WIN a signed copy of White Heat 25! GourmetXperiences were delighted to support and attend the Great White Festival this weekend; a celebration of the 45-year career of Marco Pierre White in which fellow chefs, artisans and experts from across the UK convened to create the ultimate foodie day event.
Taking place in Princes Square in the spa town of Harrogate, the Great White Festival ran from 28 to 30 October and featured a sparkling chef line-up including Pierre Koffman and Jean-Christophe Novelli, as well as stands from brands like Willies Cacao, Le Creuset, Pernod Ricard, Guinness, Bacardi and P&O Cruises.
The event was also attended by those who enjoyed our 50% off discount code, along with our competition winners, who won the chance to meet the man himself and get a signed copy of his new book, White Heat 25; a retro update of his original 1990s classic.
Marco was on excellent form; each day he invited guests to join him on stage within the gloriously opulent Royal Hall, where he cooked with his guest chefs and chatted to the audience. Whilst there, we were lucky enough to meet the legend that is Pierre Koffman, and we managed to grab a few minutes with Marco, too.
So what was it like to be back in Harrogate, where his illustrious career began? “I do love Harrogate,” says Marco. “Being brought up in a rough part of Leeds, my father was a chef, and he was keen for me to follow the same path as him. So, before my exams when I was 14, he woke me up one morning and said: “You’re not going to school today; you’ll get on the bus to Harrogate, and go and get a job!
“So that’s what I did – took the bus that went beyond my school where all my friends were and I carried on, arriving in Harrogate, right outside all the grand looking hotels. I looked for the back doors, entering by the kitchen of one hotel and in I went.
“I managed to get an interview with the head chef – he was clearly a betting man, like my dad, so we had something in common. He warmed to me. He took me on, £15 per week, live in. Not a lot, but it got me out of living on a council estate and into the kitchens!”
After that lucky break, Marco’s path took him to the nearby Yorkshire town of Ilkley and the famous Box Tree, which eventually achieved two Michelin stars, and then to London where he achieved the coveted three Michelin stars. Then – famously – he gave them all back!
“When I was cooking, you were either a chef who cooked for passion, or an artist who cooked with your hands, head and heart. I’d heard about the incredible three-star restaurants in France, and I decided that’s what I wanted to achieve, so I did. But I later realised that I was chasing the coveted stars that were bequeathed by mysterious, anonymous ‘inspectors’ who knew less about the food than I did. At that point, I gave them back and decided to cook for those who mattered to me – my paying customers.”
Marco is a protégé of Pierre Koffman, who was brought up in France’s Gascony region and similarly took a route to London. He ended up cooking at famed Waterside Inn at Bray for the Roux family, and remembers his time there fondly – particularly their philosophy of hospitality. Pierre was given free-range to cook the food he wanted, inspired by his peasant upbringing, cooking the seasons for flavour and with no waste. During his five years there, he helped them achieve two Michelin stars.
In 1977, Pierre and his first wife Annie opened their own restaurant, La Tante Claire, in Royal Hospital Road, Chelsea (now Restaurant Gordon Ramsay). Within six years, they’d been awarded the maximum three Michelin stars. Since he retired from running his own restaurants, he believes ’the most important thing about a restaurant is the experience – it’s the one you decide to spend your money in and enjoy with your friends and loved ones’.
And that’s something we can definitely agree with!
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MARCO PIERRE WHITE BIO:
After leaving Allerton High School in Leeds without any qualifications, MPW decided to train as a chef. Marco began his training in the kitchen at the Hotel St George in Harrogate, North Yorkshire and later at the Box Tree in Ilkley, West Yorkshire. “Arriving in London as a 16-year-old with ‘£7.36, a box of books and a bag of clothes’ I began my classical training as a commis under Albert Roux and Michel Roux at Le Gavroche, a period that would lead Albert to describe me as ‘my little bunny’ ”.
At 24,he became Head Chef and joint owner of Harveys with a kitchen staff that included the young Gordon Ramsay. At 33, he became the youngest chef to be awarded three Michelin stars.
During these years he had a team including Gordon Ramsay, Eric Chavot (The Capital), Heston Blumenthal (The Fat Duck), Bryn Williams (Odette’s), Matt Tebbutt (The Foxhunter), Robert Reid, Thierry Busset, Jason Atherton, James Stocks and in front of house Max (Mark) Palmer, one of the few English Maître d’ of a Michelin 3-star, Claude Douart, Philippe Messy (youngest sommelier to gain 3 Michelin stars) and Chris Jones, unusual in being an English sommelier in a 2-star Michelin French restaurant at the age of 21.
Despite being one of the world’s most celebrated chefs, Marco Pierre White currently holds zero Michelin stars – because he handed them all back in 1999!
