Career Path: College > Washing up > Cooked around the World > Head Chef
“If you asked my how I would spend my last £100 I would say - £99 on a fine meal and £1 on a lottery ticket"
My Story: I began my training at College, and after cooking my way around the world I came back to Yorkshire to work at Rudding Park. My training at the Dorchester and the work I have done abroad in Australia, Germany, Switzerland and America has helped me to gain many invaluable skills. I have even met the Queen and members of the Royal Family as a “young achiever” at Buckingham Palace. I won a gold medal at Salon Culinaire in Sydney and have cooked for many famous people including George Bush Snr, Michael Gorbachev and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Funny Story: Whilst working in Germany at the Four season’s hotel on Maximillian Strasse in Munich. I was a commis chef (Like a trainee really) my chef was a great big chap typical Bavarian man with a big twirly whirly moustache and a laugh that boomed out across the kitchens. He called me Frauline Moon or my Nic name Radio London because I was always singing….. On this day I had to open oysters and my colleague Richie a Austrian guy said “Steph go and get the small brush that Chef has to brush the sandy grit out of the oysters once they are opened” “Ok” I said but how do I say that in German as I was learning at this stage.“Oh just say Darf ich dine Pinzel harben?” May I have your brush please? So I went up and in front of all my colleagues about 8 chefs I asked my chef this phrase. Well my chef went bright red and looked horrified, the chefs around me where trying not to laugh and Richie my colleague was in hysterics around the back of the kitchen. I had just asked my head chef for a certain part of his anatomy I am sure you can guess where!!!!! Needless to say I learnt German as quickly as I could after that and we all had a good laugh and my chef brought me a pen to say thank you for being a great team player when I left the kitchen a year later so no harm done!