Window of opportunity
Most chefs would kill for a view out of the kitchen window - even a shaft of daylight without a view. So offer a breathtaking river vista and combine with a challenging career move and you're on to a winner when it comes to attracting a head chef.
The two lures persuaded Andy Johns to take up the reins as head chef at the 60-bedroom Petersham hotel in Richmond, Surrey. When he took over there two-and-a-half years ago, the hotel, halfway up Richmond Hill and overlooking Petersham Meadows as they sweep down to a bend in the Thames, was looking to raise the dining profile of its Nightingales restaurant.
Johns, who at the time lived near the Petersham in Roehampton - although today he lives in Gillingham, Kent - was familiar with the hotel which, he says, had a reputation for being "too expensive for the younger crowd". However, an advert in Caterer stating that for the first time in 12 years the hotel was recruiting a new head chef, tempted Johns to try to change local perception of it. "Nobody wants to take on a job they can't improve. I knew it would be a challenge, but I knew I could make a difference," Johns explains.
He is undoubtedly rising to that challenge. Before his arrival, Nightingales had never received any detailed recognition from any of the food guides, but in the 2002 AA Restaurant Guide it achieved two rosettes and the 39-year-old chef's ambition is to win even greater accolades in the future. "Accolades aren't the be-all and end-all and I'm certainly not going to crucify the boys if they make a mistake. But we all have to work long hours and so it's good to have something that everyone is working towards."
The hotel general manager, Philip Warden, has proved an enormous support and encouragement to Johns. "He once worked as a chef at the Ritz and is a great foodie," Johns says. "He eats out a lot and is always helpful with ideas." With new restaurant manager Christophe Leroy in place - all the elements are ready to take the Petersham forward.
One of the first moves that Johns made to update the menu in Nightingales was to reduce its size. Previously there was a choice of 15 dishes at each course. Now the full à la carte menu, available at dinner, offers six starters, seven main courses and seven desserts. "There was some resistance from regular customers at first, but it allows us to introduce a few complex dishes, as well as ensuring that we are always consistent," says Johns, who changes the à la carte menu five times a year.
At lunch, the monthly-changing set-price menu - £14.50 for two courses and £20 for three - gives the kitchen an opportunity to try out dishes which will progress on to the à la carte. For instance, the current main-course dish of steamed turbot, served with crisp potatoes, pak choi and bourguignonne garnish (£19.50) started life as a salmon dish served with a bourguignonne sauce. "The sauce, which is made from red wine, button onions and pancetta, was a little too rich for the salmon, but it works very well with the turbot," Johns says.
He has introduced a more contemporary edge to the menu, which at first was not always appreciated by customers. "When I first arrived I put a foie gras and pear terrine on the menu, but it didn't sell," he says. "Just recently I decided to give it another go and now people are ordering it. Perhaps they are now trusting what we are doing." Served as a starter, the terrine (£11.50) is made from foie gras that has been marinated in port and Madeira, and layered with pears poached in a liquor spiced with cinnamon and peppercorns. After being pressed and baked, the terrine is sliced and served with a Madeira jelly and toasted brioche.
In the summer, seafood and fish dominate. Current starters include pan-fried red mullet and basil soup (£5.50) and seared scallops, pea purée, mint noisette butter (£11), while main courses include chargrilled tuna, wild mushroom risotto, sage butter (£16.50) and roast sea bass, summer vegetables, tomato consommé (£17).
Meat lovers have a choice of roast rack of lamb, loin and kidney brochette, ratatouille, fondant potato (£18) or veal chop, cèpes and lentils, confit fennel (£18). Each day the menu is supplemented by two or three specials, depending on what is available from the suppliers - London-based Daily Fish and Cove of Poole in Dorset. "We might have some good lobsters in and I'll either serve them simply grilled with some herb butter or cook them according to a customer's request. Today I've got some nice razor clams and I'll probably stir-fry them with some leeks and a little sherry vinegar."
While Johns has gone a long way to modernise the menu, he still has to consider a considerable proportion of his customer base that want something traditional. As a result, the à la carte is supplemented by five classic dishes such as a starter of Petersham crab salad with celeriac rémoulade (£9) and chargrilled Dover sole with herb butter (£25).
Johns, supported by sous chefs Russell Williams and Keith Howland, is hoping to employ more staff to reach his ideal number of 15 chefs. In particular he is looking for a pastry chef to head a busy team of three to look after the desserts and afternoon teas. Among the desserts set to impress is a hot mango soufflé with crème fraîche ice-cream.The soufflé is served inside a sweet pastry case, giving a contrast between the crisp base and the soft soufflé.
A summer fruit assiette - a summer pudding, marinated strawberries in a brandy snap chocolate case and a raspberry parfait - is another to make an impact. This is offered alongside such classics as a caramelised sharp lemon tart and a Grand Marnier brûlée.
Now that he has firmly put his stamp on the Nightingales menu, Johns hopes the restaurant will attract a younger clientele. "Maybe we're a little formal," he says. "We hope that changes we're making to the uniforms of the waiting staff from black trousers, black waistcoats and white shirts to black trousers, blue shirts and white aprons will help to create a more relaxed environment. People tend to regard us as a special-occasion venue, somewhere to spend their first wedding night or celebrate an anniversary. We would like to be able to attract people in on a more regular basis."
To this end, refurbishment of the 76-seat restaurant early next year will no doubt help, with the rather dated "clubby" feel of the place being replaced by a lighter, more contemporary decor. What will not change, of course, will be the domination of the restaurant by one of the most glorious views of London.
Andy Johns in a jiffy
WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO SOLVE THE RECRUITMENT CRISIS?
Offer fewer hours with more money.
WHAT IS YOUR MOST RECENT COOKERY BOOK PURCHASE? Gordon Ramsay's Just Desserts.
MOST OVERRATED INGREDIENT? Lobster
GREATEST INDUSTRY LEADER? Gordon Ramsay. Look at the people who have worked for him - they've all done so well.
WHAT DO YOU DISLIKE MOST ABOUT THE INDUSTRY?
The hours.
HOW DO YOU RELAX? I drive my bike. It's a tool to get to work, but I also find it relaxing. It's a BMW RGS 1150 - so it's the ultimate commuting bike.
FAVOURITE FOOD? I go for nice meaty dishes - very rustic, strong flavours.
Andy Johns: career to date
Brought up in Plymouth, Johns attended his local catering college before moving to London for a four-year apprenticeship at the London Hilton on Park Lane. He then moved to the Mirabelle, when Herbert Berger was head chef, before returning to Plymouth for 14 months to be part of the opening team of the new Copthorne hotel.
On returning to London, Johns joined Ramada Hotels for a year before moving to the Portman Inter-Continental hotel as junior sous chef under executive chef David Dorricott. He stayed for "four good years", leaving as executive sous chef. Johns's first head chef position was at the Roof Gardens, Kensington, a diverse venue offering banqueting as well as a private members' restaurant.
In 1996 he joined Conran Restaurants as senior sous chef at the Butlers Wharf Chop House, and within four months was promoted to head chef. After a short stint at the Dorchester, Johns took a break from the kitchen and worked for Daily Fish. "I wanted to do something different," he says.
After returning to the kitchen in the capacity of running hospitality at the BBC for Sutcliffe Catering, Johns was appointed head chef at the Petersham hotel - privately owned since 1978 by the Dare family - at the end of 1999.
Foie gras terrine (serves 15)
Assiette of summer fruits (serves 30)
