In Your Shoes - David Nicoll

I am the owner/operator of Nicattos Mobile Espresso Bar and Caterer.  We specialise in barista coffee and lunches on the move, delivering to workplaces and home.  We also operate at events.  Our catering service provides home-made buffets for all occasions for corporate and private customers.  

Monday 2nd August

Can't quite believe it is August already!  Monday morning sees me start with doorstep coffee deliveries to some of our regular customers.  During the first lockdown with workplaces closed we had to transform into essentially a home delivery service and a year and half on we are still offering home delivery alongside workplace delivery daily Monday to Friday.  I really enjoy the coffee drops as it gives me a chance to chat to everyone and for some customers during the lockdowns I was the only person they saw!  Once the drops are done it is back to base to pick up the lunch deliveries.  Today sees us with a number of deliveries in the Technology Park and Ninewells before heading down to the Waterfront.  

Tuesday 3rd August

Today after the coffee and lunch deliveries, I am spending some time doing admin.  First up is sending out our latest catering menus to some of our corporate clients who are looking to hold a few meetings later in the month.  Once that is done it is time to switch my work head for my volunteer head, for the last year and a half I have volunteered as company secretary for Dundee High FP rugby.  This role has been quite busy for me as we have been going through the process of merging with Morgan FP Rugby to make one large club which now includes Dundee Eagles, Dundee Juniors and the Dundee Valkyries, our ladies side as well.  We are holding our first ever 7's tournament this weekend and have been lucky enough to have been awarded Star Club status in the RBS Rugby Force scheme that we applied for, which means that we have a Scotland Player as a guest for the event and I need to make sure that the SRU have all the details for the event as well providing a proposed itinerary for the player during his visit.  

Wednesday 4th August

First up this morning is a gas inspection for the van.  We need one of these every year to make sure the system is in good order and safe.  Once the inspection is finished and I have the certificate, I forward this onto Muckmedden who are the event organisers for the Active Travel Hub launch event beside the new urban beach at the Waterfront that we are attending in September.  

Today we have our usual drop off to Ninewells A&E of Traybakes.  One of the consultants asks us to pop in once a week with treats for the staff and its fair to say we are always warmly welcomed!!  After that drop off, there is a few workplace lunch drops before heading through to Broughty Ferry to drop off an afternoon tea for a private customer.  

Thursday 5th August

Thursday's are one of our busiest days of the week currently.  As well as our usual drop offs every Thursday we visit CAMHS.  Orginally we were invited to come along for a month as part of a wellbeing program they were running at the start of summer, where they were encouraging staff to take some time out over lunch and grab some lunch or coffee from us.  The month went well and they now continue to invite us along every Thursday and we usually spend around 30-45 minutes there serving them their pre-ordered lunch and making coffees.  

Later in the afternoon we head into town as a family to pick up a few things for our daughter Isla who is back to school next week!  They are back to wearing full uniform this year so we get a full fashion show when we get home, I think someone is a little excited to go back to school!!

Friday 6th August

Friday's used to be one of our quietest days before with our stops finishing early and there not being many meetings to cater for.  However with the home delivery service Friday's can now be pretty hectic with people having a treat lunch before the weekend.  We also started during lockdown a community stop in Liff where we live.  This has been one of my favourite new additions to our stops as we have some great regular customers and its been a great chance to get to know people in the local area.  It's also been a great opportunity for people to catch up with each other throughout the pandemic.  The hot drink special today is a s'mores hot chocolate topped with toasted mini mallows and with it being overcast today, its been very popular!

Friday afternoon is spent getting stock and getting the van ready for the 7's tournament tomorrow.  There is quite a lot to do with making sure all the water tanks are filled and the batteries all charged, wouldn't do to run out of power or water midway through the day!!  Stock bought and its all go in the kitchen as the traybakes for tomorrow are prepared.  

Saturday 7th August

It's the 7's Tournament today, this will be our first proper event for about 20 months with everything having been cancelled.  First though we have a drop off of some sandwiches and wraps for a birthday party today.

We arrive at the tournament at 0830 and any nerves we had, having not worked at an event for a while are quickly dispelled as parents of the juniors, the tournament which is on first descend on us to get their morning coffee.  We bump into a lot of our workplace customers during the event, some who we haven't seen since the offices closed for the pandemic, lovely to catch up with them and hear how they are getting on.

The day passes very quckly and we are kept busy until around 6pm when the demand for the bar outsrips the demand for a coffee!!  I catch up with some of my fellow committee members and it is agreed that the day has been a great success and there is definitely interest in making the tournament a yearly event.  

Getting home we both agree that we forget how tiring it can be working at an event and being on your feet all day, however a couple of glasses of wine helps sort that out!!