le Manoir

Had a fantastic day at le Manoir yesterday for a brief stage. I was in the kitchen for about 14 hours and was really flattered that the chefs let me work the pass for lunch and dinner.

I was expecting more fussy french food but the dishes I was working on were really my sort of food, we had some great discussions over sourcing and growing wild plants and the selection of sorrel used in the plate I was helping with were amazing. Take a look at the menu. Its really inspiring to see this sort of food at Michelin level and I look forward to borrowing elements for some of my dishes.

Lots of great ideas, good plating experience ... and I can almost move my back again now ... fitness will come once we open I'm sure !

Some of the dishes and recipes were quite inspiring and the chefs were very open about the recipes and how they made the dishes. It was great to be able to prep six lobsters in a row, not something I could afford to do as a practice and now I have the confidence to do it in our own restaurant when we open.

Am off now to think about making a chocolate mousse mouse, based on an egg mouse they make at le Manoir for children ... I like the play on words and hopefully it'll be nice treat for my daughter's birthday party next weekend.