Matt's Profile

Matthew Tomkinson Michelin Star Chef at the Montagu Arms Hotel

He wasn’t aware of what a major influence, just a minor incident in his life would be, but as he looks back in time, Matthew Tomkinson realised his first stirrings of ‘Chefdom’ at the mere age of 10 yrs. A family friend with whom he used to fish with, would go off during the evenings and arrive back in the ‘wee hours’ of the morning after “working his heart out” at a local restaurant. Matthew deemed this extremely glamorous and from that moment on, he himself was hooked!

Later on in his life, during his Hospitality Management degree, Matthew’s memory hit home.  Part of his Management Degree was to complete a year’s internship. He chose to work in the kitchens of a local pub and it was predicted by fellow college friends, that he would quit in the first week, but they were wrong … Matthew stayed and what’s more, he absolutely loved it!

Bitten with the ‘bug’, Tomkinson finished his degree, took time to travel for a year and on his return, he immediately set about securing a job as a chef.

Matthew’s first job was at the Greenhouse vegetarian restaurant in Altrincham, he then moved through a variety of restaurants, including 4 years as chef de partie at Ockenden Manor, honing his skills along the way.

Matthew observed two mainstream forms of cooks in a largely male dominated environment; those who treat dishes as “architectural projects” layering dish upon dish, each layer a complicated extravaganza and visually beautiful and those who just love the taste of fresh, beautifully cooked simple foods. Matthew says he falls into the second category; he says that he enjoys foods that are familiar but with a few surprises!

Tomkinson and the staff of The Montagu Arms Hotel believe that free-range is not just better, because of the obvious husbandry reasons but that it tastes a lot better too.

When asked what draws him to the kitchen, Matthew replied, that he loved the symbiotic nature of the kitchen, where each person is implemental and important to the ‘whole’. He explains that there can be intense pressure in the kitchen and if at any point ‘any cogs of the wheel’ collapse under the pressure, the whole ship can sink. “It involves a lot of quick thinking and you have a lot piling down on your plate- (pardon the pun!)”

Matthew Tomkinson is used to pressure, when he applied for the roux scholarship one of the most competitive and pressure intensive events , he had to compete  with 6 other chefs in front of a panel comprising Gary Rhodes, Rick Stein , Brian Turner, David Nicholls, Tamasin Day-Lewis and of course the Roux family. Needless to say he came out a winner. He went on to win a Michelin star, one year afterwards as Head Chef at the Goose in Oxfordshire.
 

Tomkinson says that the culinary books which influenced him most were probably,

‘My Gastronomy’ by Niko Ladenis, which made him realise how people cook as an artistic expression and ‘White Heat’ by Marco-Pierre White.

Tomkinson’s favourite aspect of cooking, is when the seasons change. Matthew enjoys working with the first fresh-picked strawberries and asparagus and in particular, when game venison comes into season. He loves developing close relationships with his local suppliers.

Look out for the significant changes at The Montagu Arms, including developing and growing a working vegetable garden for the property plus the introduction of the new hens!