Chefs and sponsors enjoyed a four course menu with matching wines from chef Tom Brown and his team.
Chefs
Chefs in attendance were: Jordan Bayes, junior sous chef, Tuddenham Mill; Selin Kiazim, chef director, Oklava and Kyseri; Simon Woodrow, head chef, Sofitel London St James; Daniel Mcgarey, executive head chef, Royal Lancaster London; Hannah Catley, head pastry chef, Chiltern Firehouse; Ben Palmer, chef owner, Greedy Goose; James Sherwin, chef owner, Wild Shropshire; Josh Donachie, sous chef, Port Gaverne Hotel; David Fetigny, sous chef, Clos Maggiore; Matt Ramsdale, senior sous chef, The Chester Grosvenor; Tim Dela Cruz, head chef, Skewd Kitchen; Dan Wilson, chef owner, Dandy; Sean Patterson, hospitality and catering lecturer, Farnborough College; Dean Crews, group executive chef, Kew Green Hotels and Jack Shaw, head chef, Lexington Catering.
Upon arrival, guests enjoyed a glass of Cueto Prosecco and some snacks of pickled oysters, celery, horseradish and dill. Tom Brown then gave the guests a tour of the open kitchen at Cornerstone, before sitting down to lunch.
What the chefs and sponsors had to say about The Staff Canteen Live networking lunch at Cornerstone
The headline sponsor for this month's networking lunch were Seafood from Norway. Celestine Cheong, senior communications lead for Seafood from Norway said: “As a sponsor, being able to go around the tables, it was very useful to meet different chefs from different parts of the industry, larger and smaller businesses alike. It was good to really understand what makes them tick with produce – why they choose their produce, where from and how much culture is embedded from either ownership or through sustainability.”
She added: “Seafood from Norway were delighted to hear that the meal cooked by Tom Brown was excellent – it was very tasty. It was nice to also see the chefs having a bit of competition with each other – taking pictures of our dish!”
Karl Pendlebury, senior manager for Quality Standard Mark for the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board said: “Today has been fantastic – networking with chefs that I don’t always come into contact with. We’ve talked about the beef and lamb industry and about our education programme, which has been well received.”
He added: “I think that more networking events are the way forward. The hard sell days are gone and it’s more about education and how we move forward, getting that through in the social scene.”
Josh Donachie, sous chef at Port Gaverne Hotel said: “I think there’s been great people, great food and wines. It’s good to meet suppliers too. I think that networking is important in this day and age.”
Dan Wilson, chef owner, Dandy said: “I’ve got to say that I think Tom’s food is inimitable. I would wholeheartedly recommend for chefs to be a part of these events. This was a really nice way to meet people that I wouldn’t otherwise be aware of. It’s a great way to see different products and how they can be used in the kitchen on different spectrums.”
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