Chef profile: Olly Oakley, head chef of the Harcourt Arms and the Plough Inn

What was your best subject at school? 

Spanish

 

What was your first job? 

I set up a sweet shop in my school at the age of 12. Best job I ever had!

 

What do you normally have for breakfast? 

A bacon roll doused in malt vinegar and white pepper.

 

What do you do to relax? 

Play golf or go and check out some of the UK’s best hospitality offerings

 

Which is your favourite restaurant? 

El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain. That restaurant means a lot to me for many reasons.

 

What’s your favourite hotel?

The Four Seasons in Arizona was seriously nice. I went into the kitchen for an afternoon spent making the sharing chocolate fondant dessert we had the night before, which I still have the recipe for and can’t wait to put on the menu at some point! And a cracking happy hour too if I remember correctly…

 

What is your favourite drink? 

A really nice red wine

 

What is your favourite food/cuisine?

I always find myself craving Chinese food. I love all Asian cuisine but there’s something about Chinese food that is special to me.

 

Which ingredient do you hate the most?

Plantain – I just don’t get it

 

What do you always carry with you? 

Ciggies

 

Which person in catering have you most admired? 

I’ve always been a big fan of Tom Kerridge and now that I’m in the pub game I can appreciate what an incredible achievement receiving two stars at a pub truly is!

 

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

Larousse – the gastronomy bible. Might actually get around to reading it as a castaway

 

If you had not gone into catering, where do you think you would be now? 

An incredibly fat, miserable insurance broker

 

Describe your ultimate nightmare? 

Hard to choose between going blind or losing sense of taste

 

When and where was your last holiday? 

A few weeks ago I went to Kenya. My buddy Harry is the chef at a safari lodge out there, so I was lucky enough to join and cook out there on safari with him.

 

Tell us a secret... 

You’ll have to buy me a pint first.

 

What irritates you most about the industry? 

There’s quite a bit of frustration within the industry at the moment, mainly around the rising cost of food, energy and labour. I find the lack of understanding or appreciation of this amongst some customers the most irritating.

 

What’s your favourite film?

This is boring but the best film ever has to be Shawshank Redemption.

 

Who would play “you” in a film about your life?

Jack Black probably. That would be funny.

 

Who would be in your “fantasy” brigade?

All three Roca brothers, my brother and Illie and Mihai from my time working in Scotland!

 

If you had more time, what would you do?

I’d definitely travel way more, exploring different food scenes and cultures. I’d also spend more time with my girlfriend, family and friends as I don’t get to see them as much as I’d like to!