Paul Rankin
Paul Rankin is one of the UK and Irelands most celebrated chefs and now he is passing on his tips of the trade as one of Sodexo’s ambassadors. Here, we talk restaurants, signature dishes and most intriguingly, hurdling Suzi King investigates...
I
n 1989 Paul Rankin changed the face of culinary Northern Ireland when he opened Roscoff, the restaurant that was to become the first to win a Michelin Star in the country. However this chef ’s interest in the culinary world has been present for much longer than we knew. He explained: “I ended up working as a waiter to earn money whilst I was traveling, and I kind of fell in love with the restaurant industry.” He continued to reminisce about his early experiences with the culinary world and how falling in love with food meant early mornings and going in early to help chefs peel walnuts and skin fish. All this extra experience led him to realise that working in a kitchen was the right job for him: “I wrote a very passionate letter to Albert Roux telling him I wanted to be a chef and dedicate my life to food and he gave me a job as a dishwasher. And it went from there really.” It is obvious just listening to
Paul that for him, the world revolves around food. As an ambassador for Sodexo, part of his role involves mentoring young people who may be considering a career in the kitchen and helping them to gain an insight into the food industry. The famous Irishman has been a part of the Sodexo family for over 15 years; starting out conducting masterclasses for the young chefs. Paul has since had a hands on approach with his role in Sodexo’s education sector. “One day I could be opening a new dining hall, another I might be talking to the kids about what it’s like to be a chef,” explains Paul. “I work with the 6th formers interested
in careers in hospitality. I have also done a few dinners with Sodexo based around the schools and universities. It’s a great experience for the school kids but it’s even better for the Sodexo chefs in the kitchen, where they get to work side-by-side with me and get that, sort of, inspired involvement.” He explained why it’s so important for young people to get involved in the industry at an early age: “As a teenager coming out of school, you haven’t seen that much of the work environment. So in exposing them to the razzmatazz of our industry, we are trying to get them excited about it and think, ‘yes I want to do that’. We know they’ll also be looking at other careers, so it’s important for us to expose them to what we do and our passion for what we do.” I had to wonder; did he prefer his role as an ambassador to working in his restaurant or appearing on TV? “They’re both important
“I wrote a very passionate letter to Albert Roux telling him I wanted to be a chef and dedicate my life to food and he gave me a job as a dishwasher. And it went from there really.” 10