Yes, chef: destination-dining hero David Taylor at Hampton Manor

Food & drink

Yes, chef: destination-dining hero David Taylor at Hampton Manor

Hampton Manor hotel’s passionate chef talks to Kate Weir about holistic dining, the future of food and how to make soil health a little sexier

Kate Weir

BY Kate Weir22 November 2024

Let us introduce you to the world’s most exciting hotel chefs as we guide you through the gourmet getaway spots we’re hungering for…

WHO’S IN THE KITCHEN?

As executive chef at Grace & Savour — Hampton Manor hotel’s charming kitchen-garden-set eatery, where story-telling tasting menus are symbiotic with the land — chef David Taylor has earned a Michelin star. Impressive, but nothing new to a chef whose background includes time at Oslo’s Maaemo, which was awarded no less than three stars.

But Taylor was destined for culinary greatness, introducing himself to TV star chef Brian Turner at 13 and subsequently working a shift at his restaurant. And growing his ambition through stints at Pierre Victoire bistro, Gordon Ramsay’s Maze, Purnell’s in Birmingham and more.

WHAT’S COOKING?

Grace & Savour celebrates British produce and growers — with some Scandi influence — and offers diners a thoughtful, immersive experience. Window walls look out over the labour-of-love kitchen garden and chefs work in full view of guests, smoking beef brisket over pine wood, prepping day-boat fish, and concocting unique eats for the larder: carrot nectar, chamomile and apple kombucha, pickled magnolia… Dining goes deeper here, with a steadfast commitment to sustainability and ethical eating.

RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

Taylor has quite the CV, featuring Grace in Chicago, Momofuku Ko and Atera in New York and Relæ in Copenhagen, before moving to Maaemo and earning that hat-trick of stars. Each eatery has given him some food for thought, but his Nordic know-how has proved especially invaluable, and still sways his cooking style.

Your style has been dubbed ‘Nordic minimalism’.How would you explain this to someone who hasn’t experienced it yet?
Nordic minimalism is stripping everything back and being a purist on the plate — it’s usually focused on one ingredient. It’s similar to Nordic living: clean decor, everything stripped back. With food there’s so much crossover. Things like foraging and preserving are in British heritage too, but feel more prevalent in the Nordic regions because it’s so cold and dark for much of the year, which impacts their way of thinking.

How have you applied your experiences of travelling and working in Scandinavia and North America to your cookery?
[I worked at] Grace in Chicago (which was used as a set in The Bear) with chef owner Curtis Duffy — his attention to detail was unique, such as entry music when staff walked in, inspiring quotes and pictures on the walls… Everything was there to encourage and push you. And the team was fully behind his ethos. The creative element of it all was so different — that precision and style of service massively influenced me.

So did working at Momofuku Ko in New York where there was no talk during service, creating a slick system, without all the shouting. There was a show going on, happening like clockwork twice a night, like Groundhog Day. Diners got to be a part of the prep, service, handling, all of it. At Hampton Manor hotel, our restaurant Grace & Savour is similarly immersive — the chefs put on a show of focused craft and dedication.

I learnt a lot from chef Christian Puglisi at Relæ in Copenhagen, too. All of the vegetables came from a farm that supported people with learning difficulties. He had this Michelin-star restaurant and then casual eatery, Manfreds, across the road; chefs would cross over all the time to ensure, say, a whole lamb would be fully used — that holistic thinking inspired me. [Now, at Hampton Manor,] we work with a lamb farmer who can only sell the whole animal, which is ethically and sustainably the best way to support her. So the restaurants across the estate use all the parts.

What’s the best way to make diners understand the importance of undersung topics like soil health?
Diners at Grace & Savour get a garden tour on arrival — along with, say, a tonic made from botanicals we grow and a seasonal welcome snack — where our values are made clear. It connects you with our ethos. We talk a lot about ‘organic’, ‘biodynamic’, ‘regenerative’, ‘preservation’, but we don’t overwhelm you — we want you to relax and give you space to know how much you want to know.

