Chef Revelations – Andrew Fairlie
What was your first job?
Delivering lemonade off the back of a lorry, aged 14
What was your first job in catering?
Polishing glasses
What do you normally have for breakfast?
Large coffee and muesli
What do you do to relax?
Play on my mountain bike
What's your favourite restaurant?
Pierre Gagnaire, Paris
What's your favourite hotel?
Soho Hotel
What's your favourite cuisine?
Thai
Which ingredient do you hate the most?
Wild rice
Are there any foods/ingredients that you refuse to cook with?
Brains, farmed salmon, wild rice, any endangered species
What flavour combinations do you detest?
Banana and custard
Which people in catering have you most admired?
Michel Roux and Danny Meyer
Which person gave you the greatest inspiration?
My dad. Hard working, loyal, well read, honest, loving and all round good guy.
What irritates you most about the industry?
Gossip
What daily newspaper/website do you read?
BBC News, Daily Record for sport
If not yourself, who would you rather have been?
Scotland's first minister
Describe your ultimate nightmare
Stuck in a lift with Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher
What is your favourite prepared food product?
Dried pasta
Who would play you in a film about your life?
Ewan McGregor, at least he would get the accent right
What's your favourite music?
Rock in the morning and jazz in the evening
What's your favourite book?
The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson - I couldn't put them down
What's your favourite drink?
Krug
Who would be in your fantasy brigade?
Michel Guérard, pastry; Joël Robuchon, sauce; Pierre Gagnaire, fish; Pascal Bardot, larder; me and Michel Roux on the pass; Claude Bosi and Sat Bains on the pots; Charlize Theron to wipe our brows
Andrew Fairlie, chef-patron, Restaurant Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagle
