Tony Rodd – Restaurant Closures at a Ten-year High
Chef Tony Rodd has taken the agonising decision to close his Copper & Ink restaurant in London’s Blackheath. A master chef finalist in 2015 Rodd opened the restaurant in 2019 with his partner Becky. Together they survived the Covid pandemic and lockdown but recent rising costs crippled cashflow and finally the pair had to accept defeat.
“It’s been a tough decision,” Rodd told The Chefs’ Forum. “It’s not what we want but the business is not in the shape it was. Customers are coming in to eat less and costs across the board are rising.
“I know I can hold up my head and know that I did what I could and always behaved in the right way. We paid good salaries and always looked after our suppliers. We’re not alone. In the last month I have counted over 100 restaurants that have now closed since Christmas. And they are not just at the higher end like us – they’re across the spectrum of hospitality. Even in Blackheath 12 restaurants have closed in the last 18 months. That includes a burger bar that was selling burgers for under £10. The heart is being ripped out of our local communities and once we are gone we won’t be coming back in a hurry.”
If any chefs are finding the current soaring costs stressful and are worried about the future, we are always here for a chat.
We would like to wish Tony all the very best for the future and thank him for shining the spotlight on the current scenario regarding restaurant closures in the UK.
Much more needs to be done to support the hospitality industry, as restaurant closures are at an all-time high for the last decade.
According to figures from accountancy firm Price Bailey, as of July 2023, 569 restaurant businesses filed for insolvency, bringing the total to 2028 closures in the 12 months previous.
This was a 55% increase on 2021, when 1,303 restaurants, an average of 3.1 per day were forced to close.
This month’s closures identified by Chef Tony, further attest to the severity of challenges faced by hospitality businesses.
Half of all restaurants are still trapped in high energy contracts taken out the previous year and energy costs for small restaurants have gone from being 4% of turnover to 14% of turnover. This has happened very quickly, making it impossible for restaurants to make a profit, let alone break even.
The government needs to be working with Ofgem on a recue remedy for hospitality and flatten the curve of closures and livelihoods being lost.
Chef of the Week: Antonio Cersosimo, Chef Patron at Casanova in Cardiff
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
I opened Casanova restaurant in January 2005, with the idea of blending traditional and modern Italian cuisine.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
The love of food and cooking comes from my family, I learnt traditional Italian cooking from my mother and grandmother. I started cooking when I was 6 years old and I’ve never stopped!
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
I love my job, being a chef is about making people smile and creating good memories through food, I guess I love making people happy.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
The main reason I became a chef is the possibility to work with some of the best ingredients, if I had to pick three ingredients only, it would be a top quality extra virgin olive oil, a well hung piece of beef and sourdough bread.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
A blowtorch.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
The most important as it touches all of us would be sustainability, we also have more and more places trying to grow their own produce these days which is a part of it.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
In my opinion too many chefs focus too much on aesthetics and technique rather than spending time and effort into finding produce of the utmost quality.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
At the restaurant we have a seasonal approach in our cooking, therefore I love the beginning of a new season as it brings excitement. I would say my favourite time of the year would be spring with the arrival of new season lamb, asparagus, peas, broad beans and artichokes.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
There are many traditional regional dishes and ingredients that are not widely known to a British audience (sarde al saor, N’duja, Calabria goat ragu’, pizzoccheri etc), these are the ones we are most excited about, especially if they receive glowing reviews.
How do you come up with new dishes?
Most of our menu is made of really traditional recipes that are mostly unknown outside of Italy but we also have signature dishes that are inspired by our travels, heritage and reading.
Who was your greatest influence?
The majority of my cooking is inspired by my mother and my family. My grandparents on my mother’s side were farmers and produced everything themselves, so I had the great fortune to learn how to make homemade cheese, hams, salami, sourdough bread, preserves and pickles.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Alain Passard, Giorgio Locatelli and Fergus Henderson.
What is your favourite cookbook?
Made in Italy by Giorgio Locatelli.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Nathan Davies, Stephen Terry and Daniel Rogan.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
Restaurant AO.
