Edinburgh chef to mark 10 years of Ondine by cooking with UK’s best

Chef Proprietor Roy Brett trained at the Savoy before becoming Rick Steins Head Chef in Padstow.

And a decade ago, with a dream to create his own restaurant in Edinburgh, he opened Ondine on George IV Bridge.

Ten years later, to celebrate the culinary milestone, Scotland’s seafood king Roy Brett is inviting the UK’s most exciting chefs to share his kitchen and give diners a flavour of food from across the country.

In June, Shaun Searley and two-Michelin star chef James Knappett will step up to the pass with Roy and his team.

The lunch event will be a celebration of the finest fish and shellfish, inspired by Roy, James and Shaun’s cooking styles.

Roy said: “Karin and I are marking this milestone by welcoming our friends in the industry to cook with us and share ideas together. Shaun and James are at the top of their game and to have them cooking with us is a real honour.”

James said: “Roy was my head chef at Rick Stein’s back when I was 19 years old and we have remained friends ever since.

“It’s really exciting to be invited back to cook with him after all these years!”

Shaun added: “I’m honoured to have this opportunity and excited I get to do it alongside my best mate, James Knappett.”

And reaching the ten-year mark has given Roy the perfect opportunity to celebrate the fruits of that collaboration.

“I thought to celebrate ten years I’d invite my friends up from all over the country.

“It is great for two reasons – we introduce different flavours and textures to Edinburgh but it also means chefs get the opportunity to mix, bringing teams together and developing ideas so that when it is time for our young chefs to move on, they have made connections.

“That’s vital for the future of the industry and really what it is all about – helping to give the next generation the tools for success.

Roy said that he has no regrets about choosing to become independent. “Both Karin and I wanted to do this,” he said. “We had an idea about what our restaurant would be, but it was just all by luck about what space ends up being available and where it is. I believe we’re a consistent restaurant, and and that we give good training and development for our teams, providing a solid career path for people. A big part of it is who comes through your team and how they grow and where they go – that’s just as rewarding as anything you can get from running the restaurant.”

And Roy said that it is the industry’s responsibility to advocate a supportive ethos – the legacy of chef Andrew Fairlie, who died in January.

“He was a kind guy, a great ambassador to the business,” Roy said. “He was a fantastic cook but also a great leader. So, I think with the passing of Andrew we’ve all got a responsibility, even more so now, to make sure we’re doing our best for our teams and our industry.”

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