Chef biogs

Gary Rhodes – Rhodes W1

Born in London in 1960, Gary Rhodes has had a glittering restaurant and multi-media career, based on his love of great British classics.

Much-cited as the first British chef to complete a working stint at Ferran Adrià’s elBulli restaurant in Spain, Jason Atherton is currently one of the hottest chefs in town since he garnered critical acclaim after launching Maze in May 2005 under the Gordon Ramsay Holdings (GRH) umbrella.

Pascal Aussignac - Club Gascon and Le Cercle

Hailing originally from Toulouse, Pascal Aussignac moved to London nine years ago from Paris and has slowly built up a small empire of Gascon-inspired eateries alongside business partner Vincent Labeyrie.

Sat Bains - Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms

Winner of the BMW Square Meal Award for Best UK Restaurant 2007, the Michelin-starred Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms is run by Sat and Amanda Bains on the outskirts of Nottingham. One of the UK’s most accomplished chefs, Bains helped to open the first Raymond Blanc brasserie in Oxford in 1996.

Rainer Becker - Zuma and Roka

This past year has seen Rainer Becker and his business partner Arjun Waney launch a second Zuma site in Hong Kong, after the ongoing success of his London restaurant, which serves ground-breaking modern Japanese cuisine.

Herbert Berger - 1 Lombard street

Austrian chef Herbert Berger is executive head chef at 1 Lombard Street, where he serves Michelin-starred food alongside his head chef Tim Richardson. Having moved to London in the 1970s, his formative years were spent at Claridge’s, The Connaught, Mirabelle and the Café Royal before he opened his own restaurant, Keats, in the early 1990s.

Vineet Bhatia – Rasoi Vineet Bhatia

Despite being the first of two Indian chefs to gain a Michelin star, it could have been so different for Vineet Bhatia. Born in Bombay to middle class parents, he almost opted for a career as a pilot, but turned his attention to food instead.

Heston Blumenthal - The Fat Duck

One of only a trio of three-Michelin starred chefs operating in the country at present, Heston Blumenthal’s rise to the top is even more remarkable considering that, bar a few weeks’ of work experience, he is entirely self taught. Born in London in 1966, he discovered a passion for food while on a family holiday in France.

Antonin Bonnet - The Greenhouse

Continuing his work with restaurateur Marlon Abela, Antonin Bonnet moved from private club Morton’s to sister restaurant The Greenhouse in early 2006. It was only weeks before that Michelin had revealed it was considering awarding the restaurant two stars (under chef Bjorn van der Horst).

Claude Bosi - Hibiscus

Claude Bosi and his wife Claire relocated their two Michelin-starred Hibiscus restaurant from Ludlow to London at the end of last year and Bosi’s powerful French cuisine is quickly making its mark in Mayfair.

Mark Broadbent - Bluebird

Rochdale-born Broadbent was one of seven finalists in the second series of Great British Menu and has since gone on to assume responsibility for D&D London’s Bluebird operation, which includes the Café, Club and Epicerie as well as the recently refurbished Bluebird restaurant, all on Chelsea’s Kings Road.

Aiden Byrne - The Grill at The Dorchester

A new name on the London scene, Aiden Byrne first came onto Michelin’s radar when he was head chef at Adlard’s in Norwich, where he won a star at the tender age of 22.

Richard Corrigan – Richard Corrigan at Lindsay House and Bentley's

Since leaving his native Ireland at the age of 17, Richard Corrigan has gone on to become one of the most assured chefs on the London scene.

Anthony Demetre - Arbutus and Wild Honey

With the opening of Wild Honey in 2007, all eyes were on Anthony Demetre and business partner Will Smith to see if they could mimic their success at award-winning Arbutus. The answer was a resounding ‘yes’, with Wild Honey taking the BMW Square Meal Award for Best New Restaurant Autumn 2007 – a year after Arbutus took the 2006 title.

