Simon Hulstone, chef patron of The Elephant in Torquay

Simon Hulstone is chef patron of The Elephant in Torquay, one of the best fine dining restaurants Devon has to offer. He is The Staff Canteen's featured chef this month and it is our privilege to catch up with such a highly regarded chef.

Simon Hulstone, chef patron of The Elephant in Torquay, is the son of a chef and from an early age was competing in and winning cooking competitions around the world.

He was the 2003 Roux Scholar and has represented the UK on more than 20 occasions including, most recently, the world’s most prestigious culinary competition, the Bocuse D’Or.

Among his other accomplishments are Knorr National Chef of the Year, World Junior Chef, Craft Guild of Chefs Chef of the Year 2008, the captaincy of the English and British culinary teams and New Zealand Young Chef of the Year.

He worked in kitchens like Cotswold House, Bacchanalian and Bailiffscourt Hotel before moving to Devon to run The Elephant in Torquay.

The Elephant has held three AA rosettes since 2005 and won its first Michelin star in 2006 which it retains to this day.

Simon’s cooking is refined, full of flavour and beautifully presented with a focus on local seasonal ingredients which he has recently taken a step further by growing much of his produce on his own local farm.