Communal Kitchen at Bedford

Dudeney and Johnston Ltd, 34 High Street, Bedford 1911 [Z1306/10/33/67]

Saturday 19th January 1918: Communal kitchens have been set up in many parts of the country to help to alleviate the food problems caused by the war. This innovation has now reached Bedford, where a communal kitchen has been set up by Messrs. Dudeney and Johnston. The success of this initiative has far exceeded expectations, and large numbers of both middle and working class people are taking advantage to this opportunity to obtain a well-cooked meal at minimum cost. A large variety of foodstuffs is used in the kitchen where the meals are prepared, and with the use of advanced cooking methods cereals and the more easily available foods are converted into appetising and nutritious meals. There is currently no room for the kitchen’s customers to eat on the premises, but it is hoped that next month the company will be able to provide a large room where indoor meals can be eaten. For economy and to save time customers would be their own waiters, with a nominal charge made for the use of utensils. Once the success of this scheme is more widely known it seems certain that it will be copied by other firms.

Source: Bedfordshire Standard, 25th January 1918