Darren Smith, head chef of the Warehouse Brasserie
“We’ve had customers from London telling us how reasonable our prices are compared with what they’re used to,” says Darren.
Menus are changed on the first of every month, with as long as three weeks going into the planning stages after consultations with staff and suppliers to see what foods are in season and what special offers are around. “Basically, it means that as soon as we put the new menu in, we’re working on the next one,” Darren explains.
The emphasis is on locally-grown produce and ingredients where possible, and Darren and his team source a wide selection of fresh fruit and vegetables from farms in the Lancashire and Merseyside areas.
These include asparagus grown in Formby, tomatoes and potatoes farmed in Banks and Scarisbrick, as well as the Southport shrimps.
It’s a highly-pressured life, and one that has taken a toll of many a chef’s marriage.
In Darren’s case, though, his wife knows what the score is and can make allowances. They first met when she was a waitress at the Brasserie, and now she works in the admin office helping to keep the business rolling along.
“She knows the stresses of the job,” Darren admits, “and when it’s best to keep out of the way!”
Probably because of its success – it has been named by one national newspaper as one of the top 50 restaurants of its type in the UK – turnover has been very slow with kitchen staff. Darren himself has been there since starting at the bottom as a teenager – he’s 29 now – and many of those who work with him in the kitchens have been there for two or more years.
The Warehouse is owned by businessman Paul Adams, who went on to open the Vincent Hotel in Southport last year, to the similar sort of acclaim that has followed the brasserie.
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