Congratulations on 20 years of The Hand and Flowers. You have been at the pub for 18 years and a lot of the senior team have also been there for a long time. What do you put that down to?
It’s a very good place to work, it really is as simple as that. We are not perfect by any means but Tom and Beth (Kerridge, the Marlow pub’s owners) are very people orientated and always try and put the team first. They are there for anyone that needs them. If you ask either of them for help they will give it to you. That goes for anyone within the business. They are very kind.
Front of house at The Hand and Flowers has been largely led by women...
That’s right. We have had a few men in senior roles over the years but in general the dining room has been run by women. The dining room was originally overseen by Beth, of course. Katie Gavin started here as a waitress 16 years ago and is now restaurant manager. It’s been a bit odd for me to read all this stuff about sexism in the industry recently. It’s not something I have ever encountered in my career. Beth and Tom would not stand for any of that sort of thing.
How do you build a positive working culture in a restaurant and pub business?
It’s important to listen to everyone’s needs and try to accommodate people. Things are so much easier when people arrive at work happy so I try and check in on the team to see if things are going okay both at work and outside of work. To provide great service staff actually need to be happy, not just pretending. Putting the right systems in place is also important. Everybody knows what they are doing here, nobody is stressed or nervous. We get a lot of nice feedback from guests about how confident and happy the team is at our places.
How have you balanced having a family with a career in hospitality?
It hasn’t been easy, but my husband and I have made it work. It helped that we had our daughter around the time Tom and Beth had their little boy. They understood exactly what I needed and let me organise myself and have a big say in how I came back to work. I took six months off because that’s all I wanted. I’m the sort of person that needs to work. I did fewer hours at first, but my job title didn’t change. I spend more time in the office now than I did before. It’s important to empower the team to make their own decisions, but if anybody needs support I am here for them.
Tell us about your route into the industry
I’m originally from Argentina. I arrived in the UK in 2005. My first job here was working for Daniel Clifford at Midsummer House in Cambridge (which holds two Michelin stars). I just wanted to improve my English. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I worked there for about a year. My partner - who also works in hospitality - then got a job in Marlow and we started going to The Hand and Flowers (which launched in 2005). One thing led to another and I ended up working there as a waitress. I started just after Tom and Beth won their first star.
What was the restaurant like in the early days?
Front of house was run by Beth. She is a very warm person and a big hugger, which I love. I learnt a lot from her and Tom and I’d like to think that warmth still comes across in the service (Beth, a successful artist, no longer works in the restaurant). Tom and I used to shout at each other a lot, but in a healthy way. We were both trying to make things better for the business, the staff and our customers. Things changed a lot when The Hand and Flowers won its second star (in 2011) and Tom started appearing on TV a lot. Everything went absolutely crazy. To be honest I don’t remember much about that period. We were fully booked lunch and dinner for about five years.
How has The Hand and Flowers evolved over the years?
When I started it was more of a pub. People would come in for a pint and a plate of fish and chips. I still see it as a pub, but over the years it has become more of a restaurant. In the early days the kitchen was tiny. There were just three people cooking in it and we only had two out front. After a few years of that we expanded into the garden, which allowed us to create a much bigger kitchen and also put in a proper bar. This was a game changer because it allowed us to have the right number of staff for the covers we were doing and the level of service we wanted to offer. The group has also expanded significantly over the years, first with the launch of The Coach (also in Marlow) and later with our London places including Kerridge’s Bar & Grill and The Butcher’s Tap and Grill. I work across the group, but you’re most likely to find me at The Hand and Flowers and The Coach. That’s probably what has kept me working for them for so long, there is always something coming down the track. It has never been boring, let’s put it that way.
How is The Hand and Flowers marking 20 years?
We had a special lunches and dinners for industry people and suppliers last week serving a special menu that featured some of The Hand and Flowers best dishes. We have also launched a £95 Classics menu which is available for lunch and dinner Monday to Friday.
