When Michelle Obama took up her gardening tools in 2009 to create a White House vegetable patch, kitchen gardens were propelled onto the pages of world publications.
In the UK the concept has been around since Medieval times, with kitchen gardens hitting the height of popularity in the Victorian era. During the war years, Britons were urged to dig for victory and turn their lawns into vegetable-producing areas.
With the end of rationing and the rise of the supermarket with aisles piled with ample provisions, ornamental gardens made a comeback and the days of picking herbs from outside domestic front doors faded.
However, chefs are at the forefront of a movement to re-introduce kitchen gardens into the food supply chain recognising the difference that freshly picked produce can make to their menus.
Horticulturist Richard Vine is the designer chefs call upon to help create their gardens, from Peter Fiori at Coutts Bank to Raymond Blanc at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons. He recently completed a commission for the Michelin star restaurant The Royal Oak in Berkshire.
“In the chef world there’s an increasing awareness of the importance of growing your own food, from many perspectives – public awareness, interest and concerns in food provenance, green issues, ultimate food freshness as well as the pride developed in front of house ‘selling the story’,” says Vine.
“From every perspective this can only be a good thing, not just for now but for our precious food-growing heritage. Raymond Blanc’s amazing vegetable garden and more recently the addition of an orchard is a shining example of far-reaching vision on a grand scale, but anything that can be grown, however small the area, really does make a hugely positive difference.”
Royal Oak head chef Dominic Chapman says the garden is an amazing addition to the restaurant and the
kitchen. “Because it’s new, and it’s so beautiful, we’ve been a little bit careful,” he says.
“We don’t want to go in there and destroy it. But we’ve just had the go-ahead from Richard to attack it and use the herbs as much as we can. It’s not just herbs; when the strawberries come out I’m looking forward to using them. Going forward we would like to plant more, possibly some pea shoots, other salad leaves and then whatever else we can make work.”
Chapman says the garden is not just a useful resource for the kitchen, but it provides great dining theatre for
the customers. “Customers have noticed the difference as there’s a great visual impact, especially when the chefs are in the garden picking for the menu that day. There’s also the smells of the garden coming through to people sitting in the dining area – it’s a talking point,” he adds.
The benefits for Chapman’s kitchen are undoubtedly the freshness of the produce from the garden. “It is incredible the difference from the herbs we buy third party to the ones we pick from the garden. It’s chalk and cheese,” he says.
“We have been lucky, we have a local gardener that supplies our produce such as broad beans, courgette flowers and berries. That’s been an education; it’s introduced me to the difference between produce picked 30 minutes ago and something that’s been in the back of a lorry for 24 hours.
“To now have that on our doorstep is brilliant and that’s thanks to Richard. He has totally led us; he has had full input into the design and also the choice of plants and herbs. I think it really works, for visual, colour, taste and smell.”
At the New Forest hotel and restaurant The Montague Arms, it has been a combination of management and head chef Matthew Tomkinson that has realised the kitchen garden. “The hotel’s owners asked if I would be interested in the idea of it some four years ago,” says Tomkinson.
“My dad had two allotments and I’ve always been interested in growing food, so I grabbed the opportunity.”
Tomkinson, hotel manager Sunil Kanjanghat and gardener Jim Judd dug up and planted the garden, taking a trial and error approach to see what would grow well, which has resulted in an unexpected path for the restaurant’s menu.
“For example, last year we planted in various spots with the idea that some would grow faster than others. Of course, it all grew at same time, so it’s made us go down roads we would not normally such as preserving and pickling,” explained Tomkinson.
“We’ve also adapted our menus so we can use what we have got. Instead of saying a dish is served with spinach, we put it with local greens or seasonal vegetables.” Local is already a key ingredient for Tomkinson, who says first and foremost he looks for quality but “we’re fortunate that for us, local is quality.”
The kitchen sources everyday vegetables from New Forest Salads, a market garden business based on the Exbury Estate, and concentrates on growing small amounts of different produce where freshness makes a huge impact on the taste, such as broad beans.
“Buying good tomatoes is difficult so we grow our own, along with beetroot and Jerusalem artichokes. We also grow spinach – the difference is amazing
compared to produce that has been flown in and packed in bags with a
protective atmosphere.
“Of course it tastes a lot better, we notice the difference and the customers love it. You can’t ask for more
than that.” —
