Owner of 12-seater Kent Restaurant named as the ‘Chef to Watch’ by Good Food Guide
The Good Food Guide Chef to Watch award has been handed to Ben Crittenden from Stark in Broadstairs, Kent.
Ben’s tiny 12-seater restaurant only has a galley kitchen tucked in the corner but serves a well-prepared six-course tasting menu. The restaurant is so small it doesn’t yet have a loo, but a friendly landlady from the pub up the road welcomes Stark’s diners.
The Good Food Guide’s editor, Elizabeth Carter, said: “I’m sure many locals would like to keep this place under the radar as Stark is far and away one of the more unusual openings this year.
Photos credit: Simon Jacobs
“But the secret is out now and there’s something special about this plain 12-seater restaurant. Ben Crittenden has a penchant for simplicity and flavour and his keen eye for the seasons is extremely satisfying – some might call it dazzling.
“His success is all the more astonishing as, for the first eight months, the restaurant has been operating without a loo, without any dent in popularity – hopefully the situation will be resolved next month.”
The Good Food Guide is published by Waitrose on September 4. RRP £17.99.
