Rob Jones writes:

At home in Liverpool, mum was a pretty good cook, but fish'n'chips from Jimmy’s was always the favourite.

However, when I left home at 21 and went to work for Radio Luxembourg in the Grand Duchy I was exposed to a whole smorgasbord of delicious international cuisine. The food was great and my colleague Mark Wesley’s Luxembourg wife Pierette was a fabulous host and cook.

Interestingly, in the late 70s the supermarkets had produce you just didn’t see at home in the UK. So, my gastronomic curiosity was born in the middle of Europe and my tastes and interest in great cooking has developed over the years. So much so that one of my passions away from Boom Radio is a programme I do for British Airways called “Tastemakers”. It’s a dream gig; I go and have lunch and a chat with some of the best chefs in Britain.

Who have I featured? Raymond Blanc (pic above) treated me to lunch at his Manoir aux Quat’Saisons and taught me to make a delicious tarte aux pommes.

Other Michelin starred favourites have been John Williams** at The Ritz, Alain Roux*** at The Waterside Inn and Helen Darroze*** at The Connaught, all spectacular but admittedly very expensive. Luckily I haven’t had to pay!

But it’s not just about Michelin stars. Anna Haugh, shortly to be a permanent presenter on Masterchef, runs her restaurant Myrtle in Chelsea. She’s a great laugh as well as being a brilliant chef serving up Irish produce and flavours.

Sometimes I’ll feature the owners of some fine establishments. Jeremy King runs Arlington in London. It used to be called Le Caprice and regularly entertained Princess Diana. Jeremy showed me “her table”. Fascinating because she was seated so she could see the paparazzi outside, but they couldn’t see her. It also positioned her so she didn’t have eye-to-eye contact with the other diners. Tom Kerridge, Rick Stein, Ruth Rodgers and Angela Hartnett have all been great hosts serving up delicious grub!

You’ll ask which has been my favourite so far? The dining room at The Ritz is a sight to behold so if I have to pick just one then that’s it – great food in a fabulous setting, but you’ll need to take out a second mortgage! Monica Galetti was a great host, I really enjoyed her food and her company but sadly she’s closed her restaurant to focus on her tv career now

I know I’ve been very lucky to meet and eat with all these acclaimed chefs and restaurateurs. What makes their food so good? I think it’s because they all work with carefully chosen, very often, locally sourced, seasonal produce. However, despite all this, I still love my local chippy! 

Regards

Rob 

Catch Rob Jones - Saturday and Sunday mornings 10.00 - noon