Chef of the Week: Rupert Taylor, Executive Chef at Bowood Hotel, Golf & Spa in Wiltshire
What is the name of the restaurant you currently work at?
I am the Executive Chef at Bowood Hotel, Golf and Spa.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
I did a work-based apprenticeship under Chef Gary Jones who trained under Raymond Blanc at Homewood Park. This is where I started to work with high end ingredients and learning the classical way to cook. From there I work at The Fat Duck with Heston Blumenthal where I learnt the more modern molecular gastronomy.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
Learning new techniques and trying new ingredients.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Salt, butter and sugar.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
A good non-stick pan.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
Fermenting is everywhere at the moment.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
Not learning the fundamental basics. I also find that a lot of chefs can’t do pastry, this is a skill set that I think all chefs should have.
What is your favourite time of year for food?
Summer to autumn it is one of the best times for products.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
I have a dish that is called ‘Taste of the Garden’, this dish is a dessert that changes with the season. The twist is I use vegetables. Example lemon verbena, carrot toffee and butternut ice cream.
How do you come up with new dishes?
I read a lot of cookbooks, food magazine and watch a lot of tv cooking programmes. I then take a recipe and make it my own and let the creativity flow, I also share this with my team and get their input.
Who was your greatest influence?
Heston he really opened my eyes to what can be done, and that nothing is ever prefect, it can always be done better.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
I have four: Gary Jones, Heston Blumenthal, Pierre Koffmann and Peter Gilmore.
What is your favourite cookbook?
I have so many it is hard to pick a favourite, but the one that means most to me is ‘The Fat Duck Cookbook’ only because I was there when it was created. I know and have made everything in that book in the four and a half years I was there.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Merlin Laborn-Johnson at Osip, Carl Cleghorn at Thornbury Castle and Chris Cleghorn at The Olive Tree.
How I’m Coping with Inflation & Cost of Living
Tony Rodd, former Masterchef finalist and co-owner of Blackheath’s Copper and Ink restaurant spoke to our editor Chandos Elletson about dealing with inflationary pressures and the demands of customers who are fighting the cost-of-living battle on a daily basis.
“Here’s a recent example of the sort of thing I’m dealing every day,” Tony Rodd told me recently. “I buy gluten free breadcrumbs from a supplier and I pay COD, cash on delivery. 12 months ago my order cost £37. Today, I’ve just paid £51. That’s a nearly 40% increase in the cost of a non-essential ingredient. An ingredient that makes up part of a dish.
“Over the last 9 months every one of our suppliers has told us that they are having to put up their prices. Over the same period, we haven’t changed our prices at all. We can’t. Out customers won’t accept increases. They can’t afford them. So, where does that leave us? Something had to change.”
Tony Rodd’s challenge is the same one being faced by multiple small businesses up and down the country. Horrendous price increases across the board from energy to ingredients and staff costs. It’s a wonder that any restaurant can survive these inflationary increases.
“We’re still open, we’re still busy,” Rodd said. “It’s all down to a shift in the way we do business. We couldn’t carry on in the same way. We have to change, to adapt. In the end it was quite a simple choice.
“One thing we noticed was that our regulars were eating out less and drinking less so we changed with it. We went to a nine-item menu; 3 starters, 3 main courses and 3 desserts. We have a seven-course tasting menu. We are now running, cut leaner. We’re down £10-15k a year and our mortgage is going up later in the year. We’re not making money, but we are staying afloat and that’s all I can ask at the moment.
“We found that business remained popular on Friday and Saturday, but we were dead on Wednesdays and Thursdays. So, we shifted the weekend to tasting menu only because our regulars were ordering two a la carte courses and we were losing money.
“At first there was some resistance until I explained that they could come in on a Wednesday and Thursday and eat cheaper if they wanted. And that’s what happened. Now we are busy on the weekends with tasting menus, which are popular and busier during the week with a la carte which brings in much needed revenue. It’s working.
“None of this would have come about if I didn’t talk to my customers on a regular basis and found out how they were doing and how we could fit into their dining out plans. This conversation has helped them understand how we work and we have learned more about what they want and are prepared to pay for. This is crucial in today’s market.
