I so loved my first research chat with Thomas about Regenerative Farming & Carbon Credits that when the opportunity came up to record a podcast I took the chance to travel across the country and meet him face to face. I adore Thomas’s idea and the knowledge he has gained as a fourth generational farmer in Cambridgeshire . In a nutshell Thomas spent a bit of downtime in lockdown pondering how to solve a global problem. But he did that looking out of his window in a very real, local and achiev...
Jun 28, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 1Ep. 136
We are off to the world of events. Something I’d perhaps inadvertently neglected in my conversations around the world of hospitality. Certainly a part of the sector that todays guest Adam Phelps feels like the government has forgotten when it comes to recognition of the pandemics impact and financial support. Adam has been working at the top end of prestigious events for 22 years. Chatting through some of the choreography and planning required to deliver for clients who expect perfection, and ar...
Jun 14, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Many of your will know today’s guest Nathan Outlaw from his various TV appearances, Michelin stars, all round love of hospitality and the author of 5 well regarded books. Chatting to Nathan you can see why he’s such a popular hospitality human. Relaxed, positive, knowledgeable, with no pretentiousness and happy to chat about the challenges, lows and highs of his hospitality adventure. Nathan was generous with his time in this conversation, where we touch on just how tough an impact the pandemic ...
May 31, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Season 1Ep. 134
Stefan Leser is a bit different to my normal guests on this podcast since he is based in Hong Kong and rather than being a little local independent Langham Hospitality has some big backers and a number of properties spread throughout the globe. It is that global perspective that I was really keen to explore with Stefan. There are some really interesting things we can learn from people like Stefan and Langham Hotels, who are operating across countries and across borders. I wanted to understand ho...
May 17, 2021•1 hr 16 min•Season 1Ep. 133
I think you are going to fall in love with Dan Austin, today’s guest, and the Lake District Farmers, for a whole heap of reasons. Firstly the Lake District is just an utterly stunning part of the world, so anything we can do to support it, and the way of life that has been going on there for hundreds of years, I personally think is important. Traditional farming, where animals can roam free on the fells for me is a big part of this. Not only does it protect a way of life, and lead to happy anima...
May 03, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 132
Less so someone’s journey through hospitality this week, and more of a deep dive into a topic I hope hope you will find useful. Today I’m chatting to Victoria Searl, founder of Data Hawks. I’m fairly techie and I’ve found it frustrating over the years seeing the potential of data in the hospitality sector. Cleary unlike for example selling double glazing, we operate in a social space where people often want to hear from us. Where guests are happy to take photos and share them to social media, wh...
Apr 19, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 131
Phil Haughton has had a great food adventure over many decades. He has just written a book ‘Food for Thought’ that brings together this journey, combined with recipes and producers he’s met along the way. Phil’s current business is the Better Food stores and cafes dotted around Bristol. That combination of combining the hospitality of a cafe drawing people into the building and then hopefully inspiring them to leave with some exceptionally ethical and delicious food and drink is the evolution of...
Apr 05, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 130
Hamish is a brave soul who at the age of 41, with his own business and a career working around the wine and whisky trade decided that his number one love in the world was plants. Not only was he brave enough to sell the business, he was crazy enough to have no idea where his next adventure would take him. He pretty much let the plants decide. He went off on a learning journey meeting an inspirational medicine man along the way. A dream and a country walk and soon enough he’d stumbled across a be...
Mar 22, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 129
Unusually we recorded this one, with my golden retriever 'Jasper' whilst giving him a walk around a 130 acre country estate. But more importantly I was joined by Darren Venables, the Estate Manager at the Chewton Glen Hotel down in the New Forest in Hampshire. Darren has been working at the Chewton Glen for over 30 years so really has seen a huge amount of change, and as far as the grounds are concerned has curated much of that himself. And our wide ranging conversation typifies the reason for s...
Mar 08, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 128
Sarah has been pretty vocal throughout the pandemic in representing the Scottish Hospitality Sector. I wanted to chat with Sarah in the first instance about how somebody goes from being the MD of a decent sized company in the city of London, to buying an ex Little Chef by the side of an obscure road in rural Scotland. Along the way driving revenue to over £1.7 million per year from a pretty small footprint. And secondly how Sarah had embraced technology to revolutionise how this road side cafe o...
