If you want to succeed in the catering business, do not be greedy. That is the message from one of the county’s top operators. And he should know his onions since his company has been serving up sumptuous feasts at Oxford colleges, smart weddings and conferences for 12 years, not to mention owning a few restaurants and cafes to boot.

In fact Michael Ashton of Elegant Cuisine has been in the catering world all his working life. He was a chef and then a manager with Abbey Catering, established more than 60 years ago, before he bought the company, changed its name and moved it to its present headquarters, Milletts Farm Centre, near Abingdon.

He said: “Even people with money to spend are careful how they spend it these days. So if they want a breakdown of costs I show them a costing sheet as we call it — and they can see for themselves that we are not being greedy.

“But the facts are that those costs have gone up, especially petrol and food.”

The difference between Elegant Cuisine and many of its competitors, Mr Ashton said, was that it has a well-trained and permanent staff of 70, rather than relying on untrained freelances brought in for particular events.

And that number of staff was around the 150 mark until a year ago, when the company’s five-year contract with Kew Gardens came to an end.

Mr Ashton said: “In five years we raised the turnover at Kew from £1.7m to £4.6m on public catering. Then DEFRA, which is in charge at Kew, put the contract out to tender — but I thought the price asked was too high.

“But such is the nature of contract catering. Now I am looking round for something socially responsible and environmentally-friendly. And I have one or two propositions in mind.”

The business is turning over £2m a year, with £600,000 of that coming from outside catering, and the rest from the franchise the company owns at Milletts Farm Centre, where 42 of the full-time staff work, and where the company operates the Farmhouse Restaurant and the Lakeview Restaurant .

Mr Ashton said: “Twelve years ago I came to an agreement to do the catering with John and Christine Carter, who had started the farm shop and garden centre at Milletts.

“Then, after they had built an extension, our businesses grew together. The advantage of this place is that when we get back late from an event we are far enough away from anywhere to not disturb anyone with noise — and yet the place is central for getting onto the main roads, too.”

The loss of the Kew contract was undoubtedly a disappointment, but Mr Ashton is nothing if not resilient.

He said “We have more weddings booked this summer than we have had for the last eight years.”

And turning to the effects of the recession, he added: “Catering has always been a seasonal trade, but somehow it is more so than ever now. The troughs are lower in winter, but the peaks higher in summer.

“It seems that whatever the economic climate, when spring comes people start spending — though they want value for money and are more willing to haggle than before.

“With weddings, as always, I sell the dream. But I am always acutely aware that this is the most important day of people’s lives, and that I am priviledged to be involved.

“It’s hard work but I love it. And, of course, I have a great team who I know well and who know me.”

Certainly Elegant Cuisine has an impressive list of Oxfordshire establishments at which it has been appointed preferred caterer: Rhodes House, the Bodleian Library, and the Museum of Natural History in Oxford, for instance, and Temple Island (where the races at the Regatta start) in Henley-on-Thames.

The island contains the lovely folly by architect James Wyatt, built in 1771, and is for many reasons a wonderful place for a party — even though, as Mr Ashton, remarks the logistics of staging a celebration there are tricky, since all food and drink has to be transported by boat.

But catering in historic buildings is no problem for the firm. It has been approved by the National Trust, and a sample menu for 150 at a National Trust house is featured in the brochure.

As George Bernard Shaw said — again quoted in the brochure — “There is no sincerer love than the love of food.”

British food has come a long way since his day. Then Britain was famous throughout Europe — rightly or wrongly — for its bad food; and for the way people did not speak about it much.

And as far as Mt Ashton is concerned, fine food is definitely worth talking about, as it forms the heart of his business.