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September 2009

Josh Emett as interviewed by Gary Miller

So what’s next for Josh Emett?

Brought up in a remote part of New Zealand, Josh discovered his passion for cooking at a young age. After training at Waikato polytechnic in Hamilton, Josh worked at several restaurants including Waipa Delta, Cin Cin on Quay in Auckland and Est Est Est in Melbourne, Australia. In 2000 Josh joined the three Michelin starred Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in Chelsea as Senior Chef de Partie before joining the team at Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's under Head Chef, Mark Sargeant.
Josh’s passion for combining only the best ingredients and accomplished technique led him to join Chef Patron Marcus Wareing as Head Chef at the reopened The Savoy Grill in 2003 following a major refurbishment by American designer Barbara Barry. Here Josh continued to win over the critics with a solid menu at the grand yet understated British restaurant. In January 2004 Josh and Marcus’ efforts were rewarded when The Savoy Grill won its first Michelin star. This was followed by the launch of Banquette, the new upstairs restaurant over The Savoy Grill and a unique take on the American diner, perfect for a less formal, all day dining experience.
In the autumn of 2006 Josh decided to make the move across the Atlantic, relocating to New York where he is now Chef de Cuisine of The London, overseeing The London Bar, and Gordon Ramsay at The London fine dining restaurant. Here he delivers two distinct but equally exceptional dining experiences. Josh continues to receive exceptional reviews for his cooking in both the American and British press.
Josh recently travelled home to New Zealand as a guest of The New Zealand Chefs Association to participate in the NZCA Training Forum at their 52nd AGM & Conference held at the Copthorne Hotel, Waitangi, Bay of Islands.
A well travelled chef, was this your intention when you first took up cooking as a profession?
I always wanted to get overseas experience. I didn’t have a real idea of where I wanted to go, but it was important to do. I would encourage any young chef out there to travel, there are lots of different avenues that you can go down as far as cooking as a profession is concerned. If you want to go down the fine dine route, then aim to get into a restaurant with a good name.
 
Moving from NZ to first Australia, then Britain and now America – how do you find the transition from country to country?
Each is different, Australia and America are pretty similar in the fact that the kitchens can be relaxed, in England the kitchens are tough in a different way. Also things like weights and measures, how you relate with suppliers and producers. In England within the Gordon Ramsay company we have exacting demands with our suppliers and can do so whereas in America we have had to adjust our specs to fit in with the methods of production that we encounter.
 
How did the role at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay come about? Was it planned before hand or did it happen once you got to the UK.
I did a trial at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay at Royal Hospital Road and loved it and Gordon offered me a job at the end of my first day. It was refreshing to be working in an environment that was very food focused and even though it was tough and hard, it was really enjoyable. Still today almost ten years later working within this company is enjoyable, the fact that the focus is still very much on the food, the kitchen and the chef. Whenever we open a new restaurant there is thought put into the back end, the kitchen, as much as is put into the restaurant. Our kitchens are very much a chefs kitchen.
 
After awhile I was asked to move over to Claridges for the opening of that and I spent 18 months there before I was asked to go over to The Savoy Grill. I was very much involved in that project from the beginning, menu design, the layouts, everything, it was a really challenging time, but rewarding also.
 
Gaining a Michelin Star with the Savoy, a great moment, I remember throughout the 80’s & 90’s when all others were gaining theirs yet the Savoy always seemed to be missing from the list as we called it.
Yeah!!! I remember I was on the train on the way to work and Gordon phoned me to tell me that we’d received a Michelin Star. That put the whole previous 7 or 8 months into perspective. The fact that we had been working really hard, busting our nuts, with the Savoy we had to keep that Savoy Flavour, what it had been known for; for so many years, but our changes and interpretations were interesting and gaining the Michelin Star was affirmation that what we were doing was right.
 
Working within the Ramsay empire, how does a chef develop from in your case Senior CdP to then heading up the American Flagship of the group. Is there a development program or is it every chef for themself?
We like to develop the people within the organisation, we are all responsible for training our teams. Myself and my Sous-Chefs will spend time on the sections in the lead up to service, very much get in there and get on with it. We work with our teams and develop the skills. I expect everything to be exact each and every time and the only way that can be achieved is by being in there hands on. Having respect for the people around you is a big part of our ethos.
 
When asked to make the move to New York, were there any initial concerns? Obviously there was going to be intense interest and close scrutiny of any restaurant under the Ramsay flag.
You look at the projects that you get asked to participate in, some I have turned away from, but once the boss (Gordon) gives me a project I get in there and get on with it. The buck stops with me or whoever the head chef of a particular project will be. It’s our job to come up with the solutions to problems that will arise with a new project. We knew there was going to be scrutiny, but we are confident in what we do. No one is going to walk into New York and have an easy time, but those that are confident will gain the respect of the dining public. When you open a new venture you are going to be flavour of the month for 6 months, it’s after this that you know you’ve done well, when you still have a demand for what you are doing.
 
When The London first went live the critics were having a field day panning the place, how does this sort of very public comment on your work affect you as a chef and a person?
It’s tough, but you learn not to take it personally, read between the lines and see if you can take something out of it. The press/critics don’t know as much about our kitchens as we do, but you’ve got to work hard on your consistency.
 
How much autonomy do you have in the running/organisation of a kitchen that carries the Ramsay moniker?
I have total autonomy in how the kitchen runs, the organisation etc... But it is a collaboration with Gordon, obviously he travels extensively and may see something that gives him an idea. We have discussions, he brings things forward, the other chefs in the team put things out there as well. All the head chefs within the company keep in touch, we share ideas, experiences. But Gordon is a believer in letting us do our jobs, it’s enjoyable.
 
How do you keep current with what’s going on, trends etc....?
Talk to your staff, they may have ideas based on experiences they’ve had or things they have seen. Dining out is another way, but not to the detriment of losing focus on what you are doing. I am more influenced by a product and what we can do with it.
 
I believe chefs should work more with growers and producers to get the products that they want and then support them, this will involve educating the diner so that the product becomes sustaining for the grower or producer. On this trip back home to New Zealand it’s really good to see the diversity and range of products available to the chef and I urge the chefs out there to work with their growers in this manner to keep expanding the products available.
 
What advice would you give to a young person starting out or considering a career as a professional chef?
Get some formal study behind you, learning about nutrition, health and safety, food safety is important early on. Don’t just rely on tertiary training. Get into a restaurant/kitchen as soon as you can so you are getting that real experience. Once you’ve got a good foundation look to travel, there’s a big world out there. Don’t be afraid to go knocking on doors, be confident in yourself. It’s going to be hard work, but work hard towards achieving for yourself, don’t worry about the guy next to you, work on achieving success for yourself. Don’t end up running a kitchen too early in your career, a certain maturity is needed for this and in time that will come. Learn from those around you, be a sponge, ask questions but be respectful.
 
It’s important to have interests outside of the job, for me its golf and tennis. Outside of work I like to relax and chill out, just have quiet me time.
 
How could a young Kiwi chef look to get a foot in the door within your team? Do you have any Kiwi chefs in your current brigade?
No I don’t but that’s not through design. If any young chefs would like to be considered for a potential position with me then they just need to get their CV to me.
As far as recruitment goes I’m always working six months ahead of myself, having people in the pipeline so that when a position becomes available we have the right people ready to go. We can’t be in a position where someone may leave or be moved on to another one of our restaurants and then we start the recruitment process, we like to have people ready to come in.
 
So what’s next for Josh Emett?
Well I have a great job with happy working relationships with the rest of the company chefs and with Gordon and there are always opportunities within the company to look at.
 

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