Tom Aikens knows a thing or two about food – not only has he been cooking since the age of 16, but both his father and grandfather were wine merchants.
Serving hearty British classics, using seasonal produce and supporting local farmers, Tom Aikens has got a string of kitchens under his belt. StyleNest talks to Tom about food, family and the future to find out more about the life of one of Britain’s most inspirational chefs.
Your father and grandfather were in the wine industry. Did your family influence your career choice?
Absolutely. Since they were both in the industry, I was lucky enough to be introduced to great French food at a very early age. Also my mother was a great home cook, so from a young age, I would try to help her in the kitchen with making basic cakes, biscuits, jams – anything I could get my hands on.
You grew up in Norfolk, how important is it to you to use seasonal ingredients and locally sourced produce in your dishes?
We grew a lot of our own food in our garden at home, from Rhubarb, potatoes, cabbages, carrots, lettuces, pears, apples, raspberries, strawberries, leeks etc, I therefore learnt at an early age about growing veg in the different seasons. My mother even gave me and my brother, Robert a small part of the garden to grow our own vegetables. Hence why it is extremely important to me. I am completely committed to using the very best in local and seasonal ingredients whenever possible. At all my restaurants we work closely with British suppliers and farmers that are as passionate about growing as we are about cooking. I even try to visit some of the suppliers every so often with my team – I think it’s important for my staff to see where we source our ingredients from and I am a firm believer in supporting local business.
What impact did learning your trade with the likes of Jöel Robuchon, Pierre Koffman and Richard Neat have on you?
I’ve been fortunate enough to work alongside some of the world’s best chefs throughout my career. With Jöel Robuchon it was all about the details, details, details -everything was done with meticulous detail. Each plate was a piece of art and he would never ever take 2nd best. I have never worked for anyone that was so particular about the way a dish was presented.
With Pierre, it was all about the depth of flavour and simplicity of a dish, the look of the dish was was not always as important, but the taste was always spot on. I was in the brigade when it went from a 2 to a 3 star which was an amazing time.
Richard Neat was a demon in the kitchen in many ways and he had a particular style of food that had never been seen before in London when I worked with him in 93.
You opened your first restaurant, Tom Aikens in 2003, followed by your second, Tom’s Kitchen in 2006. What was the inspiration behind each restaurant?
Well both are very different as you may have seen, but they are both driven by a passion for using the best ingredients that are very much seasonal and locally sourced and having great relationships with suppliers.
Toms Kitchen idea came to me very simply, as it was based on what I liked in my family home: eating around a large wooden table in the kitchen, with people that you loved and cared for, in that happy go lucky family atmosphere – just as it was in my parents home. Then really giving the link between the farm and the chef – the whole story from farm to plate, back then this very new, nobody was doing this, I would say that I was one of the first.
I worked on a working farm when I left Pied a Terre at Daylesford Organic, I worked in the abattoir for around 3 months and on the farm. I saw everything that you would see on a farm and that’s when I thought of having that relationship with a farm and farmer with the knowledge of how the animal is treated from how it was reared and information about the farm and farmer related directly to the customers and making this a part of the dining experience at the restaurant. With a menu that has many options to suit a range of needs and requirements: from comfort food, to sharing dishes, light salads and hearty dishes. Food for large groups of friends, families, children and even screaming babies. The Communal seating and sharing food adds an at-home feel, like sitting around a kitchen table, and an open plan kitchen gives it that exciting atmosphere – all combined with a casual but attentive service.
Tom Aikens Restaurant on the other hand was the complete opposite to Toms Kitchen. I have always cooked in Michelin-starred restaurants ever since I started my career which helped to develop my creative mind. The inspiration is the creativity and a desire to develop new ideas and to always try new ideas, new techniques and different ingredients, making them balanced and harmonious as well. With attentive and friendly service, what more could one need?
You’ve recently launched another Tom’s Kitchen in London’s Canary Wharf and also Istanbul. Can you give StyleNest readers any exciting inside news on any current or future projects you might be working on?
We’re always looking at plans for further expansion. I’m working alongside my business partners London Doors on expanding the Tom’s Kitchen brand through London and the UK
We decided to close Tom Aikens Restaurant at the end of January 2014 and I’m looking to relocate to a more central London location later this year. I’m also in discussions about several international opportunities, one being with my brother in NY.
We’ve seen many chefs collaborate with supermarkets for a range of produce. Have you got any plans to bring out your own range of tasty treats that we can take home?
Not as yet, but who’s to say for next year? We have many things that we want to try out in our deli concept in Canary Wharf and this could be where we may start some very simple packaged items but something with supermarkets is definitely not on the horizon as yet.
