Cooking: the only life for me

Raymond Blanc, proprietor at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, tells all

1. What was your first job?

Nurse

2. What was your first job in catering?

Waiter

3. What do you normally have for breakfast?

Muesli, banana, apple compote, loads of strong coffee

4. What do you do to relax?

Read, listen to music, be with friends

5. Which is your favourite restaurant?

Fredy Girardet, Switzerland

6. What is your favourite drink?

Ricard on a sunny day

7. Which ingredients do you hate the most?

Malt vinegar, baked beans

8. What do you always carry with you?

Pictures of my sons

9. How would you best describe your desk?

An organised mess that my assistant Elena is forever trying to tidy

10. Which person in catering have you most admired?

Michael Guerard

11. Which person gave you the greatest inspiration?

None

12. Cast away on a desert island, what luxury would you take?

Swiss Army Knife

13. Which daily newspapers do you read?

None

14. If not yourself, who would you rather have been?

Edouard de Pomaine

15. If you hadn't gone into catering, where do you think you would be today?

I would have wasted away

16. Describe your ultimate nightmare?

Loss of taste

17. Where and when was your last holiday?

Malaysia, June 1994

18. Tell us a secret…

No, my life is an open book

19. What irritates you most about hotels?

Nothing

20. When was the last time you had a hamburger?

With my son, who has twice tried to convert me, eight months ago