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Interview with Russell Lee
Team leader of Nestlé Toque d’Or
Blackpool & The Fylde College, 2007
What inspired you to go into catering?
My background is that I’m Chinese and my parents used to have a Chinese takeaway, which I had to work in as a kid so - I’ve always been dealing with food. I didn’t want to go into the takeaway trade. So I went out and did banking for a few years. But I found I didn’t receive the job satisfaction I wanted, so I decided to go back to my roots. This is what took me to the Blackpool Fylde College to learn Classical French Cookery, on a fast-track NVQ2 course. I really enjoyed going to college learning about cooking and having won an in-house competition, I got my thirst for challenge, which led me to enter many competitions and then to enter the Nestlé Toque d’Or in my NVQ3 course.
How did it feel to win the Nestlé Toque d’Or crown?
Fantastic! It’s not a competition that is easily won and we were up against some stiff competition so I feel really proud of myself and the team. To be lucky enough to come first in such a big event is a huge achievement. In college, I was always labeled as the ‘competition boy’ as I’d always be up for any challenge, so when I had the chance to select a team to design, market and present an original menu and business plan, I felt really lucky. It was so rewarding to see six individuals come together and pull through as a team. It was wonderful to finish college on a high - it really was the icing on the cake!
Where you like to see yourself in five years’ time?
Well, having completed my college course, I’m now in the stage of setting up my own restaurant in Preston. I’ve managed to find a property so I’m waiting on the designs and getting the ball rolling so hopefully it’ll be open and up on its feet early next year. It’s really an ambition which has developed throughout my catering experience and the Nestlé Toque d’Or experience has definitely helped me focus on the business side of things.
What is the most important quality in a chef?
Professionalism, if you’re not professional about cooking and you don’t care enough, nothing good will come out of it. I think you have to have an artistic flair as well and a good taste for food is very important. You have to respect food too, you have to really love it because when you’re working in the kitchen, it’s hard work; you get hot and it’s stressful working under such pressure, so you have to find satisfaction in serving great food and having pride in what you do. Otherwise, there’s just no point in doing it.
How important do you think the Nestlé Toque d’Or recognition will be to your CV?
It really opens a lot of doors being involved in such a prestigious national competition which is so well known to everyone in the industry. As winners, we got the opportunity to mingle with a lot of celebrity chefs and spend time with such big names as James Tanner, which was such a privilege and a real novelty. Getting to know James has given me a great point of contact, as I hope that if I’m ever looking for work experience or a job in the future, he’d help me out. It’s certainly opened our scope on the area and range of what we can do from now on.
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Blackpool Rocks at the Nestlé Toque d’Or!Blackpool and The Fylde College takes 2007 Nestlé Toque d’Or Crown
The college took the hot issue of Blackpool’s bid to host a Las Vegas style super casino, with its ‘Seventh Floor at the Palace Casino’ themed restaurant. Although the seaside town itself lost out to the Manchester bid in the casino stakes, the team of catering students from Blackpool and The Fylde College hit the jackpot, bringing home the much sought-after title.
Impressing the judges with an innovative and well executed menu, Blackpool and Fylde College treated customers to an adventurous, yet delicately balanced menu of Cream of Red Mullet and Pernod Soup, followed by the signature dish of Supreme of Guinea Fowl, served with Butternut Squash Risotto, Creamed Savoy Cabbage and a Wild Mushroom Sauce. A new criterion for this year’s competition embraced the consumer trend of ‘informality’ and specified a sharing dessert using Nestlé confectionery products. The college took a gamble with an ambitious assiette of four desserts. Taking inspiration from some of Nestlé’s most loved confectionery including KitKat and Rolos, this complex and attractive dessert proved to be a real crowd pleaser!
The six winners will soon be embarking on an exclusive study tour. The trip will provide the students with the opportunity to acquire further skills and expand their knowledge of the culinary world. The Blackpool and Fylde College will also receive catering equipment, along with the other three final teams of Bristol College, Ayr College and North Devon College. This prize is offered in association with E Russum and Sons Ltd.
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