‘Nightmares' chef joins Hartnett
Caterer can exclusively reveal that 24-year-old chef Claire Porter, who appeared in the 4 May episode of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, is to head south to London to take up a job in Angela Hartnett's brigade at the Connaught hotel.
The chef, from Lake District restaurant the Glass House, Ambleside, which featured last week in the Ramsay series, was complimented by the chef-restaurateur in the programme. A flattered Porter said: "He constantly made comparisons during filming between myself and Angela Hartnett."
Porter, like Hartnett, only began cheffing part-time after working front-of-house. She has never been to catering college and revealed that she had considered quitting the kitchen to run a bookshop, but that Ramsay had persuaded her to pursue a career as a chef.
Porter's boyfriend, Iain Waddell, also plans to relocate to London. He, too, drew praise from Ramsay in the programme.
Glass House owner Neil Farrell commented that he was pleased for the pair. He said: "Our head chef, Richard Collins, said that if they both weren't working in one of Ramsay's kitchens by next year, he would kick them down the motorway himself."
