][1]Neil Forbes has had a bit of rocket ride since being awarded the Chef of the Year prize at this year’s Scottish Restaurant Awards sponsored by 5pm.
Currently the king of the kitchen range at Cafe St Honore, the chef has been busy fronting a short promo film for VisitScotland and the government-led Year of Food and Drink initiative which comes to a close in May.
Dedicated to the wonders of Scottish food, the film shows Neil chatting to producers at the Edinburgh Farmers’ Market, buying some of their goodies and then returning to his kitchen to rustle up a dish of Perthshire lamb with East Lothian root veg, wilted greens and pearl barley.
Details haven’t been firmed up at the time of writing but it should go live very soon and you’ll be able to see it on the VisitScotland Surprise Yourself site.
Until then, you can enjoy this clip of Neil being interviewed backstage at the Scottish Restaurant Awards. Throughout the interview, Neil’s passion for locally produced food and his determination to pass on traditional chef skills to new recruits is abundantly clear. If you have ever wondered what makes a Chef of the Year then the answers are all here.
If you want to try Neil’s cooking, there are sample menus on the restaurant’s 5pm page here. There is a tiny courtyard at the back of Cafe St Honore and, apparently, Neil has filled it with a small forest of herbs, veg and fruit. If it can grown in Scotland then it is probably sprouting there now.
The Scotsman’s Gaby Soutar went along recently and loved it. You can see her review here.