So what has happened since I last posted on
here, quite a lot to be honest. So at the end of 2014 I was lucky enough to
open Pilots Bar and Kitchen in terminal 5, Heathrow and that was up to the
point the biggest challenge I have faced in my career. The planning and stress
that went into getting that open 3 days before Christmas 2014 was incredible
but I was lucky enough to be part of a great opening team, Hannah my GM was
immense, Kieran from head office always in the kitchen with me pushing to get
it right and peter looking after Terminal 3 for me so I could concentrate on
Pilots.
After 14 months at Heathrow I decided it was time for a change and I
didn’t really know what I wanted to do next or where I wanted to work. I
wondered should I go back home, should I ask Lizzie and Elouise to up sticks
and move across the country to start afresh again or should I keep pushing and
looking for something close to where we live currently which after 8 years is
now home.
With some gentle pushing by Paul at
Towngate I found myself sitting in a meeting room at Thorpe Park being
interviewed for their head chef role. I have never walked away from a first
interview feeling as excited and wanting the chance to at least interview
again. It was a big decision to leave the sort of world I had been working in
and join a resort theme park but I remember talking to Lizzie about it for
hours over the next few days as I weighed up my options. Lizzie really pushed
me think about what Merlin could offer me and what I could give them back.
Ultimately I decide that I wanted to join
Thorpe Park and see where the journey would take me. It has been a whirlwind,
its been crazy but I absolutely love it I work with a awesome team and have
great boss that really wants us to all succeed as a hotel team.
My first year
at Thorpe has been full of ups and downs, the food has improved almost beyond
recognition, both FOH and BOH have not had the easiest years in regards to
recruitment but the teams we have couldn’t have worked any harder than they did
and I am so proud of how far we have come #TeamFins.
I have been very lucky in the fact that Sarah our F&B manager has helped,
steered and supported me though so much this year; honestly she has been my
rock.
I look forward to getting our team back
together and showing them what we have planned for 2016, we are not going to
sit back and just repeat what we did last year we have big plans for the 2016
season and hopefully in 12 months time I can do another post and have some highlights
to share with you all.
I’m sitting at home with music on and a
cuppa thinking what a difference a year makes, this time last year I was not
happy at work and when your work is such a big part of your life as mine has
been it affects your home life also, this year having had 2 weeks of at
Christmas for the first time since I left school in 1998. Its been amazing it
really has, spending the amount of time I have been able to with Lizzie and
Elouise is not something I have taken for granted. To be honest I think Lizzie
is looking forward to having me out from under her feet.
I also rekindled my scouting career in 2015
by joining Oatlands Cub Pack as an assistant cub scout leader, those Tuesday
nights at the scout hut remind me so much of being that age and the nights we
had at the 2nd Brighton, St Richards. It makes you want to give back
and pass on what I know and hopefully get one of the cubs onto a jamboree in
the future, as that should be ever scouts dream.
I will really try and post more regularly,
if there is anything you all would like to see a post about please let me know
in the comments.
Remember
Live to Eat Don’t Eat to Live
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