STARTER

In 1977 I lived briefly in Stevenage in Hertfordshire and unusually for that time period, boys were forced to take cooking lessons at school. I found this far more enjoyable (and was better at it) than woodwork and metalwork and so began my love affair with cooking.

I finished secondary education in Newcastle Upon Tyne gaining just two “O” levels in English and Maths plus a collection of CSE’s (if you are old enough to remember those, welcome to the club!).

Before I left school I was working as a pot wash in the Swallow Hotel in Newcastle and enrolled at catering college.

During my time at college, I continued working at the Swallow and during my holidays as a Commis Chef at The Elms Hotel in Morecambe, Lancashire.

My first full time role was at The Beech Hill Hotel in Windermere as a 17 year old fresh from college and leaving home.

I worked on all sections of this small hotel kitchen including breakfast and began learning the work ethic required to maintain a career in the catering industry.

After nine months at The Beech Hill Hotel, it was time to spread my wings and I gained a position at The Savoy working under Anton Edelmann.

Beginning on the veg section, I eventually worked on the Hot Fish, Cold Fish, Sauce and Larder sections completing nearly three years at this iconic 5* Star hotel.

Working in the main restaurant kitchen encompassed large banqueting for up to 1,000 people as well as the 150 cover river restaurant, Thames Foyer afternoon teas and room service.

Approaching my 21st birthday I decided I needed to hone my skills in a Michelin Star standard restaurant and after a brief stint at Waltons in South Kensington I joined Inigo Jones restaurant in Covent Garden as Chef de Partie under Paul Gayler.

At Inigo Jones I spent time working on the Fish, Larder and Pastry sections.

MAIN COURSE

It was announced to the team in Autumn 1988 that Inigo Jones would be closing so I felt this was an ideal time to leave London and explore foreign climes.

I was fortunate that Paul Gayler recommended me for a job working for an old colleague of his at the Westin Hotel in Seattle. While waiting for my visa to be approved I spent some time in the Middle East travelling and gaining some work experience in Doha and Dubai.

In Seattle I was Senior Sous Chef in this 800 bedroom hotel and conference centre. My primary role was running the 300 cover fine dining restaurant, where I was responsible for all elements of the operations from employing staff, training, menus, ordering and cost control.

In addition to running the fine dining restaurant I also assisted in overseeing the café restaurant as well as banqueting for up to 2,000 covers.

I eventually left Seattle when my visa expired and returned to the UK.

Arriving back in the UK I felt I was at a bit of a crossroads.

Family wise I wanted to remain in the UK for a while, but from a career standpoint, I was keen to keep moving and continue working abroad.

I gained a role as Head Chef working for Tim Hart, owner of the renowned Hambleton Hall at his family restaurant The Ram Jam Inn.

This role allowed me to continue to hone my management skills as well as finding my own style of food, blending my classical training with the fusion Pacific rim cooking that was popular in America at the time, but had not yet reached mainstream British eateries.

After a couple of years at the Ram Jam, I then moved to Sonny’s Restaurant in Nottingham, initially as Head Chef and then a joint role of Head Chef/General Manager.

I was responsible for every aspect of running the restaurant, where we gained and retained two AA Rosettes during my tenure at Sonny’s, which was the highest rated restaurant in Nottingham at the time.

After six fabulous and enjoyable years at Sonny’s I had the chance to open my own restaurant business in Leicester.

Together with a business partner we took on the lease of an old derelict cotton mill in the heart of Leicester city centre. After six months of renovation work and an investment of £300,000 we opened Watsons Restaurant and Bar in September 1999.

After two years, and with my business partner losing interest in the restaurant, I bought him out, before expanding the business with the addition of a student café bar and a country Gastro Pub.

Combined turnover for the business was around £1.3 million per annum.

We earned two AA Rosettes from the beginning and retained them until I sold the business in 2008.

DESSERT

So I sold the business in 2008 and found myself again at a crossroads without a clear plan of what I wanted to accomplish next. I knew I did not want to work in hotels or run a restaurant full time for someone else, so decided to move into contract catering.

I joined Edwards and Blake in East Anglia, initially as Group Executive Chef, but quickly moved on to Operations Manager.

I then moved to Olive Catering, again as Operations Manager. I instantly enjoyed the role, the company, the people and the culture of Olive.

I looked after 12 sites along the M1 corridor across a range of office based businesses and distribution centres.

I also had a key role in food development for the business which allowed me to continue cooking while building further business acumen in a more corporate environment.

My role also encompassed writing budgets, client meetings, health and safety Auditing, coaching as well as the food development.

After five years at Olive the desire to progress my career was too great to ignore, so I moved to Wilson Vale as Operations Director in 2015.

At Wilson Vale I have had four Area Managers reporting to me on 38 contracts across the UK, as well as looking after a large conference centre on a direct report basis.

In January of 2019 I decided to reduce my workload in order to create an improved work life balance.

I now work mainly three days per week in the business and fill the remainder of my time with voluntary work and supporting other businesses through Nerabus Consulting.