Food, Drink & Hospitality Week Launches to Celebrate Industry Innovation
IFE Manufacturing, IFE, The Pub Show, HRC and International Salon Culinaire have joined forces under a new over-arching brand – Food, Drink & Hospitality Week – marking a significant evolution in the collaboration and crossover between the popular event brands.
Food, Drink & Hospitality Week will be a celebration of industry innovation, quality suppliers and valuable business conversations, with countless opportunities to network, explore and discover thousands of products and services.
In addition to the core shows taking place on 25-27 March at ExCeL London, the Food, Drink & Hospitality Week brand will feature additional networking events, partnerships and conferences including the Campden BRI conference, the IFST (Institute of Food Science & Technology) conference and the Love Hospitality gala dinner organised by The Burnt Chef Project.
Over 30,000 industry leaders will have the opportunity to network with peers in food, drink & hospitality, learn from inspiring innovators and source quality products from more than 1,500 UK and international suppliers.
Visitors to Food, Drink & Hospitality Week in March can expect insightful debates, chef demos, panel discussions and new product pitches across ten dynamic stages, plus over 100 live competitions taking place as part of International Salon Culinaire.
This year will see the launch of the World Catering Technology Awards, in partnership with FoodBev Media, the launch of the IFE Manufacturing Ingredients Awards, in partnership with the IFST, networking events hosted by HSPA, Arena and the FEA, the return of Chef HQ, in partnership with Chef Publishing, and much more.
Portfolio Director Philippa Christer comments: “The launch of the Food, Drink & Hospitality Week brand is an important step in an exhilarating period of growth for our March portfolio of events, expanding our partnerships with key industry organisations and diversifying our offering to the industry.
“Our vision for Food, Drink & Hospitality Week is a citywide celebration of everything that makes this sector unique: showcasing product innovation, connecting visitors with the trailblazers that can transform their business and providing a platform for discussions vital to the industry’s future.”
Food, Drink & Hospitality Week 2024 will include:
IFE Manufacturing
A bustling hub of NPD innovation, IFE Manufacturing is the ultimate product-sourcing platform for food & drink manufacturers and brand owners to do business. Visit the show to discover sustainable packaging providers, ethical ingredients brands, accreditation and product testing experts, food science and technology innovators, and quality processing equipment suppliers.
On the Trends & Innovation Platform, visitors will hear from leading industry experts on topics at the forefront of food science and food development, uncovering the most exciting trends and new advances in this fast-paced sector.
IFE
For over 40 years, IFE has been a trusted resource for buyers in retail, wholesale and hospitality to discover the latest new products, learn more about trends in food & drink and stay ahead of the competition in a market always seeking out the next big thing.
Visitors can explore the very latest new products in the Startup Market, hear directly from brand owners in the New Products Tasting Theatre, meet with suppliers from all over the world and gain key insights into the trends of tomorrow at the Future Food Stage.
New for 2024 is a dedicated Cheese Pavilion, a Fresh Produce Section in partnership with the Fresh Produce Consortium and a Producer & New Supplier Showcase by Aramark.
In addition, the Federation of Wholesale Distributors (FWD) will be hosting an exclusive Meet the Buyer event, the Exporters Hub will be providing invaluable insights into international trade, and the Distributor Discovery Hours will see presentations from major wholesale brands including Bidfood and Sysco.
The Pub Show
The only UK event dedicated entirely to the pub & bar sector, The Pub Show is a must-attend for owners and operators looking to network with industry peers, sample quality beers, wines and spirits and meet with a wide range of service suppliers to the sector.
In addition to popular returning feature The Taproom, The Pub Show will also be launching The Pub Stage in partnership with the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) and introducing new opportunities to network in a fun and informal setting in The Beer Garden, designed by Black & Stainless Creative Metalwork.
A bustling networking hub and meeting area at the heart of the show, the Beer Garden will play host to the finals of the Mr Gin Mixologist of the Year competition and will feature a unique pub quiz and bingo event from Hashtag Host.