Mar 01, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 127
Chris Davies is founder and CEO of Harvest London, a couple of vertical farms in the city of London. Chris is going to help us understand how vertical farms could be part of the solution to feeding the planet. As Chris puts it, this will be part of the solution and not all food will be, or can be grown this way. But the benefits of growing food where it is to be consumed, rather than potentially 1000’s of miles away, the benefits of harvesting food and getting it to the restaurant door within fo...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 126
It was quite a few months ago when the opportunity crossed my desk to interview Tim Hall, who is the executive chef at Burgh Island. It caught my eye because Burgh Island is such a unique location, as a tidal island just off the south coast of Devon. I was intrigued to understand a bit more around the complexity of running not one, but three restaurants, on an island that for many hours of the day cannot be accessed at all, or certainly not without its challenges. Add to that Tim’s reputation fo...
Feb 15, 2021•50 min•Season 1Ep. 125
Lee Cash was always driven to become self employed in the hospitality sector. He learnt his craft with some of the best, from Robin Sheppard at Bespoke Hotels and chef Raymond Blanc . But all the time driven and motivated to test himself, to learn all he could and get ready to put into practise the art of perfecting 1000 little details to make his own venues successful. I always enjoy chatting to people who really have proper hospitality in their soul. Who understand how spaces feel. How the lig...
Feb 08, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 124
We’re going big this week, and actually I don’t mean a big podcast, but a big business, chatting to Jonathan Neame, the chief executive of Shepherd Neame Brewers. With 320 pubs and pre pandemic turnover of £150 million they are bigger than the normal business I chat to on this podcast, but they have a really interesting family history. Having been around for over 300 years, and maintained family ownership I think they qualify as having had a very inspiring independent hospitality adventure. Topi...
Feb 01, 2021•41 min•Season 1Ep. 123
From honing his skills in hotels on an employed basis, to learning the art of the restauranteur with his own venues, to taking all of that knowledge and finally getting to apply it in his very own hotel with his partner Rob, Tim has been on a great hospitality journey. And the captains club is a special kind of place. Wether simply attracting the locals for a light lunch, or a few cocktails as the sun sets on the river, or mingling with famous guests such as Hugh Grant or the Gallagher brothers,...
Jan 25, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 122
Michel Roux Jr is a true 'Human of Hospitality' who was practically born in a kitchen when his Mum went into labour whilst working in his Dad 'Albert Roux's' restaurant. Michel is well known, partly simply through the recognition of his Dad and Uncle opening Le Gavroche in 1967 and becoming the first British restaurant to be awarded 3 Michelin stars, but also via his extensive work on television through shows such as Masterchef the professionals, and most recently 'remarkable places to eat'. Mic...
Jan 18, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Season 1Ep. 121
Richard is a great example of a 'Human of Hospitality' having worked in the sector almost all of his working life. Richard started the business with his Dad and his family, and recognises all that his family risked, even selling grandmas house to purchase a run down manor, covered in vines and a somewhat dilapidated air. They started small with only 7 bedrooms, but had a vision and a yearning to create something special and to look after people. That journey was tough in those earlier years and ...
Jan 11, 2021•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 120
Emma has had a fascinating career working in the heart of government in the EU, in part negotiating trade deals. Great timing for a chat that starts with Emma’s thoughts on the EU and our opportunities and risks as we hurtle towards departure. You’ll be pleased to hear Emmas is pretty optimistic on post EU trade, particularly where the export of exceptional British beer is concerned of course. We also chat about Emma’s experience liaising directly with the government on the behalf of the BBPA’s ...
Dec 21, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Season 1Ep. 119
A very different style of episode this week. Rather than a detailed conversation with one awesome human of hospitality we have 9 great humans, most of whom have been previous guests. And we have just one topic of conversation. Why they are supporting the campaign for a Minister for Hospitality . This campaign was launched by Claire Bosi but had been sat languishing at around 38k signatures on the government petition website. To be debated in parliament 100k signatures are required. Robin Hutson,...
Dec 13, 2020•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 118
Surely schools are the place to improve knowledge on food, on what we should eat, to inspire a life long love for whole food and to understand the difference between real food and processed food. To understand that food is essential for life, and that in the modern world nobody should be going hungry. To try and fathom how on earth it is possible for the same areas struck be food poverty and lack of access to food to at the same time be suffering from diabetes and obesity due to the shocking qua...
Dec 07, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 117
I love Carly’s story and her energy and ethos and her general hospitality adventure. As you will hear Carly went from a small wooden hut, to an expensive hobby, to raising 1/2 a million pounds and building a beautiful cafe in the park. Along this journey Carly realised that people were the key to all that she was achieving. Carly, her husband 'Ian' and their team won multiple awards for their cafe. Particularly around employing disabled team members and looking after the local community, who tre...
