Chef Revelations – Richard Bainbridge
What was your best subject at school? Drama
What was your first job? Bagging potatoes in a vegetable shop
What was your first job in catering? Washing up in local pub
What do you do to relax? Read cookbooks and go mountain biking - in Norfolk!
What is your favourite restaurant? The Ledbury
What is your favourite hotel? St John's Hotel - it has a great late supper menu
What is your favourite drink? Local ales
What is your favourite food/cuisine? Old English dishes
Which ingredient do you hate the most? Kidneys - they taste like p***!
Are there any foods/ingredients that you refuse to cook with? Foie gras, as it's not English and a bit of a taboo
Which person in catering have you most admired? Michel Roux Snr
Which person gave you the greatest inspiration? Michel Roux Snr and the Waterside Inn old head chef Russell Holborn
If you had not gone into catering, where do you think you would be now? I would say a postman, but as I'm dyslexic, it's probably not the best job for me, so cooking it is
What daily newspaper/website do you read?The Guardian and the bible that is Caterer and Hotelkeeper
Tell us a secret… I have a Superman tattoo on my bum
What irritates you most about the industry? The rat race - why can't we all just cook?
What's your favourite film?Rocky - it doesn't matter how many times you watch it, you still want the underdog to win
What is your favourite prepared product? Ox cheek at the moment but ask me next week and it will be something different
Who would be in your fantasy brigade? Michel Roux Snr, Waterside Inn, pastry; Russell Holborn, former head chef, Waterside Inn, anywhere; Johnny Spillings, Half Penny Bake House, pastry and baker; Nathan Outlaw, fish; Fergus Henderson, St John's, butchery/sauce - pure and simple!
Richard Bainbridge, head chef, Morston Hall
