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Tim's blog - June 2008

Tim is the Head Chef at the River Cottage Local Produce Store and Canteen in Axminster.
TV is a funny old game. It’s one thing cooking and talking to people about it but another thing entirely doing this with a camera pointing at you. To begin with I found it quite hard to relax but it has been great fun as well as pretty challenging. Plus I love talking about what I do, it’s getting me to shut up that’s the tricky part…

I am the Head Chef at the River Cottage Local Produce Store and Canteen and have been in charge since March. Unsurprisingly our focus is on seasonal and local produce, which is a passion I share with Hugh and a big reason for me wanting to work with him. Wherever possible we source our food from local organic producers and our daily changing menu reflects this. Why on God’s earth would you put strawberries on the menu in December?! At the moment we are buying fish from a local guy who takes his little boat out of Lyme Bay and arrives, with his catch, at the Canteen an hour later. This is fantastic on so many levels – freshness, quality, food miles and taste. I wish I had enough space in this blog to name check all the amazing producers we have here in the South West but we try and showcase as many as possible in the Store and Canteen. I will say that Mr Roswell’s asparagus is amongst the best I have had anywhere and Town Mill Bakery in Lyme Regis bakes the most amazing bread and cakes. This is also reflected in our holidaymaker’s hamper for visitors coming to the South West. In fact we have had a great response from both locals, tourists and River Cottage fans alike. It is vital to both Hugh and me that the community feel welcome. Obviously Hugh takes a keen and constant interest in everything happening down at the Store and Canteen but he also allows me a fair amount of room for creativity. He is not shy with the criticism which is something we all need from time to time and sometimes I have changed his mind about a dish. He is very open minded and that is really rewarding for me. I wouldn’t be able to do it on my own though. A good kitchen is all about team work and I have a great team who share the River Cottage ethos.

When I look back over my career to date, I can see how it led to working with Hugh and River Cottage now. I grew up in rural Wiltshire and spent a lot of time on my uncle and aunt’s farm before moving to London and spending two years at catering college. I then worked for Fergus Henderson, Alistair Little, Marco Pierre-White and the Ferrari F1 team. When I met my wife we made the decision to move back to the south west and I indulged my love of fishing and shooting (even though I am a terrible shot!) so River Cottage seemed like the only choice for me.

Filming the series has been fantastic! One of my favourite segments was the asparagus recipe challenge with Hugh. His DIY hollandaise versus my goats’ cheese version. I still think my dish is nicer although his is slightly more charming. The Canteen is serving both dishes so come along and try it for yourself! And I am trying not to be a poor loser over Gill Meller (River Cottage Head Chef) stitching me up on the lettuce challenge by breaking all the rules!

River Cottage Local Store and Canteen 01297 631862

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