Charlie Crote, Head Chef, The Midland Grand Dining Room: ‘The food here is very classical’

With the ambition to make The Midland Grand Dining Room a renowned London go-to destination, its head chef, Charlie Crote talks about early career experiences, inspirational mentors and the importance of bringing fun to his culinary creations.

Charlie’s culinary career began a decade ago after he moved from the Forest of Dean to London’s fast-paced eclectic food scene. At the age of 19, Charlie moved to the capital, and it was there that he began his journey towards becoming head chef by embarking on work experience at the Michelin-starred restaurant at The Ritz.

Building a culinary foundation

Although Charlie’s encounter with The Ritz started as work experience, it turned into a five-year career-progressing milestone. Working under multi-award-winning chef John Williams MBE and the accomplished team at The Ritz gave Charlie his grounding as a chef. “I learnt a lot of my foundations of cooking at The Ritz, from stocks and sauces to braising meat to cooking and portioning fish,” Charlie shared.

It was there that Charlie was able to learn, adapt, develop, and hone the building blocks of classical cooking, which led him to his next culinary roles at Allegra restaurant and bar and now The Midland Grand Dining Room.

Working with a brigade of 50-plus chefs at The Ritz, Charlie worked across every kitchen station, learning from each service chef firsthand. This approach helped Charlie develop his robust and comprehensive knowledge of how each cooking component within a kitchen works to make the whole.

“I was lucky enough to move around the whole kitchen, which gave me a solid foundation of classical cookery and what I do today,” Charlie reflects.

Developing extensive classical cooking knowledge

From The Ritz, Charlie joined the opening team in March 2019 at Allegra, chef Patrick Powell's first sole venture. Allegra is located within The Stratford, a 42-storey skyscraper that combines hotel and loft apartments with bars, restaurants, and sky gardens. The restaurant was voted the UK’s 49th best restaurant at the 2023 National Restaurant Awards.

Spending over four years at Allegra, the two of them connected over their shared love of cooking. “We had a very good friendship and a very good relationship both inside and outside of work,” Charlie says about his relationship with Patrick Powell.

“I learnt a tremendous amount from Patrick, not just in terms of cooking but also of the business side of things and how to run a kitchen,” says Charlie.

Rising to head chef

In May 2023, Charlie moved to The Midland Grand Dining Room (formerly the location of Marcus Wareing’s Gilbert Scott restaurant), which was until recently under the leadership of Patrick Powell. Charlie became the brasserie's head chef, which has seen him take on many more managerial tasks. “I've had to oversee lots of menu production, develop the kitchen, and look after various members of staff,” says Charlie.

Having celebrated his first year at The Midland Grand Dining Room, Charlie is clear about what’s shaped his culinary style and seasonal menu: simplicity and fun.

Housed in the historic St Pancras building, a gateway to Europe, The Midland Grand Dining Room is just that, Charlie shares, “a grand brasserie.”

“The food here is very classical as well as being quite light and fun,” says Charlie. “The way we've designed the menu means it’s a place where you can come for lunch and have a glass of wine and a salad,” says Charlie. You can also come on a date and have a lovely three-course meal or come with the lads and have a big blowout dinner and order one of everything off the menu,” Charlie adds.

“People can get off the train, come for lunch and then enjoy their journey and go straight back to wherever they came from without even leaving the station,” says Charlie.

Entertaining guests and supporting teams

There’s a lot to love about The Midland Grand Dining Room. What stands out for Charlie? It’s hard to pick just one thing. “For me, the best thing about working here at The Midland Grand Dining Room is coming to work every day and seeing how beautiful the room is, saying good morning to all of the team and everybody working towards the same goal,” says Charlie.

Along with its high-end brasserie, The Midland Grand Dining Room also has its Gothic bar, where it serves a variety of bar food and an amazing cocktail menu, all against the backdrop of late-night music and a beautiful terrace to sit out in the sunshine.

The Midland Grand Dining Room’s team consists of 12 chefs and 20 front-of-house team members who cover both its restaurant and Gothic bar. Together, the team delivers 12 services a week, covering lunch and dinner from Tuesday through to Saturday and providing a dinner-only service on Mondays. On Sundays, “We do a very grand leisurely Sunday lunch,” Charlie shares.

What is the core hurdle The Midland Grand Dining Room faces? “The biggest challenge to date is staffing,” says Charlie. Although he shares that all restaurateurs go through this same problem in London, it doesn’t make navigating it any easier. What’s important is the care and consideration you apply to your team. “It's getting to know your staff, looking after your staff, making everybody feel comfortable, and then being a nice place to work,” says Charlie.

Creating the next go-to foodie institution

Adapting to the role of leader, motivating his team and making it an enjoyable place to work have been vital parts of Charlie’s role as head chef. “As a first-time head chef, I've had to adapt my way of working, coming from a role as sous chef and being someone in a position below to now being head chef, where I am in that position above,” says Charlie. “I understand the respect you need between myself and the rest of my team and the best way to make them feel comfortable here at work,” adds Charlie.

Charlie has already had great success in just over a year in the role. So, what’s next? “My future plans with the restaurant are to make it as busy as possible,” says Charlie. “We’ve always said we'd like this restaurant to become one of those institution restaurants across London,” Charlie adds. That’s the future.