HRC
The UK’s leading trade event for hospitality and foodservice, HRC is back and better than ever next year with countless new features, partnerships and networking opportunities. Visitors will have the chance to source suppliers across Hospitality Tech, Professional Kitchen, Foodservice, and Design, Décor & Tableware, and to explore the brand-new Light Equipment Pavilion packed with quality brands including Contacto, Signature and Denby Pottery.
Industry professionals can expect inspiring leaders in the UK hospitality sector to dive deep into the latest trends and best practice on the Vision Stage, designed by Harp Design, and on the TechX stage visitors can learn about the latest developments in hospitality tech and gain advice on how to elevate their tech stack and optimise customer experience.
The Networking Hub, designed by Design Command, will be partnering with leading associations including Arena, the Foodservice Equipment Association (FEA) and HOSPA to host networking events and opportunities to connect with industry peers.
Plus, 2024 will see the return of Chef HQ, curated by Chef Publishing, a demo kitchen, stage and networking area packed with leading chefs from the UK taking deep dives into a range of cuisines, trends and ingredients.
International Salon Culinaire 
Historic chef competition International Salon Culinaire returns to challenge and inspire chefs of all levels to demonstrate their skills and creativity. With over 100 live and static competitions taking place across three days including Sugarcraft, Salon Display, Static Display and the Live Theatre, the event is set to welcome up to 1,000 competing chefs for 2024 alongside new competition judges including Cherish Finden, Jason Howard and Afzal Khan.
New for 2024 is the Australian Wagyu Beef competition in partnership with Meat & Livestock Australia, Junior and Senior pasta competitions in partnership with Dell’Ugo and an evolution of Tilda Chef Team of the Year which will challenge competing chefs to focus on using ‘waste’ or by-products to create delicious dishes. The competition has also welcomed Oatly as a partner for an all-new plant-based challenge.
Don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of the UK’s biggest celebration of innovation in food, drink and hospitality on 25-27 March 2024 at ExCeL London. To find out more about everything happening as part of Food, Drink & Hospitality Week, and to register for your complimentary trade ticket, visit fooddrinkandhospitalityweek.co.uk
Michelin Star Chef Paul Ainsworth Announces his First Cookbook will Hit the Shelves in 2024
Top Cornwall chef Paul Ainsworth has revealed he will release his maiden cookbook this summer.
The Michelin star chef’s words, and work, has already appeared in the Padstow Festival Cookbook. But he’s finally decided to take the plunge and can’t wait for his own publication to hit the shelves in 2024.
“It’s taken a long time, on purpose,” the Southampton-born culinary expert told the Fuelling Around podcast.
“It’s one of those projects that, when you say yes, it’s huge. It’s over 100 recipes and is with an amazing publisher, Harper Collins. They’ve been amazing, they just want me to be able to pretty much do what I want to do.
“It’s not a No6 cookbook, so it’s recipes that you’ll find from Cafe Rojano’s, The Mariners and things I love to do at home. As we’ve been writing it and testing it I would say that 95% of this book is food in the middle of the table. The Oxtail ragu is in there. We’ve got about 10 recipes left to write and we’re shooting it right now.
“The team is fantastic. I suppose why I’ve waited so long to do it is that I wanted a really good reason, a real passion behind it – not just ‘oh yeah, chef does cookbook’ and join, as we all know, quite a saturated market.
“With all these recipes you’re doing them and and I know people are going to be like ‘I can do that, that’s accessible, I can get all of those ingredients.’ But at the end of I know, especially with all the tips, tricks, hacks they’re going to be: ‘I just made that!’”
The television personality was on the show to discuss his love of cars but also spoke at length about becoming one of the UK’s top chefs. Tasty tales about working under Gary Rhodes and Gordon Ramsay provide great entertainment while he also discusses what it’s been like to compete with Rick Stein in Padstow.
“I actually know Rick’s ex-wife Jill more, and I can honestly say it’s always been amicable and nice and I know his son Jack really well,” the Great British Menu judge added during his appearance on the award-winning automotive podcast.
