What was your first industry job?
Whilst studying at university, during the holidays, I worked at a local restaurant called The Birch at Woburn, close to my family home in Bedfordshire. It was a good restaurant serving fresh food throughout the menu.
If you weren’t in kitchens, what would you do?
I honestly couldn’t say, but I would have to be involved with food or cookery in some way.
What industry figure do you most admire?
There are two people I most admire: Henry Harris and Ed Wilson. Having worked with both for long periods of time, I was able to see their dedication, integrity, conviction and natural flair.
What’s your pet hate in the kitchen?
A lack of initiative.
Sum up your cooking style in a single sentence
European, seasonal, ingredient-led cuisine, using classic techniques and flavour combinations.
What’s the worst review you’ve ever had?
Critics-wise, I’ve been pretty lucky and all reviews have been positive. Customer-wise, you can never please everyone, and the most hilarious bad comment was that the fish soup was too fishy.
What advice would you give someone starting out in the industry?
Take time choosing your first kitchen. Find one with a positive working environment where you’ll be supported and encouraged. Then work hard and get to grips with the basics first.
Which single item of kitchen equipment could you not live without?
A good-quality pepper mill.
À la carte or tasting menu?
À la carte all day long.
What’s the best meal you’ve ever had in a restaurant?
A very hard question to answer. I don’t feel you can lump all meals together. The first meal that completely blew me away was when my parents took me to Restaurant Gordon Ramsay at Royal Hospital Road as a graduation gift in 2002. It was just a year after he’d won his third star and it was his only restaurant at that point — plate after plate of pure perfection.If I think about the meal that made me feel the best and happiest, it would be when my wife and I visited The Seahorse in Dartmouth two years ago. We loved its sense of place, its effortless respect for ingredients and its true hospitality — a masterclass in dining.
What’s the dish you wish you’d thought of?
Gratin dauphinoise. Just imagine cooking it for the first time and having people try it. Truly greater than the sum of its parts.
MasterChef or Great British Menu?
Old-school Great British Menu, before all the gimmicks.
What’s the most overrated food?
Strawberries and chocolate. A hideous combination.
You’re restaurant dictator for a day — what would you ban?
Square glass plates. Mini frying baskets as service vessels. Lemon slices served in my water without asking. I could go on…
Who would your dream dinner party guests be?
A completely random but fun and interesting line-up: Simon Hopkinson, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Mortimer, Ainsley Harriott, Steve Coogan, Andrew Flintoff — and of course my wife.
What’s your earliest food memory?
Cooking scrambled eggs at my gran’s house when I was around five years old.
Twitter or Instagram?Instagram.
What’s the closest you’ve ever come to death?
Fortunately, I’ve never come that close, although I did once break my ankle attempting a flying kick in the school playground when I was around 11 years old.
Where do you go when you want to let your hair down?
The local pub.
What’s your tipple of choice?A hazy, hoppy tropical IPA.
What’s your favourite food and drink pairing (the more obscure, the better)?
Comté and vin jaune.
What do you consider to be your signature dish?
My terrines or pâté en croûte.
What would you choose to eat for your last meal?
I’d start with fritto misto di mare or a round of native oysters, followed by côte de boeuf with béarnaise. To finish, a rhum baba with lashings of crème Chantilly, plus a coffee and a large cognac.