Tom Kerridge has recently published a new book Tom Kerridge’s Fresh Start to coincide with a new BBC Two television series of the same name. We recently caught up with him for a long interview at the Corinthia Hotel London where he has opened the acclaimed Tom Kerridge Bar and Grill.
This is the second part of our interview with Tom in our Q&A format. The first part of the interview can be found here.
Your best ever meal?
My best ever restaurant meal was at the Fat Duck. My best ever meal is Christmas Day with family and friends.
Your favourite dish?
It depends on where you are at but probably it would be fish and chips sitting on the beach at winter time.
Is there something you don’t eat?
I have a shellfish allergy so shellfish.
One thing in a professional kitchen that should be in every person’s kitchen?
A very nice set of knives that are sharp and work.
Best places to eat in the UK?
Bidendum or Core by Clare Smyth in London, Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham, Andrew Fairlie in Scotland and Midsummer House in Cambridge
Outside the UK?
I’m very lucky to have eaten in some great restaurants. But for me, I love to eat in cities like New York and Singapore because the food scene from street food for a dollar to top end expensive is great. Both cities are incredible in this regard.
Your favourite books?
Marco Pierre White’s White Heat cookbook and the Michelin Guide
Who do you consider to be your mentor?
People that I have learnt the most from. I would say John Benton, Stephen Bull and Gary Rhodes.
People who inspire you?
I am inspired by creative, driven individuals. They could be people from the world of sports, people who are up against adversity. I came across a couple of guys who spent all of their life and all of their money helping homeless charities. These are the type of people who inspire me. My wife is an artist and I am inspired by artists who have given up all their life and who commit themselves to a chosen way of life.
What’s the best dish you have ever made in a restaurant?
It would be a duck dish that I made with chips cooked in duck fat. It was a dish I made at a Royal Banquet that won a TV programme called Great British menu. That helped to ensure that the Hand and Flowers was recognised around the nation. That would be the best dish for that reason.
And at home?
A slow cooked shoulder of lamb cooked for a very long time. It is that simple.
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