“There’s always been a bit of a feeling that there’s enough room for everybody, but also now I think there is definitely a common ground that we compliment each other.”
Chef of the Week: Bobby Singer, Executive Pastry Chef at Duck & Waffle and SushiSamba in London
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
Two and a half years.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
I have always been interested in cooking. I left school at 17 and applied to Westminster Kingsway College, where I studied for 3 years to gain my NVQ Level 3 in Patisserie and Confectionary.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
Training and mentoring junior level chefs in the craft of pastry and being able to be creative on a daily basis.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Vanilla, milk and eggs.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
KitchenAid.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
Not learning the basic techniques early on in their career.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
Summer, so many amazing fruits available to use.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
Our festive trifle, consisting of a lemon polenta cake, brûlée custard, berry compote, Chantilly cream and crystallised almonds. Something light to have at the end of your meal.
How do you come up with new dishes?
Sometimes I get a flavour combination in my mind and I run with it and see what come out and also inspiration from social media.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Amaury Guichon, Damien Wager and Karim Bourgi.
What is your favourite cookbook?
Anything by Ottolenghi.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Damien Wager and Spencer Metzger.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
Nessa, Soho under Tom Cenci.
Chef of the Week: Jorge Echeverry, Head Chef at Chotto Matte Miami
In a recent podcast for The Miami Guide, Kurt Zdesar, Founder of Chotto Matte said that Miami was the obvious choice for his first international venue. Originally launched in 2018, the restaurant was hampered by the pandemic, as was the case with the entire industry on a global level, however, Chotto Matte Miami has recently been relaunched and held a grand reopening last October.
Head Chef Jorge Echeverry said
“We pride ourselves on using locally-sourced seasonal, organic ingredients and produce wherever possible” said Echeverry – “It is really important that our menu is clean, healthy and fresh – We have a strict ban on any MSG, or GMO being used in our kitchens across all six Chotto Matte sites in Canada, America, Middle East and the UK.
“We have created a fantastic menu of innovative Nikkei cuisine – A fusion of Japanese and Peruvian flavours and it has proven as popular here in Miami as in London with our two sister sites in Soho and Marylebone.
“We have a whole range of tempura, delicious meats cooked on the robata grill and mouth-watering , eye-catching sushi dishes, all designed by our brilliant Group Executive Chef, Jordan Sclare. Kurt and Jordan travelled from Japan to Peru, meeting local chefs and learning traditional techniques, which makes for a really authentic and vibrant menu.”
Jorge is delighted to be Chef of the Week, we asked him a few questions…
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
I started my journey with Chotto Matte Miami, 2 years ago and counting!
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
My father was a foodie, he loves to cook and eat. He used to take me everywhere he goes to try food, we used to watch food channels and talk about the recipes and little by little I start cooking at home, that’s how my passion was born. When I turned 18 years old, I left my country (Colombia) to start my formation as a chef in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I enrolled at the culinary school Mausi Sebess, where I got my degree as professional pâtisserie, boulangerie and cook.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
Being able to touch people souls through the food they eat and see how they react to every bite, the ecstasy and creating a memorable experience is what I enjoy the most.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
As a solid foundation for a wide range of cuisines and recipes I will say salt is a fundamental seasoning that brings out natural flavours of the ingredients enhancing and balancing almost any dish. Olive oil is a versatile and healthy cooking fat that adds richness and depth to dishes. Garlic is a flavour powerhouse that can transform a dish and adds a savoury and aromatic element to many cuisines.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
My Gyuto knife, it’s versatile and precise.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
The proliferation of omakases has hooked on in Miami in all forms, there’s no shortage of spots to try this experience.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
There is a few actually, but poor communication and failure to adapt to changes are some of the most relevant to me. Clear and concise communication is crucial, also adaptability is a valuable skill in the industry.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
The winter months, we see festive culinary events and holiday-themed dining experiences. It’s like a calling to everyone, a warmth feeling, to join and share memories around the table.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
Salmon tataki with a chilli mango leche de tigre and quinoa cracker, is a recipe that I been working on, and I will do a tasting with our group executive chef Jordan Sclare, if I have his approval, it might go live as a special for our Miami location.