“In lockdown I talked to our landlord every week on Zoom and over a period of months we found a way of working. I never missed a payment and in return we negotiated our lease down to something that we could afford. It has become a key relationship.
“I would urge every restaurant and chef to talk to suppliers and landlords as often as possible if you are struggling and also to you customers. Get to know them. Get to know what they want and what their limits are. Nothing can be taken for granted at this time. You have to fight for every customer but they will remain loyal to you, if you are loyal to them and they understand you are trying your best.”
Bonzer Announces a Lifetime of Hassle Free Can Opening with Its New Lifetime Warranty!
When you see a red knob in the kitchen, you know it’s an iconic Bonzer can opener, the market leader in professional tin openers, and has been for nearly a century!
From the 1st July 2023 every Bonzer can opener will come with a Lifetime Warranty. This will make UK chefs very happy indeed.
Brave you may think? Mitchell & Cooper are that confident in the top-quality design and manufacturing expertise they pour into Bonzer, that they are willing to guarantee it for life!
Bonzer’s green credentials are seemingly endless, but we must let you know that they really are easy to repair, with a full list of spares available. All parts are sourced in the UK and built in Mitchell & Cooper’s family-owned UK factory, which enables Bonzer to continually strive towards net zero.
Speaking of the warranty, Kat Cooper, Project Director at Mitchell &Cooper, whose family business has manufactured the famous Bonzer range since 1927, said:
“Mitchell & Cooper is 144 years old and our iconic, Bonzer can opener is 96. To reflect the upcoming milestone of the iconic Bonzer can opener being 100 in 4 years’ time, we thought it was time to offer a lifetime warranty. We know how much the Bonzer is loved. It’s the ultimate chefs’ best friend and Bonzer is the green warrior in our portfolio. We couldn’t be prouder of it.
“However, there’s another reason and it’s something that sums up who we are. The Bonzer typifies the way we do business and the way we manufacture. Every Bonzer can opener is:
- Built to last
- Made from top-quality die-cast stainless steel.
- Built using outstanding British craftsmanship.
- Comes with exceptional aftercare – No quibbles!
- Designed to be timeless with a proven track record.
- Responsibly made – Sustainable and trusted by chefs as a kitchen workhorse
- Bonzer is not a throw-away product – It really is built to last a lifetime
“In a world that’s always trying to sell you more stuff we want to be different,” Kat went on. “We’re committed to changing the way we work with and supply the food service industry, from buying for the short term to buying once.
“When we buy once we build deeper connections with the things we own. When it gets ‘old’ we don’t throw it away – we restore it or fix it. Just like we restored a 70-year-old Bonzer can opener that had been found in the Antarctic having gone out with a British expedition in 1944. We replaced a few parts and it’s now as good as new and on display in a museum about the base where it was found. Incredible, but true and sustainability at its very best!”
Photo credit: John Blackwell
LACA’s School Chef of The Year Final is Taking Place in Birmingham this Week
The regional heats have been held across the country and this week, the best school chefs from across the UK will arrive in Birmingham to compete for the 2023 LACA School Chef of The Year title.
The regional finalists and two wild card competitors will take part in the national final at the LACA Main Event on Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th July 2023.
With the competition focus on producing nutritious and delicious meals for 11-year-old primary or secondary school pupils, the SCOTY competition is the perfect showcase for passionate school chefs to demonstrate what they do best every day.
Competitors had to use a minimum of one Premier Foods ingredient in both their main course and dessert during their regional heat. Judges were looking for innovative and creative ways that the competitors use the products in the finished dishes.
The regional final judges assessed the entries based on the following criteria: use of Premier Foods products, working practices in the kitchen, creativity and appearance as well as taste and flavour.
The school chefs had just 1h 30 minutes in which to create four portions of their two-course menu.
Dishes produced were inspired from across the globe – and the final is likely to see even more creativity.
Some finalists are back again, competing to see if they can take the crown this year, including Wales’ Joanne Cox who competed in 2017 and London’s Raheem Morgan who will compete in his fourth SCOTY final.