When the tours started, people didn’t know these terms, but things like Clarkson’s Farm [a documentary series about TV personality Jeremy Clarkson and his farm in the Cotswolds] have made a difference. In trying to get these ideas across, I can’t go, ‘this is how to save the planet’, when that may not respect the ideas a guest has. It takes a lot to build that trust and we can’t do it in one meal; but I can make it approachable through dishes that tell these stories. If something makes you curious, ask about it, because there are sub-stories too — for example, some of our bowls have a shell pressed into the side of them because the lady who makes them uses Cornish clay, a dying industry she wants to preserve.

How do you think environmental change will affect how we eat?
We have an issue with processed food, especially vegan options. Going plant-based is our future; however, I believe the vegan diet is being taken advantage of to create a new processed food industry, which is awful for our diet and not sustainable. Meat and fishing industries are over-industrialised too, to the point where the products are lacking in nutrients and animals don’t produce as much as they should.

In an ideal world, ruminants (pigs, sheep, cows, chickens) can be farmed sustainably, because they help to regenerate the soil — they’re essential to it, for example aerating it with their hooves. Carbon dioxide levels can come down through ruminants too; a controversial statement perhaps, but without muck there’s no way soil can absorb carbon, which keeps it alive. The future of our food is a combination of more plant-based eating and smaller-scale animal farming in a regenerative cycle.

How do you source ingredients and build relationships with local makers and growers in the community?
Social media helps, but some people we work with don’t have much of a presence on the web, so there’s a lot of word of mouth. It’s important to be invested, because it’s about who they are as well as what they produce. I have a scallop guy, and he was devastated because his boat sank — I know what that meant for him, so I wouldn’t simply cut him off and go elsewhere.

You walk the walk with them — when you stick with them, you feel the benefits when things do work. Closures are a very emotional journey. Perseverance is important too. Farms we work with are great, but need patience; you might want 50 kilos of kohlrabi, and they’ve only grown 10, but you’re grateful to have that.

What was it about Hampton Manor hotel that made you move from Oslo to the UK to work there?
I’ve known James and Fiona (the directors of Hampton Manor) for around 14 years. James has been a bit of a mentor. My wife and I had just settled in Norway when I was on the phone with him asking for advice because I’d finished working at a hotel in Oslo and felt a bit lost. He said, ‘Come look at this project’, and we knew that it was right straight away. Both want to create moments for people, whether that’s guests at a dining table or staff in a canteen — they want to bring people together through food. There are very few directors who work and think that way, so they’re very special.

What’s your favourite part of Hampton Manor, and what in your kitchen garden are you most proud of?
Our garden has been an emotional rollercoaster — it was derelict, so we had to build its soil health back up. There have been failures: something flourishes then rabbits eat it, you grow onions and find they have rot… But that makes it all the more incredible when something works and tastes amazing. It’s great to be able to pick something and put it on the plate. It’s a level of quality and freshness you can’t get anywhere else.

Considering the cost of living crisis in the UK and a post-Covid world, how do you think fine dining will evolve?
Fine dining has been evolving for some time. A restaurant considered now for a Michelin star would differ a lot from one a few decades ago. The criteria might be excellent cooking, but that can be at any level. You could run a chicken-wing shop where the food is incredible and made with the same technicality as a starred restaurant. That’s where food is getting exciting.

There’s also a generational shift and attitudes are changing with Gen Z. The difference isn’t the food people choose; the holistic experience is what they look for. Eating out will be rarer and your clientele won’t do it as much, so they’ll choose an eatery with the most emotional impact, somewhere that’s a talking point to share, with a story.

What would you like to do to inspire the next generation of chefs?
Chef Thomas Keller said: ‘If the next generation isn’t better than we are, then we’ve failed.’ I’ve taken that to heart; we have a range of experience, because we need to invest in younger staff and because the chefs de partie need to learn to manage. I like to have less experienced team members in the middle of the action so they get an experience they can take elsewhere and leave as stronger, smarter chefs. We create an environment where we can push them as long as they feel safe.

