Bloggerview with Simon Part.

Mr Simon Part

What would you like to plug?

My own company and all related media. Part and Company /www.partandcompany.com / twitter.com/#/partandcompany

Name your three desert island ingredients 

Shallots, butter and chilli

Your best cooking tip.

You can always add salt but you can’t take it out 

Which seasonal ingredient do you look forward to the most?

I really look forward to the Game season as some of the best British cooking I like are Grouse, Pigeon, Partridge and Mallard

What is your favourite snack?

A sausage roll or a Scotch Egg

What would you have for your last supper? 

Naturally 4 courses as it would be a last supper so Lobster linguine, Roast Chicken and all the classic trimmings, a good cheese board and a soufflé with fruit and a sorbet or milk ice cream

What foodstuff would you banish to room 101?

Liquorice

What's your favourite restaurant?

A really tricky one as I have favorites for different reasons  but Maître D’albert (Paris) La Chapelle , Trinity and Tsunami for Japanese

What's your favourite tipple? 

Guinness

Which book gets you cooking?

Hawksmoor, Galvin’s, Adam Byatt and Simon Hopkinson’s

What comfort food comforts you when you are sick?

Shepherds pie with peas and ketchup

Kitchen implement you can't do with out.

The trusty Tomato Knife

What's your dream dinner party line-up? 

Peter Osgood, Denzel Washington, Nigella Lawson, Eva Mendez, Corben and King, Ruth Rogers and Rose Grey, Jose Mourinho, Stephen Fry

And what would you cook for them?

Potted Shrimps with Pickled Cucumber, Crab linguine, Chateaubriand with Artichokes, Pear and Almond Tart.

What is your favourite cooking aroma?

Roast meats / Proper BBQ / Hot Garlic Butter and shellfish

What was your childhood teatime treat?

Tunnocks Tea Cakes and Hot Ribena mmmm

What was the first thing you learnt to cook?

My fathers leftovers soup (Sort of Italian Minestrone) but made with all the fantastic Garden grown vegetables and fridge leftovers

What was the first thing you taught your children to cook? 

I don’t have any as yet but there will be Butchery and Fish prep on a Saturday morning so that they know where food comes from and how to respect ingredients. Then it will be onto bread making

What was your mother’s signature dish and do you try to copy it?

Braised Mince in the oven with boiled potatoes and Carrots. It’s actually Granny’s recipe and there is no point in trying to copy it as you won’t even come close.

What would you make to impress your partner?

A Croquenbouche. I hope she would be suitably impressed

Where do you go for the best fish and chips?

Brady’s

Old York Road

http://www.bradysfish.co.uk/  Luke is an amazing host and the simple fresh fish menu is always spot on

What was your most memorable meal?

La Dome in Paris as it was a fantastic dinner and it was our engagement dinner so very memorable on all counts.

What was your biggest culinary disaster?

Making Italian meringues as a commis and them splitting 5 times as the thermometer was broken (that was my excuse and I am sticking to it)

What's the worst meal you've ever had?

It has to be the Bierodrome awful food , awful service and off Lobster 3 times in a row for their Steak and Lobster festival

What's the most outlandish thing you've ever eaten?

A still beating Cobra Heart straight out and into a shot of a weird spirit

Who's your food hero/food villain?

Hero: The Roux family and Gary Rhodes

Villain: Anthony Warrell Thompson (Pardon the pun)

Nigella or Delia?

Nigella everytime. Pain au Chocolat and Caramel pudding with that Black Satin Dressing gown!! Need I say more?

Gin or Vodka?

Vodka

Muesli or fry-up?

Fry Up but Grilled …Best of British produce no variance on the Traditional

Wine or beer?

Beer to start and then move to the Wine

KFC or Burger King?

Tricky but as there are better burger’s out there and I have had more late night liaisons with a bucket it would have to be KFC. Finger lickin good

What do you consider the best of the best of British?

The Mini Cooper, Barbour Jackets, Bombadier Bitter Scotch Eggs and The Union Jack

What's the best/worst thing about the British restaurant scene?

The best is the diversity and the constant evolution of the industry and styles of operation and cuisine.

The worst thing is operators with too much money and no idea who like the idea and romanticism of owning a hotel, restaurant, members club or bar. As well as badly worded and over complex menu writing.

What do you think will be the next big thing?

We have had the TV Chef now its Steak houses, British revival’s and NY influenced sites. So it’s difficult to say but I think people will be more about simple and value. So possible a variation on The Great British Pub making a come back so more independent great pubs with good honest local food.

What would you do if you could choose any other career?

I would have loved to be a professional Sportsman and as of now a Golfer. The travel, competition and lifestyle is one I think I could handle yet would be another testing pressured career

Make a wish

Just have, but am not telling you as it won’t come true otherwise……