The prestigious school chef competition, School Chef of the Year (SCOTY), is run by LACA, the School Food People and sponsored by Bisto, from Premier Foods. The competition attracts some of the very best school chef talent from across the country.
LACA – the school food people, was established in 1990 and is the leading professional body representing over 1,000 members drawn from across the school food sector representing public sector and private contract caterers and suppliers to schools, academies, and MATs across the UK.
The LACA School Chef of the Year (SCOTY) is now in its 29th year and has drawn national attention with the annual winners often appearing on TV to showcase school cooking.
The SCOTY regional finalists are:
East Midlands Region:
Lorna Nolan, Derbyshire County Council – Breadsall Primary School
East of England Region:
Brenden Eades, Felsted School
London Region:
Raheem Morgan, Chartwells
North West Region:
Paul Hardy, Midshire Signature Services – Tarporley High School
South East Region:
Mark Kent, Norton Knatchbull
South West Region:
Jennifer Brown, Sarum Academy, part of Atalian Servest
Wales Region:
Joanne Cox, Chartwells – Ysgol Y Graig
West Midlands Region:
Andrew Polymniou, Chartwells – King Edwards VI Aston School
Yorkshire and Humberside Region:
Kirsty McAndrew, Midshire Signature Services – Oakworth Primary School
Wildcards:
Matthew Bennett, Aramark – Alsager School (North West Region)
James Noakes, Maidstone Grammar (South East Region)
A Corking Opportunity for Young Chefs and Sommeliers – Gosset Matchmaker 2023 – Deadline Extension
The days of divide between kitchen and dining room separated by the pass are coming to an end. There has never been a better time for young chefs to step out of the safety of the kitchen and join a growing breed of chefs who understand the art of wine pairing.
Champagne Gosset, one of the world’s best champagne houses, is providing an unrivalled opportunity to learn more about this fascinating field with their Matchmaker competition which is now in its eighth year.
The Gosset Matchmaker 2023 competition represents the pinnacle of champagne and gastronomy pairing and this year’s competition will attract the very best contestants in a continued partnership with Le Cordon Bleu London with new 2023 partners The Sommelier Edit and London Wine Fair.
The whole object of the competition is to pair up and coming chef/ sommelier partnerships who create perfect food and wine pairing in restaurants and other eateries. All you have to be is a chef with less than five years’ industry experience paired with a sommelier from your same place of work. So, join up with your sommelier and enter this fabulous competition. The winners receive an all-expenses-paid visit to Champagne Gosset’s headquarters in Epernay and the title of Gosset Matchmaker 2023.
The great news is that the competition deadline has now been extended for another week, so you have until Friday 7th July to enter this prestigious competition.
The form on the link below must be submitted by this Sunday at the latest, then you will be sent a personal acknowledgement of entry and your entry pack,
The full entry must be submitted by Friday 7th July, this isn’t much time, but its well worth it and will give you’re the opportunity to win a culinary trip of a lifetime.
CLICK HERE TO ENTER NOW
If you were unaware of just how influential a sommelier is in a top restaurant a few words from
Georgios Iordanidis, Head of Wine at Annabel’s club, will put you straight. He says:
“The modern sommelier is not just a wine expert, but a cultural ambassador and guide through the intricate world of gastronomy. With refined palates and a passion for creating unforgettable experiences, sommeliers curate extraordinary wine lists, build relationships with winemakers, and craft harmonious pairings.
Their expertise extends beyond wine, encompassing spirits, beers, and even sake, allowing them to cater to diverse preferences and palates. With a deep understanding of production methods, grape varieties, and regional nuances, sommeliers guide guests through a sensory exploration of flavors, aromas, and textures.”
Top Chef Brasil winner, Luciana Berry joins the panel of expert judges this year, she said
“I’m really looking forward to judging the competition, as a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu, it is great to be in a position to support the next generation of culinary talent coming up through the ranks, the bar has been set very high and I can’t wait to meet the entrants and judge the final on September the 18th.”
