John Williams, executive chef at the hotel and Cooks freeman, knew and admired Michel Roux, who died earlier this year.
Michel Roux was 78 when he passed away, the younger brother of Albert and a significant part of the most formidable and influential family within the restaurant scene in Great Britain.
The Waterside Inn, Bray, which he ran with his son Alain, is the epitome of French haute cuisine and Michel was a chefs’ chef. For 35 years the Waterside held three Michelin stars, the holy grail of great food – longer than any other restaurant outside France. He achieved this by only using luxury seasonal ingredients, creating the finest patisserie and executing his dishes with great skill and precision.
The Waterside has produced some of the very best chefs, including Pierre Koffman, Christian Delteil, and Mark Dodson. His son Alain took control of the kitchens in 2002 and Michel became a roving ambassador for the profession, opening restaurants and acting as a consultant from Bangkok to Switzerland preaching the gospel according to Michel.
He wrote more than a dozen books some with his brother Albert, but for me the one that made the biggest impression and inspiration was New Classic Cuisine. Michel was made a Meilleur Ouvrier de France in patisserie in 1976, the highest accolade for any chef. In 2002 he was made an honorary OBE and in 2004 Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur.
One could not do anything but look up to Michel in awe. With everything he achieved he was one of the most charming men I have had the privilege to know but where the kitchen was concerned a very tough task master who did not suffer fools. He was a great bon viveur who loved to be involved and did everything with great style. He loved great food and wine and was always willing to give advice whenever I asked, whether for work or the Royal Academy. He was highly driven with his businesses always moving forward. He never stopped, a true leader in the kitchen who certainly helped change and shape food in Britain today.
The Roux scholarship, which has produced some truly amazing chefs in this country, is not just a competition but has become an element of the Roux dynasty as the winner can work at any three-star restaurant in the world for three months before being brought into the “Roux family and carry on their education in travelling all over the world learning about food and wine”.
Michel was one of the pioneers of what is now the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts. He remained part of the Academy throughout his life and one of the very best supporters in any way he could. I was always humbled by his support and generosity for the Academy. Why did he do it? Quite simply, he cared and he wanted to make us better!
He championed the Meilleur Ouvrier de Grande Bretagne (now the Master of Culinary Arts) which would not have happened without his perseverance, knowledge and contacts and now happens every four years. He was a huge supporter of the Cooks-sponsored Adopt a School back in the early 1990s often welcoming primary schoolchildren into the hallowed grounds of the Waterside encouraging them to think about food and eating in a healthy way and how food affects the mind and body.
Even during recent years he took a keen interest in the progress of the RACA and Adopt a School, together with Alain, opening the doors of the Waterside Inn last September to host a fabulous fund-raising dinner which raised record profits as well as boundless goodwill.
Michel was a very special man of the kitchen of historic standing. We should appreciate France and Michel for their teaching and not forget where we came from!
He lit up any room he entered, never forgetting the kitchens. One of the very best.
