents who use the space regularly. Sandwich prep kitchen refitted. The restaurant was returned to full operational use as both a visitor café and a life-skills teaching environment.
Equipment specified
Specified for a visitor café and life-skills kitchen
- Parry FlexServe — modular heated and chilled servery system
- Maestrowave accelerated cooking ovens
- Roband griddles — cookline
- True refrigeration fridges and freezers
- Maidaid glasswasher and dishwashers — warewashing
- Chilled merchandisers — front-of-house cold display
- Samsung 360 HVAC — heating and cooling with destratification
- Samsung AC — adjacent office block
- Bespoke stainless steel serving counter, prep area and benches
- LVT flooring — restaurant dining area
- Full electrical and plumbing package
- Stud wall formation — kitchen reconfiguration
The installation
Inside the refurbished kitchen and restaurant
The outcome
A kitchen and restaurant back in full use
The Rare Breeds Centre reopened with a modern, safe and properly specified kitchen and restaurant — compliant heating, food-safe surfaces, efficient equipment and a dining area redecorated with its users in mind. Both the visitor café and the life-skills teaching programme can now operate at full capacity. Delivered in 7 weeks, entirely in-house, as part of a long-standing relationship with the Canterbury Oast Trust group.
"We have been very pleased to work with Kent Commercial Kitchens on the full refurbishment of our kitchen and restaurant at the Rare Breeds Centre. Simon and the team were very knowledgeable and professional from start to finish. There were a few changes throughout the project and these were dealt with very easily. I look forward to working with the team again."
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