Deep sea diver turned chef starts treasure hunt of a different kind
A FORMER deep sea diver turned chef, Matthew Brewer is looking for a nod from the Michelin Guide as he develops his seafood-focused menu.
Brewer started out as a commis chef and deckhand on a salvage boat, recovering cargo from sunken ships, including the Second World War-era British troopship RMS Laconia.
On board, he helped haul up caches including 50 tonnes of silver coins, but now he is looking for a different kind of treasure.
“I loved the salvage work but realised I loved the cooking side more, and I guess you could say I was hooked – line and sinker!” says Matthew, who has been putting his nautical scavenging skills to good use as head chef at The Peppered Pig since January.
All the food at the restaurant – including, of course, lots of fresh fish – is either sourced from Yorkshire or made in house.
“I’m proud to be from Yorkshire,” says the Barnsley born chef, who has also cooked at Cheshire restaurant The Bells of Peover and Cotswolds country house hotel Lower Slaughter Manor. “Every single thing I cook and eat comes from local suppliers and independent businesses and I never shop at supermarkets.”
Matthew heads up a brigade of three including sous chef Marcus Ashton-Simpson, chef de partie Luke Hoggard and commis chef Luke Bhogal and Matthew and his team are aiming high.
“We all work really hard and would love to gain the attention of the Michelin Guide,” says Matthew, whose signature dish ‘Pigs in a Field’ (using free range pork supplied by Anna’s Happy Trotters) recreates black pudding soil, ‘ploughed’ apple sauce fields, asparagus trees and pea soup hedges
“It’s not just a meal on a plate, it’s a whole sensory experience and I like to push the boundaries.”
The 45-cover restaurant at Turnbridge near Selby is getting an upgrade, with a new kitchen for the venue which is also adding a hotel dimension, the Pig Inn Hotel, a boutique six-bedroom site.
Peppered Pig owners Sam and Glen Mitchell dug the first sod on the site of the Snaith Road development last month, with the hotel, bar, events suite and stunning landscaped gardens due to open in December.