Chef of the Week: Canon Vas, Head Chef at The Berry Head Hotel in Brixham, Devon
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
I have been the Brasserie Head Chef of The Berry Head Hotel since August 2015.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
My passion for cooking came from my grandparents back in Goa. I started off peeling onions in a 5-star hotel in Goa after leaving catering college and worked my way up. In 1999 I joined P&O Cruises and sailed the seven seas until 2007 when I moved to the UK.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
I enjoy being creative with the food and mixing Indian and British flavours.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Sugar, onions and garlic are my three must haves.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
My Robot Coupe – it speeds up my work!
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
Street food seems to be up and coming at the moment – People want to sit and share food whilst enjoying conversations without the formality.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
Attitude – Sometimes we don’t know it all even when we think we do.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why? –
Summer time – Food always feels more colourful and fresh when the sun is shining.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
Without a doubt my Goan Fish Curry – A firm favourite in Brixham! It has been the talk of the town and always sells out. It’s a dish that is from my Indian heritage and is cooked with love no matter how many times I make it.
How do you come up with new dishes?
I get my ideas from watching cooking programmes and then see how I can recreate my version with what I have in my kitchen already.
Who was your greatest influence?
Chef Lawrence D’Souza, my Executive Chef onboard P&O Cruises, he was the turning point in my career. He taught me how to work clever, multi task and time management.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Chef Aminul Choudhury – an Asian Chef I have known for more than 8 Years. James Martin – I was lucky enough to work for him when I worked onboard Ocean Village Cruise Ship, he picked to be in his brigade because of my Indian cooking and Rick Stein – I share a love of seafood just like him.
What is your favourite cookbook?
I don’t use cookbooks – I create my own version of dishes by using the basics and then adding my own herbs and spices to get the flavour I want – I never weigh anything, it’s a talent of a chef knowing how much of a sprinkle or pinch of something you need to make it taste just right.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Anyone who truly cooks from the heart.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
A night out is rare but I have since discovered an Indian restaurant in Paignton called East Meets West – The food is delicious and not your typical Indian restaurant. The menu is small but with a variety of meat fish and vegetable dishes – It must be good as my wife had no complaints for the first time ever!
The Chefs’ Knowledge is Delighted to Join Forces with CKBK
The Chefs’ Forum, leading UK chef education and marketing platform, is delighted to join forces with ckbk, the only website to offer online unlimited access to a curated collection of the world’s great cookbooks.
The new collaboration will enhance the user experience for members of both ckbk and The Chefs’ Forum. The Chefs’ Knowledge is available in full via the ckbk’s digital platform, including 100 recipes contributed by leading UK chefs.
Commenting on the partnership Catherine Farinha said:
“It’s really fantastic to see The Chefs’ Knowledge go live on ckbk and for us to promote the platform to our members. It’s a great collection of books and we are delighted to be included and to promote chef learning.
“This new partnership is very important for The Chefs’ Forum. The work we have been doing with student and junior chef education is now able to be accessed by a much wider community across the world and now international subscribers can now learn the working secrets of our top chefs.”
Matt Cockerill, co-founder and CEO of ckbk said “We’re thrilled to launch this new cooperation with The Chefs Forum. Chefs and trainee chefs are some of ckbk’s most enthusiastic users, with cookbooks playing a vital and in conveying knowledge from one generation of chefs to the next. The Chefs’ Knowledge – The Modern Culinary Repertoire is a valuable addition to ckbk’s platform as we work with culinary schools and catering colleges across the UK, and beyond.”
ckbk offers instant unlimited access, via its website and app, to the full content of more than 700 cookbooks. Users can post reviews, add private notes, and create their own ‘recipe playlists’. ckbk’s searchable collection includes over 120,000 recipes from trusted authors and top chefs, with more titles added each week.
View CKBK here.
Independent research found The Chefs’ Forum to be the second most recognised chef marketing platform in the UK and is a one-stop-shop for the latest news, menu trends, kitchen gadgetry, top quality suppliers and chef networking. Inspire the next generation and give-back through teaching in The Chefs’ Forum Academy. Join us in bridging the gap between education and industry.
