Chef profile: Kemal Demirasal, chef, the Counter, Notting Hill, London

What was your first job? 

Windsurfing

 

What was your first job in catering?

My own restaurant, ‘Barbun’, which means red mullet

 

What do you normally have for breakfast?

I don’t do breakfast

 

What’s your favourite hotel?

Aman or Six Senses Hotels on the Mediterranean coast

 

What is your favourite food/cuisine?

Aegean, Greek 

 

Are there any foods/ingredients that you refuse to cook with? If so, why?

Pork fat - it just doesn’t reflect my way of cooking, and it’s too bold and too heavy

 

What do you always carry with you?

Moleskin notebook

 

How would you describe your desk?

It’s not too organised, but you’ll always find flowers, books, a pen and paper and headphones

 

Which person in catering have you most admired?

The grill masters on the Aegean coast, cooking effortlessly

 

Cast away on a desert island, what luxury would you take?

My windsurf gear

 

What daily newspaper/website do you read?

PWA Windsurf 

 

If not yourself, who would you rather have been? 

DJ 

 

When and where was your last holiday?

Aegean coast of Turkey 

 

What irritates you most about the industry?

Too much lobbying 

 

What’s your favourite film?

The Big Blue (1988)

 

What is your favourite prepared product?

The Big Daddy chocolate bar in M&S 

 

Who would be in your “fantasy” brigade?

• Murat Deniz Temel – chef and owner of Alaf restaurant
• Tufan Ozen – Unique Pizza