How do you come up with new dishes?
By trying new dishes and food concepts, cooking with colleagues usually feeds the creativity and innovation. Next year I plan to do more traveling with this purpose.
Who was your greatest influence?
My teacher back at the cooking school, Omar, very wise, straightforward, and respectable. He was a great guide, allowing me to develop my skills and find the way to the path I wanted to build for my life as a chef.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
- Anthony Bourdain
- Ferran Adrià
- Gaston Acurio
What is your favourite cookbook?
The Flavour Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg is a great resource for chefs looking to understand flavour pairings and combinations. It provides insights into the relationships between different ingredients.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
I don’t have anyone in my sight right now, there’s is a lot of talented chefs out there.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
The re launch of Chotto Matte Miami, with a beautiful visual art on the walls, fresh and cool furniture, the amazing food, honestly is a hidden gem in Miami.
Christmas Bird
Bristol chef Freddy Bird has opened his third restaurant in Clifton in the run up to Christmas. Number 1 York Place in Clifton has 46 covers and is a new neighbourhood restaurant in the former Rosemarino site. The interior decoration was conceived by Freddy’s wife Nessa who also works Front of House across all three restaurants.
Talking about the opening Freddy Bird said: “Completing on the lease took forever. We started in April and had hoped to open in July. Nessa had planned everything and we hoped to get a few weeks of business in before Christmas. In the end we got a week! It’s brilliant, though. We’re delighted to be open.”
Starters include surf clams, confit tomato and chilli, and potato soup, black truffle and chanterelles. Mains include whole squid stuffed with pork rib and trotter rice, and hake, caramelised fennel, saffron, anis and clams.
Sharing dishes include hot roast shellfish, tarragon garlic and parsley butter; whole wood grilled monkfish tail, rosemary manteca, and roast suckling pig shoulder and fabada.
Chef of the Week: Hugo Moran, Executive Chef at Sexy Fish in Miami
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
I’ve been at my current restaurant, Sexy Fish Miami for two and a half years.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
My passion for cooking comes from watching my family always coming together for dinner. It doesn’t matter how busy any of us were, food would always bring us together.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Onion, garlic and butter.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
I wouldn’t be able to live without my knife.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
I’m currently spotting a lot of pop-up restaurants.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
It’s really important to communicate with your team, I think this is often overlooked.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
I love the spring, there’s something magical and fresh about the beginning of seasons.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of our whole baby chicken with chickpeas and yuzu, it’s one of our signature dishes and a firm favourite with our guests.
How do you come up with new dishes?
We usually gather a meeting with our chefs and speak about the upcoming season and how best to celebrate seasonal ingredients.
Who was your greatest influence?
My father was certainly my greatest influence.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Bjoern Weissgerber, Raphael Duntoye and Pierre Koffmann.
What is your favourite cookbook?
The Silver Spoon.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Cristian Chirino and Robbie Felice.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
Hiyakawa in Wynwood Miami.
Why are Top UK Restaurant Concepts Launching & flourishing in Miami?
It’s not called ‘The Magic City’ for nothing; the infrastructure continues to augment, moreover, investors and businesspeople are flocking to Miami in their droves, which means the economy and local restaurant scene is absolutely booming. New accommodation being constructed on a massive scale, means more restaurants and the UK seemingly has it covered!
There are a whopping 32 new restaurant openings planned over the next 2.5 years – 14 are already open and there have been only three closures – A far cry from the scenario back in Blighty.
Recent additions have included the launch of Tom Keller’s Bouchon in Coral Gables and Gordon Ramsay’s seventh location of Hell’s Kitchen in downtown Miami.
Ramsay has also just launched Lucky Cat, located in South Beach’s quaint South of Fifth neighbourhood.
