From student to master
Kilmarnock College was doing its damnedest to raise James Martin's blood pressure just before our interview at student chef competition the Nestlé Toque d'Or.
It is testament to his commitment to the contest that the disappearance of 20 desserts for paying customers had him pulling out his hair.
James is the chairman of judges, who will decide which of four colleges will win the prestigious Toque d'Or Catering College of the Year award and, forgetting the near disaster with desserts, he says that the quality of student chefs in the final is exceptionally high.
Despite being Student of the Year for three consecutive years during his college days in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, James confesses that he failed to get anywhere in his attempts to succeed at the coveted Toque d'Or competition.
Nonetheless, not long after finishing
college, he was off to London to join
celebrity chef Antony Worrall Thompson, firstly at 190 Queensgate and then at dell'Ugo in Soho.
After that he travelled to France for some classical training, which he put to good use on his return to Britain when he became head chef at the Hotel and Bistro du Vin in Winchester, Hampshire, at the tender age of just 22.
TV stardom beckoned and he became a regular on BBC's Ready Steady Cook in 1996.
He has since filmed many other series including For Better, For Worse, Simply Fish and Delicious.
He has just opened his second cruise-ship restaurant following the success of "the Bistro" on the Ocean Village liner and has now joined the ranks of celebrity chefs on the look-out for their own pub.
Why have you got involved with the Nestlé Toque d'Or competition?
It's a great competition and really puts what the students are learning into real life. It's one of the only competitions that give students a taste of what life will be like outside college. There are four chefs in that kitchen having to get meals out to 100 people who are all paying £25.
They have to work out the menu and all the costs that go with it. It's a real challenge and the standards here are very high. I entered the Toque d'or competition about 18 years ago when I was a student, but I didn't get anywhere.
Do you think students are prepared for life in the real world?
Students coming out of college are not ready to work in kitchens. But then it's always been like that. I wasn't ready. Food is evolving all the time and some of the techniques you learn once to pass a test, you'll never ever use again.
When I got out of college it was a shock to the system - inside, you're wrapped up in a velvet jacket with people to fall back on, outside you've got to keep up and there's no protection.
What can be done to better prepare newcomers to the industry?
There has to be more work experience and less paper training. More competitions like this one would really help.
The more people are aware of just how hard and demanding this job is from the beginning, the more people will get through the training and then remain in the industry for what is, hopefully, the long haul.
Too many people are just not prepared -there are only two people from my class at college who are left in the industry.
Why do you want to get into pubs?
Pubs are great value for a chef, you can live upstairs and pubs can be just as successful as restaurants.
There are some amazing pubs out there. Andrew Pern at the Star in Harome, North Yorkshire, is a bloody genius.
What he's doing up there now is absolutely brilliant. There are also some great pubs in my area. The Crab at Chieveley, Berkshire, is really good as is the Plough Inn at Sparsholt, Hampshire.
What do you think about the current pub market?
Pubs are going through a dramatic change. The pub companies have relied on beer to sell products up until now, but that is all changing. It's not like that any more, as food sales are beginning to drive drink sales and if you sell bad food, nobody is going to come to your pub.
The standard of food is improving and a lot of chefs are trying to buy pubs at the moment. I tried a couple of months ago but a pub company came along and turned it into a Happy Eater. The "ping brigade", who just shove the food from the freezer to microwave are still around, but pubcos can no longer expect to make money that way.
Are you still looking for a pub?
I do still want to buy a pub and if the right one comes up tomorrow I'll buy it. And as soon as brewers start selling more of their pubs there is going to be an awful lot of chefs buying them up.
It's already starting all over the country. Ideally, I would get a place near where I am now - Winchester would be great.
But York would suit well too - my father used to be a licensee in York. He had the Black Swan, a big Tudor building in the middle of town - he was very into his food and drink.
Did you learn anything from your father?
Yes - never to be a leaseholder. As soon as you start doing well the rent is hiked up. When I get a pub it will have to be freehold. It is a gamble, but you have got to spend to bring the place up to standard.
Nestlé Toque d'Or 2006
Sheffield College, Lancaster & Morecambe College, Kilmarnock College and South Trafford College were the finalists at this year's Nestlé Toque d'Or competition at the Home Show at the ExCeL exhibition centre in London.
After several gruelling heats, the four colleges made it through to take ownership of their own restaurant at The Home Show. The students had to take care of the front and back of house, and cook and serve a three-course lunch for 100 paying visitors.
Carly Mulholland, an 18-year-old student from Kilmarnock College, North Ayrshire, together with her three teammates, prepared leek and potato soup with a twice-baked smoked haddock and Arran Cheddar soufflé, pan-roasted quail with black pudding farce and spinach and Chiboust crème.
"That was exhausting, but very exciting," says Carly after serving her last dessert. "I was very nervous this morning but once we got going it was a fantastic experience.
"It was also brilliant to be working with David Granger, who was our kitchen manager, and James Martin in the kitchen."