Tom’s Kitchen offers hearty and homely, British cooking, where as your more formal restaurant Tom Aikens serves an interpretation of modern French cuisine. For those not lucky enough to have sampled your cooking, can you tell our readers a bit about what to expect on the menu?
At Tom Aikens Restaurant, we offer a seasonal a la carte menu that combines modern and innovative cooking that is very distinctive. I always love to make an impact in the way a dish looks as well as tastes. The menu for this season includes dishes, including rabbit fillet cooked with chervil, rabbit boudin, sorrel emulsion and nasturtiums; and crab with coriander, horseradish snow, coconut and crab vinaigrette; followed by braised and roasted piglet belly with burnt aubergine and smoked apple.
With Tom’s Kitchen offering a menu of British classics, what is your ultimate comfort food?
My ultimate comfort foods are a simple shepherds pie, 7 hour shoulder of lamb and you can’t beat a nice simple roast on a Sunday followed by a good crumble! I like to keep cooking simple when I’m at home.
Over the last few years, London has seen a revolution in dining out. Do you think we are becoming a culture where cooking at home is becoming a rarity?
No, I think that people are equally as interested in eating out as they are staying in and cooking for themselves. With the rise in popularity in food programmes, I think people are eager to try to re-create dishes for themselves at home, and as I have two little ones,, its even more important for me to cook at home on the weekends.
What inspires you to create new dishes? Any particular places or people?
I’m constantly inspired by my surroundings. When I have free time I like to read, travel and visit food markets, suppliers and other chef friends.
When you are not busy writing cooking books or running your restaurants, what do you do to sit back and relax?
I don’t have much time to relax, but when I do it has to be with my family, especially my daughter! I’m also a believer in keeping fit, so I always try to spend an hour at the gym every day and love to escape running.
Which are some of your favourite restaurants around the UK?
Le Champignon Sauvage
Daniel Clifford Midsummer house
Aiden Byrne Manchester House
L’Enclume Simon Rogan
Hand & Flowers in Marlow
Claude Bosi Hibiscus
What advice would you give our readers who want to set up their own business?
Make sure your offering is something you 100% believe in and that you are passionate and inspired about what you are creating, for restaurants they have to be consistent with the correct pricing structure.
Any top tips for mums who aren’t confident cooks? Any secrets how to get little ones to get excited about veggies?
I think that getting kids to eat vegetables can always be tricky but there are a few little tricks that you can use, depending on the age they are. For toddlers I would use naturally sweet root veg like, Swede, carrot, Butternut and sweet potato and make either a fine or coarse puree. If they are not going to eat this then stick a dollop of cottage cheese in it and they will lap it up.
For green vegetables and things like spinach, broccoli – which we know they might not like as much – use them in a classic Italian leftover dish called frittata. It is basically beaten eggs, seasoning and some fresh herbs lightly baked in a dish with the vegetables. This way the veg are hidden inside and they will not be able to tell what they are eating.
To get more confident in the kitchen takes time and sometimes can be a case of two steps back and one forward -even today I still make mistakes! It’s learning from mistakes that makes us better chefs and cooks.
My recommendation is to always take your time putting together a recipe, never rush it or try and get it done in a minimum amount of time – as working under pressure is when mistakes happen – read through the recipes at least twice or even several times if it’s a long one. Pick things that you know you can accomplish easily and then you can always change the recipes to your liking which is how you can test yourself and gain more confidence.
What advice would you give parents to help prepare time efficient, nutritious and tasty meals for the family?
Keep it simple and don’t try and do too much, keep to what you know well and best then don’t deviate from this too much at the beginning.
Things that are full of great proteins and fibre include various beans and seeds like quinoa. These are cheap and simple to cook, you can use them in different stews and casseroles.
Roasting vegetables at this time of year is a great treat, so vegetables like beetroot, butternut squash, sweet potato, should be used a lot as well, roast with a little honey, black pepper and finish with a little lemon juice.
We spoke to the lovely Tom Sellers recently who told us how much he admires you. Which chefs do you admire?
That’s so lovely to hear. I was delighted when Tom recently gained his first Michelin-star for Restaurant Story.
There are many chefs who I admire and have inspired me throughout my career. I have many great friends as chefs and its impossible to name all of them, we all have a huge amount of respect for each other, just because we all know how tough this business is. It was a real pleasure to recently work with Nobu Matsuhisa on the new Qatar Airways menus, he is so talented and has built such a recognisable brand and restaurant group. I also admire chefs such as Alain Ducasse or Michel Roux Jr who aside from being brilliant chefs are brilliant businessmen and have built empires for themselves.
Do you have a motto in life?
Without a great team we are nothing.
Book a table at Tom’s Kitchen here, www.tomskitchen.co.uk
Or try one of his recipes at home with this delicious blueberry pancake recipe.