The original Lucky Cat by Gordon Ramsay opened in 2019, and is located in the heart of Mayfair London, but Ramsay said he thought it was the most fitting of his concepts for Miami’s South Beach, that was until he launched Hell’s Kitchen last September.
Are we noticing a trend here? I think we most certainly are!
In a recent podcast for The Miami Guide, Kurt Zdesar, Founder of Chotto Matte said that Miami was the obvious choice for his first international venue. Originally launched in 2018, the restaurant was hampered by the pandemic, as was the case with the entire industry on a global level, however, Chotto Matte Miami has recently been relaunched and held a grand reopening last October.
The Chefs’ Forum’s Founder, Catherine Farinha recently visited Miami and took the opportunity to visit both Chotto Matte and Sexy Fish and caught up with the chefs on the cultural nuances and comparison of diversification in launching an existing restaurant concept from the UK in Miami.
First up was a lovely meeting at Chotto Matte with Head Chef Jorge Echeverry
“We pride ourselves on using locally-sourced seasonal, organic ingredients and produce wherever possible” said Echeverry – “It is really important that our menu is clean, healthy and fresh – We have a strict ban on any MSG, or GMO being used in our kitchens across all six Chotto Matte sites in Canada, America, Middle East and the UK.
“We’ve had a great festive season so far and I’m delighted to say that we’ve been very busy indeed, which is fantastic to see – Last week was Art Basel (North America’s most comprehensive international contemporary art fair) and we were packed every night. As you can see from the Tokyo-Meets-Miami interior design and striking murals that adorn the walls, we have a genuine connection to art and this is communicated through every dish we plate. We celebrated the prestigious art fair with live art throughout the week, featuring artists we work with on-going, also introducing new artists.”
“We have created a fantastic menu of innovative Nikkei cuisine – A fusion of Japanese and Peruvian flavours and it has proven as popular here in Miami as in London with our two sister sites in Soho and Marylebone.
“ We have a whole range of tempura, delicious meats cooked on the robata grill and mouth-watering , eye-catching sushi dishes, all designed by our brilliant Group Executive Chef, Jordan Sclare. Kurt and Jordan travelled from Japan to Peru, meeting local chefs and learning traditional techniques, which makes for a really authentic and vibrant menu. It’s great to have The Chefs’ Forum here today to show them the venue and give them a taste of the Chotto Matte Miami menu.”
It would have been rude not to have stayed to try some of Jorge’s food, as it was now 6pm, so we plumped for the Nikkei Menu II, which had lots of our Chotto favourites in the line-up:
- Shishito Peppers
- Tuna Tataki
- Salmon Tostada
- Chotto Ceviche
- Sato Maki
- Salt & Pepper Crispy Squid
- Asado De Tira
- Pollo den Miso
- Chef’s Choice Dessert – In this case Mochi and lovely chocolate treats!
We had a wonderful dinner at Chotto Matte Miami and really enjoyed meeting the team and sampling the delicious tasting menu available at just $90.00 per person.
Sexy Fish another concept first launched in the UK opened in Miami in Feb 2022, two years after its scheduled 2020 opening due to the pandemic.
Just like its UK counterpart, it serves a Japanese-influenced menu created by Bjoern Weissgerber who also helped lead the kitchen at Zuma Miami, another British restaurant concept that has flourished in Miami.
Sexy Fish is the brainchild of Richard Caring, a British businessman and restauranteur, who owns many of London’s most celebrated restaurants, including 34 Mayfair, Scott’s and The Ivy. He’s also behind the globally renowned private members’ club Annabel’s and is a major shareholder in the Soho House Group.
A sit down and chat with Executive Chef Hugo Moran, revealed that he had in fact assisted with the launch of Zuma in Miami back in 2010 (under the same Group Exec, Bjoern Weissergerber), so this wasn’t the first time he had worked with a globalisation-specialist culinary team in taking a UK concept to Miami or vice versa in assisting with the opening of Oblix Restaurant in London.
With lived experience of doing the same job for the group in both cities, Hugo was very well-placed to help with this feature on launching UK restaurant concepts in Miami.
