Eran Tibi is a chef who brings a burst of energy and creativity to the culinary world, making every dish an exciting experience.
He gained a wider reputation in the culinary world for his appearance on BBCs Great British Menu.
+4
Eran also owns two successful restaurants Bala Baya and Kapara in London.
But behind the scenes of one of the UK culinary world’s most popular tv shows, Eran was working extra hard while overcoming the hardest year of his life.
He faced multiple obstacles while appearing on GBM, one being the death of the inspiration behind his culinary career, his father.
He said: "In November, I sadly had to pull myself out of work during the preparation for Great British Menu because my dad was ill with terminal cancer. My dad is like my mentor, and he's the person who was my best friend. So I just stopped everything and went to Israel to be with him in his final couple of months.
“That was the couple of months when all the other chefs were in their kitchens, practising their dishes. I took three suitcases back home with me and all my cooking equipment. I was naive to think I could practice at my parents' house, but it wasn’t the case, you can’t go undisturbed every 2-3 minutes when you’re taking care of someone."
"The second day of filming, before we started, my sister called me. She gave me the bitter news that my dad only had a few days to live. I walked onto the set, wiped my face, and said, ‘Guys, hear me out. I have a proposal. I’m pulling out of the competition because I need to go straight to Heathrow before it’s too late.’ But then I gave them another option—‘Or, I walk in and give you the show of your life and the best TV you've ever seen.’ And the director just said, ‘Option two.’"
+4
“They stopped filming when I needed to have a breakdown and let me come back to set. Jean and Jason became two beautiful brothers who jumped in and helped me. They saw me and just said, ‘Tell me what to do, tell me what to do.’ They wanted to make sure I could present the whole menu and at least leave on a good note."
Eran’s team rallied around him at his exact time of need, he added: "They told me, ‘Listen, Eran, we got this. We're going to take care of you. Take care of your dad and you smash this competition.’ And they were really driving me from the inside. But I wasn’t allowed—no exposure, no work—until a week ago.”
"Last year was really difficult, but I’m so happy I did Great British Menu. I got to know amazing people. I had a taste of TV - it was still my first time, but this was a proper, full two episodes.
“I got a taste, and I have a craving for more. But also, during that time, we developed the business. The two restaurants became their own brands, we launched a catering “company—we did so much. It was a year of bad shit happening, but we used that energy to create good shit for the next year.
“The worst things and the best things came one after another, a proper rollercoaster."
"I debated a lot about whether I would do Great British Menu again. Even before filming started, they told me that if I wanted to pull out, they’d understand and guarantee me a place next year.
"The production company and the BBC were amazing to me. Every time I thought about walking away, they pushed me and made me feel like they really wanted me to succeed."
Speaking about his toughest competitor while on the show, Eran said: “Definitely Jean, My dessert had eight components; his had 32. And every single one was important, perfectly executed, absolutely sensational. The last time I was this excited about food was the Fat Duck. He’s a mini genius."
Eran also had one judge in mind that he was eager to impress with his culinary skills, Aktar Islam.
“I love his character, and his Indian cuisine background meant he’d get my spicing, my strong flavours. Some judges—like Tom—maybe my flavours were a bit too much for them. But with Aktar, I knew he’d understand. But that is what I also love about Tom, every critique he gives is absolutely spot-on. Some people watch and think, ‘Oh, that’s harsh, that’s unfair,’ but he’s always right. He told me my trout should have been 30 seconds less. Later, when I thought about it, I realised—no, actually, it needed a whole minute less. Annoyingly, he was right."
+4
Eran also announced that his dishes from Great British Menu are to be featured on his own menu, he shared: “We're just about to announce it, or if we haven't already, that I'm starting to put those dishes in the menu at Kapara. Improved, better, and elevated, of course."
He came to the UK in 2008 with nothing other than his culinary dream, a one-way ticket, one suitcase and £5,000 in cash, he added: “"I actually applied to Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, but they called me and said, ‘There’s a spot in London, would you be interested?’ I had never been to London before, but I thought, ‘Why not? It’s English, I won’t have to learn French, one less thing to worry about.’
“I was petrified. But one thing led to another, I got the right jobs, met the right people, and now, here I am. British citizen, restaurant owner, doing what I love. It’s been a wild ride.”
Written by Abi Kinsella
There are no comments yet.
You could be commenting on this if you had an account! Click here to sign up.