“I’d love to get a Green Star more than a second Michelin Star”

Anna Haugh and Marguerite Keogh discuss Michelin 2023, how to make the most out of moving abroad as a chef, and their favourite job roles.

In this week’s episode of Grilled by The Staff Canteen, Editor Cara Houchen was joined by co-host Anna Haugh, Chef Owner of Myrtle, and her guest Marguerite Keogh, Head Chef of Michelin-starred The Five Fields.

During the episode, the pair discussed Anna's party trick, tips on moving to a new city as a chef and how to enjoy it, and how it felt for Marguerite and the team when they achieved a Michelin star in 2017.

MARGUERITE KEOGH AND THE FIVE FIELDS

Born in County Clare, Ireland, Marguerite is the Head Chef of the Michelin-starred The Five Fields restaurant in London.

Inspired by her mother and aunt, Marguerite moved to the UK to continue with her career in hospitality, working under a number of critically acclaimed chefs including Marco Pierre White and Marcus Wareing.

After finding her feet and climbing the kitchen ranks Marguerite went solo opening The Five Fields restaurant in 2013.

Over the last ten years, the restaurant has become a favourite amongst fine dining aficionados and a stalwart of London’s incredibly competitive food and drink scene.

Since opening in 2013, the restaurant has won numerous awards including four AA rosettes and most notably a Michelin star in 2017.

Describing what it felt like to receive a Michelin star, Marguerite said: "The whole day in general was a bit surreal, a bit weird, a bit nerve wracking, with lots of tears. It was amazing for the team as well because they're younger. The older we get, the more we understand maybe the politics and stuff behind things but for the youngsters, they just like the recognition, they like getting the gold and it's great for them to get acknowledged for their hard work. So, it was a really proud moment for the restaurant."

During the podcast, Marguerite faced the infamous Grilled Wheel of Truth where she asked by the programme’s host Cara, what her party trick is.

"I don't really have a party trick. I guess like most Irish people we're well able to drink, so I just like to be the last one standing but that's not really a party trick,” joked Marguerite.

When the question was asked to Grilled co-host Anna, Cara and Marguerite were surprised to learn that Anna could make a 'war call' with her hands, which she attributes to her growing up with an abundance of 'stray cats' (children).

"I lived on a street with loads of basically stray cats/children and we would just be running around tipping the can and playing lots of games, and they'd all have wolf whistles… so that was it, running with the lads making my weird sounds," explained Anna.

When asked if she had a celebrity crush, Marguerite admitted she had a few and revealed Michelin-starred chef Anne-Sophie Pic and Brad Pitt to be on her list.

IS IT WORTH MOVING ABROAD FOR WORK?

Both Anna and Marguerite are two chefs who moved abroad and relocated as part of their careers - an amazing opportunity and a real benefit for chefs and professionals working within hospitality.

Talking about how to make the most of it when moving abroad, Anna and Marguerite shared their top tips.

Marguerite recommended: "It's a culture shock but I think embrace the culture. Get out there on your two days off, embrace the city. I was off every Sunday and another day and I'd go and I'd walk around Soho every Sunday and be mindblown by the city. Embrace the culture, get mixed into the culture and it helps a lot because it's so different to home."

Anna advised: "Choose the job you want to work in, that's the key, and pack really wisely when you move. When you're packing don't just be thinking, I like those jeans and like those runners don't forget a coat because I didn't bring a coat."

She added: "I definitely did get homesick regularly. When I was younger, I used to buy a phone card and I would go to a local telephone booth and used that to call my friends. There were two types of phone calls, one was like the lie that I told my parents and then the other one was that I had really good friends that I could offload to, so I could tell them all of the stories of what was going on. So, bring a coat and then have somebody to call up.”

THE MICHELIN GUIDE

Ahead of this year’s Michelin Awards, Anna and Marguerite discussed this year’s events and their aims for the future, with Marguerite eyeing up a Michelin Green star award.

"I'd really love to get a Green star more than a second [Michelin star]. I'd love a green star, I do a lot of work for it, but I just don't know what it is that you have to do, they don't tell you,” explained Marguerite.

Listing what green practices exist at the restaurant, Marguerite revealed: "Most of our stuff comes from the garden. We have very little wastage because we turn things into you know, eat a garums or ferments. We have compost bins, which go straight back to our garden as well, we've got a special compost at the garden for the compost bags because they can't be mixed with the vegetable compost."

FAVOURITE JOB ROLES

Looking back at her career in Ireland and Britain Marguerite said: “I've loved every job I've done. They're all so different, in Ireland when I worked in Dromoland Castle that was my first proper kitchen experience, so you're bright eyed and bushy tailed, and everything is like wow. Everything was new, like very new, but then it was the same when I moved to London and you go into more fine dining and the Michelin side of it.”

She added: “I honestly couldn't pick one over the other because I love them, they both give me different experiences to bring me to where I am now.”

For Anna, she explained she would enjoy going back to work on a specific section with the knowledge and experience she posesses now.

"When I look back on being younger and on a section, all I think is just the fun and fire and pace, and also not a care in the world,” explained Anna.

She added: “All you have to worry about was how fast you moved, how you did your prep, like you're just worrying about you. When you're running a kitchen, you're worrying about every single section, and you're worried about the floor, and you're worried about the customers, you're worried about so much."

Anna also explained her time at Pied à Terre was one her favourite job positions due to the fast-paced nature of the kitchen and the raw talent demonstrated by her colleagues.

"I think my whole time in Pied à Tere was amazing. It was a very fast paced kitchen, I learned everything there really. I've learned so much in all the kitchens but I feel working with Shane Osborn kind of shaped me or I really wanted to be him. I wanted to know everything that he knew but maybe not be as angry," explained Anna.