Hugo said
“I am really grateful to Zuma, Sexy Fish and also my constant Group Executive Chef throughout, Bjoern Weissergerber for giving me the opportunity to work around the world. I think it’s incredibly important for any young chef to experience working in different countries. We have been working with the Miami Dade Culinary College to recruit for our kitchens and are all about supporting the next generation of chefs and hospitality professionals – We have a young, energetic and passionate team here and I’m delighted that everyone works extremely well together.”
Originally hailing from Miami, Hugo has a great knowledge of local suppliers and chef talent, but that wasn’t the same when he travelled across the pond to open Oblix with Bjoern. He said that he found it quite a challenge when the situation was reversed, but found the experience extremely valuable indeed.
“In America, everything has to be bigger, we have our global brand standards, but our steaks have to be bigger here in Miami! There are distinct differences in the Miami customer, versus the London customer which are vast, but both share a clear appreciation for the Sexy Fish brand and the immersive experience offered in dining with us – In Miami, size matters… so big steaks it is! We use a lot of Australian beef and lamb – We just love the quality. I’m really lucky in that I have a full brigade here in Miami and our retention rate is great. There is a lot of competition locally, but when your team stays, you know you’re doing something right.”
We were treated to a fabulous selection of signature dishes from the seasonal ‘Sexy Fishmas’ menu.
What we sampled:
- Salmon Tartare
- Burrata Kimchi and prawn crackers
- Rispy pink shrimp and yuzu mayo
- Tuna Belly Kombu Grilled & Smoked
- Wagyu Foie Gras & Truffle
- Whole baby chicken & Yuzu
- Prime spicy beef tenderloin
- Green Asparagus
- Grilled Brocolini Spicy Miso Quinoa
Our dessert was a beautiful platter of ‘Fishmas’ delights, available now across all four sites of Sexy Fish (showcasing the very best in chocolate and sugar art, featuring a Christmas Tree made from white chocolate and wasabi cream, with a raspberry compote centre, sprayed and decorated with stars and pears to resemble a Christmas tree, along with a reindeer made of gluten free chocolate sponge with coffee and milk chocolate whipped ganache with roasted macadamias and a salted caramel centre.
Another delicious element is the Christmas Bauble, made from a white chocolate shell, filled with strawberry and lime gel, macerated strawberries, topped with vanilla cheesecake and finished with milk crumbs, strawberry crisps, snowman pavlova, sugar snowflakes and crystallised ginger.
The bauble is covered with a semi-transparent sugar glass and finished with a golden chocolate sea creature on top – This is the ultimate in Christmas indulgence and lovely to share as a family or group as we did.
All dishes sampled, including the show-stopping Fishmas Dessert Platter are available across the four Sexy Fish sites, come January The Chefs’ Forum Team will have visited three so far – Miami, Manchester and London!
Our time in Miami was wonderful and it was lovely to see UK concepts thriving in this wonderful, magical city, where style and cool come as standard and nothing is ever too chic or flamboyant. To celebrate our trip, we will be featuring both Jorge and Hugo as Chef of the Week, so keep your eyes peeled and enjoy learning more about them both!
Any chefs interested in learning more about global career opportunities with either Chotto Matte or Sexy Fish should contact catherine@redcherry.uk.com
Photography by Carlos Farinha
Chef of the Week: Dan Andree, Head Chef at Beach House in Oxwich, Wales
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
4 years.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
I’m not sure I’ve just always enjoyed food, but I studied at Bournemouth and Poole college.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
Being able to turn your imagination into a creation.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Butter, rosemary and garlic.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
The dishwasher.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
Patience.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
Spring, because everywhere starts to wake up from the cold of winter.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
My answer to this one changes every time!
How do you come up with new dishes?
It can be as simple as reading something or driving past a woodland! Just one little idea can lead to amazing dishes.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Curtis Duffy, Grant Achatz and Dominique Crenn.
What is your favourite cookbook?
Cooking – Alinea.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Tom Hilton.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
Penmaenuchaf Dolgellau.
