How long have you been a chef and where did you train?

I have been a chef for 25 years.

I went to Barnfield College in Luton.

Why did you decide to follow this career path?

It’s a great vehicle for creativity. I was inspired by my college lecturer Paul Ward to go to work in London where my passion for food developed.

What is your ethos behind the dishes you create?

We serve honest food which is reflective of the seasons and also food that is accessible to a wider demographic – we’re not posh.

We like to call our style of cooking ‘Ronseal cookery’ – it does what it says on the menu.

Who is your foodie hero?

All our local suppliers.

From Amanda Stradling at Veggies Galore, Phil Bevan at Ty Mawr Organics for our veg, Bryn Derw Farm and Madgetts Farm for our poultry and Welsh venison, Pen yr Wrlod lamb and Neil Powell Butchers, plus countless small farmgate producers for our meat.

This names just a few, but they have all set out to grow and produce top quality products and are doing it with passion and aplomb.

What do you think about the way food, restaurants and chefs have become ‘sexy’?

It’s ridiculous – I fail to see the correlation of sweating in a kitchen for 18 hours a day and sexy.

Anyone who says it is sexy isn’t working hard enough.

You’ve got the night off to spend a quiet evening at home and you want something to eat, what would you have?

Peanut butter and jam sarnies with a packet of Nik Naks and a nice glass of Chardonnay.