In a new interview, celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal has revealed his strong feelings about diners who take pictures of their food in his restaurants.
Speaking to the Radio Times, Blumenthal admitted that he has had to resist the urge to intervene when he sees patrons snapping pictures for Instagram. He also admitted that the debate around social media in restaurants has extended to his kitchen, with Blumenthal and his team discussing whether they should ban the taking of photos altogether.
“At The Fat Duck, we’ve debated this for several years now. If we say to people, ‘Your food’s going cold’, you put up a barrier between you and the diner,” said the 53 year old.
Blumenthal is well-known for creating visually stunning dishes that play with flavour and perception, especially as this three Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck in Bray. However, the chef clearly isn’t a fan of diners caring more about taking pictures of their food than eating it. “I’ve been very tempted [to intervene]. We did it once in Australia because somebody was taking pictures with a flash, which affected other tables. It’s a really tricky thing.”
Blumenthal is known for dishes that play with perception, like his famous 'meat fruit'
“Social media is such a big part of our lives, our sight has become almost the more important sense rather than smell or taste. If I see something beautiful like a sunset, I try to be in the moment, then take a picture afterwards.”
Somewhat ironically, the chef’s new TV show is inspired by the “food porn” movement, which has seen chefs and restaurant goers create ever more outlandish dishes to post for social media’s consumption. The show, airing on both Channel 4 and Netflix, is called Crazy Delicious and supposedly features the world’s first edible television set.
Speaking about the show, Blumenthal said: “Unlike The X Factor, we celebrate what they’ve done as opposed to humiliating them and kicking them off. And they made some great dishes.”
In more celebrity chef news, we don’t think Jamie Oliver would approve of what this former Jamie’s Italian site is being turned into.