][3]It’s a strange irony that while sales of ready meals are expected to continue their rise so does the demand for cookery courses. Brian Maule, chef and owner of Glasgow’s much admired Chardon D’Or, has been stepping up to the masterclass plate since the December of 2008 and has just announced the schedule for this year’s lessons.
A masterclass day at the Chardon d’Or doesn’t exactly sound like the Marines’ boot camp. It begins at a leisurely 11:30am with a glass of champagne on arrival before guests watch Brian’s cookery demonstration. The demo is followed by the arduous task of a two course lunch in the restaurant and then coffee and hand-made chocolates.
‘There is a huge appetite in Scotland for learning how to cook good quality, seasonal produce,’ says Brian. ‘Our customers want to be able to re-create the experience of a fine dining restaurant in their homes and this is a relaxing and fun way to teach them some of the tricks from the professional kitchen that are guaranteed to impress their family and friends at dinner parties.’
As an added bonus, those who attend the masterclasses will have a great opportunity to drop some big kudos names at their dinner parties. Brian worked for the Roux brothers at Le Gavroche in London so graduates of the Chardon D’Or cookery class could easily drop one or two Albert or Michel Roux related anecdotes into the conversation and pass them off as their own.
The £40 cookery demonstrations start on Saturday May 22. In the past, they have been heavily over-subscribed so it’s worth booking in advance.