Aiden Byrne is chef director of D&D London's new Manchester restaurant 20 Stories, which opens on 1 March. The chef, who owns The Church Green in Lymm, Cheshire, was the youngest chef to gain a Michelin star aged 22 at Adlards in Norwich. He went on to work at The Commons Restaurant, Tom Aikens Restaurant and Danesfield House before joining The Dorchester in 2006 to head up … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Arnaud Stevens
Arnaud Stevens is director and owner of Plate Catering, which supplies all food and beverage services at M by Montcalm hotel in Shoreditch, runs Plate Restaurant and Bar, Plate Bake and supplies catering services at West Wycombe shooting ground EJ Churchill. Following a three-year chef apprenticeship with Rocco Forte Hotels Arnaud joined Gordon Ramsay Restaurants' Maze Grill, … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Shane Hughes
Chef Shane Hughes took up the role of head chef at The Salutation hotel in Sandwich, Kent, last year after new proprietors John and Dorothy took the helm on behalf of its owners, former Gogglebox stars Steph and Dom Parker. The 41-year-old chef's career spans 25 years and he worked at a number of restaurants, including The Connaught, John Burton Race at The Landmark, Juniper … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Chantelle Nicholson
Chantelle Nicholson is chef-patron of Tredwells in London. While studying for a law degree in her native New Zealand, Chantelle took part-time jobs in commercial kitchens where she developed a love of cooking. After working in law for a year, she competed in the Gordon Ramsay-backed 2004 contest Chef Search and after making the finals, was offered a job at The Savoy in London. … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Silvano Giraldin
Front-of-house hero Silvano Giraldin is best known as the former maitre-d' at London restaurant Le Gavroche where he worked for 37 years. The Italian father-of-two started his career in France before moving to the UK in 1971 and although he retired from Le Gavroche in 2008 he remains working with the Roux family as an executive director for Le Gavroche and at their restaurant … [Read more...]
Industry predictions: What will happen in hospitality in 2018
As a new year starts, Hospitality & Catering News asks those in the know to give their predictions of what we might see in the industry over the next 12 months. Business Consumer confidence to remain fragile, but growth of delivery and rise of inbound tourism Despite stagnant wage growth and high inflation, global information company The NPD Group does predict … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Fabian Clark
British seafood aficionado Fabian Clark will officially open his first restaurant CLAW Carnaby on Kingly Street in London in January. After graduating with an economics degree from Manchester University in 2012 Fabian landed a job at a branding agency, but his passion for food overtook and after following cooking courses at Leith's and L'Atelier de Chef, he quit his job in … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Gary Usher
Chef and restaurateur Gary Usher worked in a number of restaurants around the UK, including Chez Bruce and Angela Hartnett's York & Albany before opening his first restaurant, Sticky Walnut in Chester, in 2011 on a tiny budget. Following three successful crowdfunding campaigns, Gary now owns and operates four restaurants in the North West – adding Burnt Truffle in Heswall, … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Adam Smith
Adam Smith joined The Dorchester Collection's Coworth Park hotel and restaurant as executive chef last year from the Devonshire Arms in North Yorkshire where he was executive chef for three years. Before joining the Devonshire Arms, the 30-year-old father-of-two spent 10 years working with John Williams at The Ritz and during that time was named a Roux Scholar (in 2012) and … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Andrew Wilson
Andrew Wilson started Leicestershire-based contract catering company Wilson Vale with his wife Carolyne Vale in 2002 when Nelson Hind, the company they'd worked at for more than nine years, was sold to Avenance (later to Elior). Wilson Vale now holds 95 catering contracts at businesses and schools across the UK, employs 750 people and is expecting to turnover £29m this year. … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Peter Gray
Peter Gray is the new head chef at Heston Blumenthal's Bray pub The Hind's Head, where he worked under previous head chef Janos Veres for three and a half years. The Yorkshire-born chef's career in hospitality started at Middlethorpe Hall, where he joined as a kitchen porter at 16. He took on a role as a commis chef there, working his way up to chef de partie before leaving to … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Mark Reynolds
Mark Reynolds founded pub company Three Cheers with friends Tom Peake and Nick Fox in 2003 where they continue to run the business's eight sites together. The 44-year-old father-of-three's passion for hospitality started at an early age when his parents set up one of their first bistros in Kensington Church Street in the 1970s. He joined their second restaurant The City Circle … [Read more...]
Five minutes with… Wendy Bartlett
Wendy Bartlett is executive chairman of catering company Bartlett Mitchell, which she founded with her business partner Ian Mitchell in 2000. The business currently employs more than 800 people across 90 sites in London and the South East and continues to grow while firmly retaining its independence. Wendy, who has worked in contract catering for 37 years, also sits on the … [Read more...]
Five minutes with…Simon Addison
Simon Addison joined Chewton Glen as head chef in January 2016 to lead The Dining Room and allow the hotel's executive chef Luke Matthews to step back from day-to-day responsibilities and focus on new projects. Originally from Somerset, Simon learnt his craft in a number of restaurant kitchens, working with chefs such as Paul Kitchin and Aaron Patterson before taking on the … [Read more...]
Five minutes with…. Steve Groves
Steve Groves is head chef at Roux at Parliament Square, the London restaurant operated by Restaurant Associates in consultation with Michel Roux Jr. He was sous chef at Launceston Place before taking part in and winning MasterChef: The Professionals in 2009 and after impressing Michel Roux Jr took up a sous chef role at Roux at Parliament Square a year later. The restaurant, … [Read more...]