][1]Interesting news from the Petersham Nurseries Café in Surrey. Their celeb chef Skye Gyngell has just quit her head chef position citing the business’ recently awarded Michelin star as a factor.
Essentially a posh cafe in a garden centre, Gyngell’s take on simple food, mostly grown on site, has been very fashionable for a number of years and the Michelin man sprinkled his star dust on the place last year.
According to Gyngell, the result was that ‘Since we got the star we’ve been rammed every single day, which is really hard for such a tiny restaurant.
‘And we’ve had lots more complaints. People have certain expectations of a Michelin restaurant but we don’t have cloths on the tables and our service isn’t very formal… if you’re used to eating at Marcus Wareing then they feel let down when they come here.’
It’s an interesting situation. Most chefs would swap their children for a star. Gyngell has called it a ‘curse’.
Gyngell is not alone in swerving Michelin. Marco Pierre White famously gave all his stars back. However, the tyre-seller’s guide is likely to remain highly influential for a long time to come and many chefs have welcomed the recognition that it brings.
Martin Wishart is one Scottish chef who has benefited from his Michelin stars at his Edinburgh restaurant and, more recently at his outpost in Cameron House. You can book into Martin Wishart at Loch Lomond through 5pm.