Turbot and hollandaise, the Seafood Restaurant
Taste of the far east, Rick Stein, Porthleven
years – getting the restaurant up and running alongside juggling life as parents bringing up their three sons, Ed, Jack and Charlie – that they almost didn’t have time to eat. They would drum up business by putting notices on vehicles in the local car parks and cara- van sites, as well as announcing details of the restaurant through a loud hailer. Yet as success came their way, initially through winning awards for the restaurant and Rick’s books and later through wider television exposure – the first BBC series, Taste of the Sea, was screened in 1995 – the couple remained grounded and almost bemused at the attention that came their way. When Rick was asked to deliver a speech at the Chef’s Conference, hosted by The Caterer, in the early 1990s, he did so with a graciousness and warmth which endeared him to delegates – and highlighted his natural ability at being able to perform in front of an audience. But
www.thecaterer.com “I couldn’t
delegate, I thought I was the only one
who could do it” Rick Stein
behind the scenes, he suffered nerves and doubts about his abilities. Ultimately, an in-built caution, together with a lack of ego, has held back the spread- ing of the Stein wings until now. There was also an unwillingness to create a manage- ment structure for the business as Rick and Jill were initially unwilling to let go of day-to- day operations. “I was terrible in my 20s and
30s, I couldn’t delegate, I thought I was the only one who could do it,” says Rick. But, of course all that changed in the run-
up to the divorce in 2007/8. By this time Rick, winner of the Catey Chef Award in 1999, was spending a great deal of time out of the country, either on TV work or with his new partner Sarah, who he married in 2011. Jill was ever-present, involved in the growth and marketing of the business, as well as designing new restaurants or bedrooms. How- ever, it became inevitable that managers would need to be appointed. As a result, the daily operation of the business was taken over by David Sharland, who looked after food produc- tion and front-of-house service, while Rupert Wilson oversaw the bedrooms, retail outlets, cookery school and sales and marketing.
Complementary skills Today, following the departure of Sharland
March 2016 | Best of Chef | 35
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY SIMON BURT, DAVID GRIFFEN, MARK ASHBEE AND SCABETTI
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