Owned by Heston Blumenthal the 3 Star Michelin restaurant, matching the Waterside, has been closed for 6 months while being involved in a £2.5 million refit. During this time the complete restaurant had been taken to Australia! That alone must have been quite some feat.
But in October 2015 we should see the Fat Duck reopened in Bray. Of course it has for many years been a difficult place to get a reservation and this seems likely to continue as I’ve just been trying to see if it was possible to reserve a seat but there appears no opening, ever, at all! Perhaps I’ll save my £220 per head money and go to MacDonalds…..not exactly the same!
Heston recently opened a restaurant in Terminal 2 at Heathrow called the Perfectionists’ Cafe and along with his many products on sale in Waitrose he is at pains to point out he’s not just after making money, but wants his reputation for outstanding food to be more important. He quotes his refusal to work with a winery for a million pounds for just a few days work a year, even when he is going through an expensive divorce.
If you like him or not, he is a local businessman who brings people from all over the world into the area to sample his food. Many of these will stay in local hotels and B&B’s and spend more time and money than just in his restaurant. We too often criticise successful individuals in the UK when we should be celebrating their achievements. For this reason alone I wish him well.
Many thanks to the Guardian for a very interesting article.
