Chef
forward to the judging of the Menu of the Year Catey
All Menuwatches go
Creedy Carver duck, salsify, scarvita cabbage, red cabbage ketchup, sauce made from caramelised cream, cep, Sarawak pepper and truffle
Dilsk
It’s not surprising that the inspectors had their eyes on Stephens, given that his impressive CV includes stints with Tom Kerridge, Steve Drake, Marcus Eaves at Pied à Terre and opening Fera at Claridge’s as sous chef for Simon Rogan. The 24-cover fine dining restaurant that focuses on sustainable, zero-waste cooking occupies a semi-basement space in Drakes boutique hotel, which has recently been acquired by a Curious Group of Hotels and which also includes L’Hotel in Paris and the Portobello in London. “We were aware that Amarillo, the previ-
J
ous restaurant here, had closed down, so we knew that there was a space available and that Drakes had a good reputation,” says Stephens, who opened the restaurant with partner Madeleine Riches, who he had previ- ously worked with at 64 Degrees in Brighton Lanes where he was head chef and she was operations manager. “We approached the hotel. They weren’t really actively looking,
34 | The Caterer | 10 November 2023
ust five months after Tom Stephens opened his first restaurant, Dilsk in Brighton in April, it was listed in the Michelin Guide.
‘It’s super simple to look at but there’s a lot of work that goes into it” Tom Stephens
Tom Stephens’ award-winning cooking showcases local suppliers in a complex yet elegant menu. Andy Lynes reports
so we jumped in and they were quite happy to take us on.” There are three full-time chefs in the
kitchen, including Stephens, plus a part-time kitchen porter working shifts. The restaurant offers a 10-course ‘Full Tasting’ menu (£95) a six-course ‘Short Tasting’ menu (£55), both of which are available Monday to Saturday, and a set three-course lunch (£35), available Thursday to Saturday, which also includes the signature, Instagram-friendly laminated brioche rolls with nasturtium butter. Another signature is the oyster dish, which has been served as the first course on both tasting menus since the restaurant opened. “It’s an oyster shell filled with baked dilsk custard that’s topped with a lightly poached oyster, pickled radish, marinated trout roe and some vegetables, depending on what we can get in and what’s in season at the time. It’s in line with our ethos. Our forager Andy Gath- ercole brings in the dilsk, a type of seaweed, for us, along with salty fingers and purslane, and whatever he can find along the coastline.” The oyster and bread apart, Stephens says
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