Alain Ducasse - Ducasse at The Dorchester

Having previously been involved with two restaurants in London – Monte’s and Spoon at the Sanderson – Alain Ducasse returned to the capital to launch Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester at the end of last year. With executive chef Jocelyn Herland (ex-Marco Pierre White’s three-starred Oak Room) heading up the 80-seat restaurant, it’s already being tipped for three stars.

Mark Edwards – Nobu

Group executive chef Mark Edwards oversees all new restaurants in addition to leading the kitchen at Nobu at the Metropolitan Hotel. The 42-year-old chef got the food bug at age 13 when he got a part-time job at a seafood restaurant in Kent.

Pierre Gagnaire – Sketch

Born in Apinac, France, in 1950, Pierre Gagnaire grew up with restaurants, cooking at his father’s restaurant, Le Clos Fleury near Etienne, where he was responsible for maintaining its Michelin star. At 30, he launched his first eponymous restaurant in St Etienne where he gained a second star in 1986 and a third in 1993.

Chris and Jeff Galvin – Galving Bistrot de Luxe, Galvin at Windows

In a relatively short space of time, Chris and Jeff Galvin have gone from employees to burgeoning restaurateurs. Since launching Galvin Bistrot de Luxe in September 2005, they have opened Galvin at Windows on the 28th floor of the London Hilton on Park Lane (earmarked as one to watch by Michelin) and are currently writing their first book.

Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers - River Cafe

Since opening the River Café in 1987, Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers have established themselves as the leading ladies of the London restaurant scene. Their simple Italian cuisine and emphasis on sourcing the finest ingredients was a breath of fresh air and the restaurant soon built up a cult following.

Skye Gyngell – Petersham

Australian chef Skye Gyngell is also Vogue’s food writer as well as a regular contributor to The Independent on Sunday Review. Her first book, A Year in my Kitchen was published in 2007 and has been well received.

Philip Howard - The Square

In 2008, Philip Howard celebrates his 17th year as chef-patron of The Square, the Mayfair restaurant he first set up with business partner Nigel Platts-Martin in 1991.

Jonas Karlsson – The Fifth Floor

Swedish-born chef Jonas Karlsson joined Harvey Nichols in April 2004 and became head chef when Helena Puolakka left to head up Skylon in March 2007, having been acting executive head chef while Puolakka was on maternity leave prior to her departure.

Rowley Leigh – Le Cafe Anglais

Rowley Leigh was founder and head chef of Notting Hill landmark restaurant Kensington Place for 20 years and prior to that spent eight years working for the Roux family at Le Gavroche, City restaurant Le Poulbot and as a food buyer for the group.

Giorgio Locatelli – Locanda Locatelli

Giorgio Locatelli was born into a family that ran a Michelin-starred restaurant in Corgeno, Italy. He worked in Italy and Switzerland and moved to London 21 years ago to work for Anton Edelmann at The Savoy hotel.

Thomasina Miers – Wahaca

One of the most successful winners of BBC’s Masterchef series, Thomasina Miers followed up her victory in 2005 with two cookery books Soup Kitchen and Cook before launching Wahaca in Covent Garden early in 2007.

Jamie Oliver - Fifteen

Not many chefs can lay claim to changing government policy, but Jamie Oliver’s impact in our schools has been history in the making, which makes the multi-millionaire’s humble beginnings – cooking at his parents’ pub from the age of eight – all the more phenomenal.

Shane Osbourne – Pied a Terre

Osborn first got behind the stove in his native Perth, in Australia, and after moving to London at the age of 20, he quickly came to grips with the capital’s restaurant scene. Stints under Philip Howard and Marcus Wareing ensured he was well-tutored in classical French cooking before taking up a position at Pied à Terre as sous chef under Tom Aikens.

Marco Pierre White - Marco

The 1980s enfant terrible came back with a vengeance in 2007 with his version of Hell’s Kitchen. The first British chef to be awarded three Michelin stars, he has worked for some of the godfathers of British cooking – Albert Roux, Pierre Koffmann and Raymond Blanc. In 1987 he opened Harvey’s, a culinary stud farm which produced Gordon Ramsay and Philip Howard among others,