Calcot Hotels appoints new executive chef
Gloucestershire-based Calcot Hotels has named Michael Stenekes as the group's new executive chef.
Based at the flagship Calcot Manor near Tetbury, Stenekes' principal focus will be the 35-bedroom hotel's restaurants. He will lead and support head chefs Michael Benjamin in the Conservatory restaurant and Francesco Volgo in the Gumstool Inn.
He will also steer other kitchen operations within the hotel, spa, outside catering arm Calcot Kitchens and the Westonbirt Restaurant, which is operated by Calcot Kitchens.
Graham Grafton, executive chef at nearby sister properties Barnsley House and the Village Pub will also draw on his support and overall direction. The same approach will be adopted at the Lord Crewe Arms in Blanchland on the Durham-Northumberland border, which will be relaunched this winter.
Canadian-born Stenekes joins Calcot from London's Savoy hotel where he was executive sous chef since the property's 2010 re-opening. Previous roles include executive sous chef at the Four Seasons Hotels in Damascus and Amman, and chef de partie at The Fat Duck in Bray.
Commenting on the new appointment, Calcot Hotels chairman Richard Ball said that 2013 has got off to a "cracking pace" with the recent relaunch of the Conservatory restaurant and the Forestry Commission's appointment of Calcot Kitchens to relaunch and operate the Westonbirt Restaurant and Cafe from this spring.
"Michael clearly shares our vision and is equally excited about consolidating and improving successes while also taking our wide-ranging activities forward," he said.
"He will also take a strong interest in purchasing and the achievement of gross profit margins throughout the group in addition to having a central role in chef recruitment and health and safety arrangements across our hotels and restaurants."
Stenekes added: "As a chef, I am greatly stimulated by heading in new directions and drawing upon experiences from elsewhere, marrying particular contexts with the universal love of great food and entertainment.
"My time in the Middle East and then in London has taught me so much about how to temper tradition and innovation alongside each other and how to consider what will delight the customer on a particular occasion and within a particular setting.
"The lure of all that the Cotswolds and Calcot Manor have to offer, in such distinctive style and with such quality, is truly exciting. I know I will get a real buzz as I look to the great local produce, its seasonality and the best way to match all of this to guests' tastes in a relaxed location where flair, creativity, quality and value are still highly sought."
Calcot Hotels catering arm wins five year Forestry Commission contract >>
Calcot Hotels to relaunch historic Northumberland property >>