Chef of the Week: Chris Woodford, Head Chef at Chotto Matte in Soho
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
This time around, I have been with Chotto Matte for almost 4 years. I was also a part of the original opening team when the brand launched and helped with the initial menu development alongside Founder Kurt Zdesar and Executive Chef Jordan Sclare.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
I started aged 14 in a local family run restaurant as a part time role, and grew from there. My passion comes from my parents, growing up dinner was always a family affair, with such fond memories. My dad was a keen hunter, and as kids we would all help with preparing whatever it was that he bought home.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
The socially diverse people I work with and learning about food from other cultures. You’re always exposed to new ideas and no two days are ever the same!
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Soy sauce, coriander and chilli.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
It has to be my chef’s knife.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
I have noticed the rising demand for local sustainable produce, more now than ever. Consumers are becoming a lot more conscious about ingredients used and their journey to the plate. Bingsu, the Korean shaved ice cream is something that’s also having its moment!
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
I think overconfidence is something that can let chefs down, often they’re in a rush to achieve their goals, some need a bit more patience.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
Winter, you just can’t beat British game season!
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
Braised beef cheek with sweet truffle soy. It’s the first recipe I had printed in a cook book and a crowd pleaser when entertaining friends and family.
How do you come up with new dishes?
It’s a real process. It takes time, bouncing ideas off other chefs, getting inspired and experimenting with ingredients to perfect the contrast of flavours.
Who was your greatest influence?
I hate to say it, but if it wasn’t for my brother I would not have pursued a career in the kitchen.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
Raymond Blanc, Nobu Matsuhisa and Virgilio Martinez.
What is your favourite cookbook?
Way too many to pick a favourite!
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
The Muddy Duck at Hethe, local to my home and recently relaunched. It’s always a fantastic, authentic classic pub experience, with great food and ambience.
Merlin’s Magic is Shakin it Up!
Mitchell & Cooper have teamed up with TV bar star Merlin Griffiths to create a premium Bonzer® Barware cocktail kit that will shake up drinks-making this summer.
Merlin, who is on a mission to “Get the nation shaking“, is also launching a campaign to encourage everyone to share their #ShakerFace. Highlights of which will be showcased across Merlin’s Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Tik Tok – with one lucky shaker being chosen each month to receive their very own kit.
The new cocktail kit, customised by Merlin Griffiths and produced by Bonzer® in the UK, is due to be released for sale on June 21, 2023 and includes a two-piece Boston shaker set, Hawthorne strainer, fine strainer, jigger, 30cm bar spoon and a Mexican Elbow (citrus press). All in high-grade stainless steel finish.
“I am genuinely thrilled by what we’ve achieved,” said Merlin. “This is a great set for anyone to start with and even comes with a special Mexican Elbow citrus press which I started to use after learning all about them from Mexican bartenders I’d worked with in London. I was so impressed with this brilliant little tool, that I’ve customized my own version with Bonzer®. I’m really excited to see how people use the set and what they create.”
Merlin has been bartending since 1996, where he started out shaking, mixing and whizzing up tasty drinks in London’s popular Soho. An instantly recognisable face, he has been mixing drink on our screens for over 10 years.
The premium cocktail kit has been co-created with Bonzer® Barware, owned by global parent company Mitchell & Cooper who was founded in 1879 in East London, and they have been manufacturing since 1927.
Mitchell & Cooper have always been the professional’s choice and have built lasting relationships with top chefs and bartenders at the top of their game – and Merlin is certainly one of them.
Merlin went on: “It’s about time we had professional kit available to enable my industry peers to make amazing drinks at work or play. “I believe everyone should be able to make a tasty cocktail, it’s a life skill! Bringing professional quality cocktail tools to your mixologist’s tool kit is an essential part of this dream. It’s time to get shaking!”
Merlin is also offering an exclusive virtual cocktail masterclass for the first 500 individual orders of the kit. To place your order visit www.merlingriffiths.com
Kat Cooper of Mitchell & Cooper said: “Bonzer® is the perfect partner for Merlin Griffiths. My family have been making barware for close to 100 years and we’re delighted to be partnering with Merlin to create some drinks magic with the new kit.”