ANSWERS À LA MINUTE

You can hop to three different countries for breakfast, lunch and dinner – where are you going?
For breakfast, Cédric Grolet’s pâtisserie in Paris; for lunch, I’d go to Bangkok to try one of Jay Fai’s legendary Michelin-starred crab omelettes; and for dinner, Noma in Copenhagen.

If you could revamp plane food into something more exciting, how would you go about that?
I’d remove anything that requires cooking and replace it with fresh, umami-driven salads — flavours that still work at that level.

Room service – what are you ordering?
A croque-monsieur.

Which dish instantly transports you home?
Spaghetti alla vongole, which is usually made with clams, but at home I make it with prawns because they’re cheaper. It’s prawns, spaghetti, chilli, parsley, two egg yolks, butter and salt tossed together. I’ve eaten it at many restaurants abroad, but even though it’s not a British dish at all, it reminds me of home and cheers me up.

What’s your guilty-pleasure holiday treat?
I always hunt down bakeries and have ice-cream about 15 times a day — I’m like a child in that sense. I like anything with a left-wing flavour combo, and with ice-cream I’d go for cherry or stracciatella.

What’s your favourite dish on Grace & Savour’s menu?
It’s like trying to pick a favourite child. Can I choose two? Firstly our lobster, because we blend the brains into the sauce, which some people might think is gross but they taste phenomenal — and it’s great to use something which might otherwise be thrown away.

I also have this artichoke snack with the skin and purée, bay-leaf pickle and slices of apple (see below for the recipe), which comes onto the menu around September. Diners absolutely love it; we could have beef fillet on the menu, but that’s what they’ll ask for.


TIME TO SERVE

How to make David’s much-loved dish…

Jerusalem artichoke skins and purée

Ingredients

  • 500g Jerusalem artichokes
  • 50g cream
  • 25g butter
  • 500ml sunflower oil
  • Salt and pepper for seasoning

For the bay-leaf pickle (make the night before serving)

  • 20g fresh bay leaf
  • 200g water
  • 100g vinegar
  • 100g sugar
  • 5g agar-agar

To garnish

  • 2 Granny Smith apples
  • Thyme leaves

You’ll need

  • A mandolin slicer
  • A 1cm wide ring-cutter (or the smallest one you can find)

For the bay-leaf pickle
Mix all ingredients, except the bay leaf, in a pan, bring the mixture to a simmer and pour it over the bay leaf. Leave it overnight to infuse.

Strain the infusion, then measure out 300g of the bay-leaf pickle and whisk the agar-agar into the cold liquid. Then bring to the boil and cook for one minute before pouring onto a tray to set. Place into a fridge to chill. Once set, blend until smooth and put into a container to keep in the fridge until ready.

For the artichoke skins
Set the oven to 180 degrees on the fan setting. Wash the artichokes and pat them dry, then rub in a little sunflower oil and place them onto a tray. Bake for 30 minutes or until the artichokes are very soft.

While the artichokes are hot, immediately split them lengthwise and carefully scrape out their flesh with a teaspoon, being careful not to rip the skin. Keep the flesh to one side. Heat a pan of oil to 180 degrees, and fry the skins until golden brown; turning them so the colour stays even. Drain on a rack and keep to one side somewhere dry.

For the purée
Take the artichoke flesh and place into a pan. Add the butter and cream, and gently bring to the boil. Simmer for two minutes and tip into a blender, then blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper and place into a container. Keep in the fridge until required or use immediately.

To build the snack
Warm the purée and spoon into the artichoke skins, then spoon out a little of the pickle evenly over the top. Thinly slice the apples and cut out discs with the ring cutter. Layer the apple discs on top and sprinkle with thyme. Serve immediately.

Bon appetit!

Hungry for more? Read more of our star chef interviews, including Michael Caines and Peter Fridén