Nov 30, 2020•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 116
Set in 58 acres of parkland at the end of a magnificent sea loch, The Torridon has one of the most spectacular and idyllic locations in the country. What Dan, his wife Rohaise and the team have created in the Torridon is awesome. So remote with the challenges of staffing and weather and access and much more, yet they have an incredible reputation. As treasurer of the Master Innholders, Chairman of Pride of Britain Hotels and Director of Luxury Scotland Consortium Dan’s also got a pretty broad pe...
Nov 23, 2020•1 hr 25 min•Season 1Ep. 115
Zoe is from the 'ecological land cooperative' (ELC) - a 'Not For Profit' trying to solve some of the problems of excessively large farms, often mono-culture dominated and using too many chemicals, having a very detrimental impact on the land and ecosystem. I speak to many people being inspired to enter the world of hospitality, not only to sell better quality more ethical food to the consumer, but also interested in how to grow this food and actually produce it in the first place. If you're inte...
Nov 16, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 114
Rocco Bova is living quite the hospitality adventure. I wanted to catch up with him for a few reasons. Firstly he’s running a health resort in Mexico, a fascinating country. Sometimes a reputation for drug cartels, kidnapping and more recently a catastrophic impact of COVID-19. But Rocco loves Mexico, and he’s lived in enough countries to be able to make an objective decision. Secondly, with people maybe questioning why they work in hospitality and wondering what the future might hold, Rocco dem...
Nov 09, 2020•1 hr 19 min•Season 1Ep. 113
If you don’t know his name, you’ll certainly know some of the venues Nicholas has worked and some of the businesses he’s developed. Nicholas without a doubt is a bona fide 'human of hospitality'. It’s been his life’s work. From cutting his teeth at the Chewton Glen working for the likes of Robin Hutson , to becoming the MD at Le Manoir and being Raymond Blanc’s right hand, man whilst working in partnership with Richard Branson and the virgin group. And having learnt from some of the most inspira...
Nov 02, 2020•1 hr 23 min•Season 1Ep. 112
David Begg is one of those hospitality obsessives regular listeners will know I love to meet. Another one of those humans that has a little tiny seedling of an idea, that turns into an obsession that turns into an utterly awesome product that then enhances all of our worlds of food, drink and hospitality. And this time I’m talking about Kombucha. But not just any Kombucha, but the sort that is now sitting on the menus of many of the finest Michelin starred restaurants around the country proudly ...
Oct 26, 2020•1 hr 26 min•Season 1Ep. 111
I love the Pig Hotels and their obsession on the best local produce. This extends to their beautiful kitchen gardens where group chef James Golding gave me a tour in a previous podcast episode. After a recent chat with Ollie's Dad and CEO Robin Hutson , I was excited to arrange to go to the Pig nursery in the New Forest and meet Ollie face to face and get to peruse his mother of seed planning spreadsheets. You’re going to learn just how much work goes into creating a kitchen garden for a hotel o...
Oct 19, 2020•1 hr 10 min•Season 1Ep. 110
Finally, we are doing a sustainability episode. And I say finally because regular listeners will know that sustainability comes up alot in my conversations when we think about farming and plant based diets and the impact on the environment of what we eat and drink. But what I’d not touched on thus far was the sustainability deep rooted into the actual design of venues and the business itself. Because surely it all starts there. If the restaurant itself is smashing its way through unnecessary fos...
Oct 12, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 109
Gregorie, from Blackthorn knows an incredible amount about salt. His family have been involved in salt for over 140 years. His Dad’s Dad Dad set up the business, but this latest venture is their first foray into the actual production of salt. You should probably pause this episode at this point and go to blackthornsalt.co.uk and take a look at this crazy big tower of thorns they have built on the edge of the ocean in Scotland. It will help you visualise what we are about to chat about. This incr...
Oct 05, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 108
José and I recorded this remotely and I really wish I’d gone to actually sit with him in his restaurant since he oozes hospitality out of every pore. José is famous for his 3 London restaurants and championing Spanish produce for many decades. José touches on his books and extensive travels through Spain and just how much he loves meeting other great humans and ensuring that their recipes are recorded and handed on to the next generations. We chat about his upbringing and some lovely memories ab...
Sep 28, 2020•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 107