Film & photo credit: Carlos Farinha
Chef of the Week: William Best, Head Chef at Brooks’s Club in London
How long have you worked at your current restaurant?
Nearly 1 year at this exclusive private member’s club, my 8th job in 24 years of cooking.
Where did your passion for cooking come from and where did you learn your skills?
I enjoyed cooking at home and from quite an early age decided to be a chef. Catering offered an opportunity to escape school, which I didn’t enjoy. I wrote to all the local hotels and the chef at Ashdown Park Hotel is Sussex recommended an apprenticeship with RACA (Royal Academy of Culinary Arts).
At the time knowing very little about the industry this seemed like the best option (later found out it was by far the best apprenticeship at the time). So, I left home at the age of 16 to start the RACA Specialised Chef Scholarship at Bournemouth & Poole College. During the apprenticeship I was mentored by my first head chef, John McManus who I still turn to for advice for now.
When the time was right, he helped me move to London and join The Square with Phil Howard – something I think we need to do more of now, helping our young chefs move on and grow in the right kitchens, so they can develop in to experienced leaders with a deep knowledge of cooking.
My passion came from those early years in the kitchen, I love the buzz of service and working at The Square the quality of the produce was amazing – I love taking great ingredients and cooking simply to allow the natural flavour to shine through.
What do you enjoy most about being a chef?
The satisfaction of going into the dining room and seeing everyone happy, especially if the service has been tough.
Name three ingredients you couldn’t cook without.
Love – you have to put your heart in the cooking! Potatoes and eggs.
Which piece of kitchen equipment couldn’t you live without?
My Mac knives.
What food trends are you spotting at the moment?
Old classics coming back, cooked with a more modern approach… No need to reinvent the wheel, dishes can always be evolved and improved.
What do you think is a common mistake that lets chefs down?
They cook the food they want to cook not food that the customer wants to eat – probably only the top 0.5% of chefs are in a position where they are a true destination restaurant and people go there and are happy to be told what to eat. Get your menu right for the local/target market, it may have dishes on there that don’t inspire you as a chef, but people will keep coming back and consequently you will have a successful and profitable business, which in turn will allow you to achieve the things that you want to. Once customers trust you, they will be prepared to be more adventurous and you can push the boundaries of the food, note this will take a long time.
What is your favourite time of year for food, and why?
January, when Yorkshire rhubarb and blood oranges come into season, a sign that spring is not so far away.
Which of your dishes are you most proud of?
It would be the dishes I cooked in the final of the RACA Master of Culinary Arts (MCA) which resulted in me getting the award, one of which was a whole stuffed turbot, a dish I had never done before this.
How do you come up with new dishes?
Generally, start with a key ingredient and pair other ingredients as you go along. There must be flavour combinations that link each part of the dish together.
Ideas can come from so many places, books, social media, google image search, I think the most rewarding is developing an idea from a member of my team, with them, so they contribute to the menu.
Who was your greatest influence?
It is difficult to say just one, Phil Howard, John Williams MBE and Andrew Turner, all influenced me in different ways, whether it be style of cooking; passion for great ingredients; how to manage people (so important); the importance of putting your heart in the food and ensuring maximum flavour! But I guess ultimately my first head chef, John McManus, he stuck up for his kitchen team and I have tried to follow his example and always look after my team, I cannot do it without them.
Tell us three chefs you admire.
- Michael Nizzero – won a star in France, worked with him at The Ritz, seriously talented chef but so modest and great to work with.
- Michael Caines – no introduction required.
- George Blogg – had the pleasure of watching him work in the MCA final last year, probably the most professional chef I have ever seen work, so chilled and calm he barely broke into a sweat, even under intense pressure.
What is your favourite cookbook?
Both volumes of The Square cookbooks. Practical Cookery and Good Housekeeping are a good place to look for basic recipes that always work.
Who do you think are the chefs to watch over the next few months?
Spencer Metzger and Amber Francis.
What’s been your favourite new restaurant opening of the last year?
I have not been yet but the food Patrick Powell is producing at The Midland Grand Dining Room looks right up my street, classical food tastefully reinvented.
