Richard Vines, formerly the chief food critic for Bloomberg, has died at the age of 71.
The writer, broadcaster and critic was renowned for his extraordinary knowledge of the country’s food scene, such that he was also appointed as chair of The World's 50 Best Restaurants for several years.
Vines started his career as a train announcer at British Rail, where he remained for two years, before moving to study economics at the London School of Economics. Leaving with an honours degree in economics and sociology, he ended up taking on multiple journalistic roles throughout his early career, including at the Daily Mirror, The Asian Wall Street Journal and the South China Morning Post.
In 1995, Vines joined Bloomberg as markets editor, and later became the publication’s restaurant critic in 2004. Having worked in politics for most of his career until that point, moving to food was quite the jump for the journalist. He reportedly told an interviewer in 2020 that, ‘I simply put my hand up for the post and volunteered that I had covered food and dining while at the South China Morning Post. I hadn’t, but I got the job and have been grateful of it ever since.' He was named chief food critic in 2008.
Following a successful 25-year career at Bloomberg, Vines retired in 2021. Unable to give up restaurant writing entirely, he continued to report on food in another capacity, launching an independent reviewing platform with close friend Pierre Koffmann – Koffmann & Vines – boasting almost a century of experience between them.
Vines was known for his flamboyant dress sense, irrevocable kindness and innate sense of fun. The critic was often spotted at parties and award shows across the capital, and even his retirement bash, which was hosted at M Restaurant, was an all-singing, all-dancing affair with a wealth of big-names in attendance. Asma Khan, Fergus and Margot Henderson, Russell Norman, Nieves Barragán Mohacho and Vivek Singh all raised a glass to the writer.
The news of his passing was announced on Instagram by his friend Pierre Koffmann, who wrote: ‘RIP @richard.vines. THE REST IS SILENCE’.
Tributes for the critic have been pouring in on social media. Jason Atherton commented in a post that: ‘We are devastated to learn of Richard’s passing. Our industry has lost one of the truly good guys today, one of the loveliest people you could ever meet. Richard was deeply loyal, incredibly kind, and someone who supported me as a young chef when I was still growing, helping me in so many ways.’
While many of the comments underneath Koffmann’s post see chefs and friends sharing their condolences. Sabrina Gidda commented: ‘Such sad news - condolences to all of his friends and loved ones’.
While Adam Handling (Frog and Ugly Butterfly) wrote: ‘Richard was always there for me when I started out and along my journey. A true inspiration and gentleman. The world has lost a very very good person.’