We chat to Paul Leonard, who is Head Chef at Forest Side, a luxurious hotel and restaurant in Grasmere, the Lake District.
Hi Paul, when did you first know you wanted to become a chef?
I already had it in my mind when the careers guidance person came into school! I was working as a pot washer in the local café as a Saturday job, as you do, and I realised the buzz of the kitchen was the only thing I ever wanted to do. It’s weird because my family weren’t huge on cooking, so I didn’t have a massively foodie upbringing, but the heart wants what the heart wants!
How do you think your upbringing shaped the way you cook today, if at all?
My upbringing wasn’t hugely connected to food, but I was always encouraged to do things properly, and give 100% to everything I did. I think that helped me to focus on what was important in the kitchen and not make a flamboyant dish for the sake of it, but to focus on flavour, seasonality, and finding the right suppliers. It taught me the value of hard work and not cutting corners.
How long have you been with Forest Side and what do you love the most about it?
I’ve been here for 6 and a half years now! I loved it even before I got here, and visited as much as I could in the first 6 months, when Kevin was cooking. The Forest Side is a little slice of paradise. There’s a multitude of things that build
it up to make it so special! The kitchen is gorgeous and the garden is amazing – we’re trusted to fully take the reins in the kitchen, which is massive.
We’ve recently stayed at Forest Side and agree, it is heavenly! Do you live close by?
Yes! Before I joined I moved around a lot from London to Scotland, but it was great to get here and settle down. I’ve got my oldest daughter going to school in September, and we all absolutely love it here. The Forest Side has given us more opportunities than I could have ever imagined.
You pride yourself on using mainly local ingredients, what do you love most about the local area?
The local area is beautiful, and I also love the incredible range of suppliers and farmers around. We make focaccia sandwiches at Grain, our grab-and-go spot in Ambleside, that are made with this delicious heritage grain flour from Lovingly Artisan, and there’s Eden Yard Valley based nearby, where we get our rapeseed oil, honey and lamb from. They’re so passionate about what they’re doing, and it makes them a pleasure to work with. There’s also Cartmel Valley where we get our smoked salmon – and it’s the best smoked salmon in the world! Everyone, from the dairy farmers we work with to the guy we get our eggs from, knows the spec and quality we need from them. It’s an amazing foodie community where we are at the Forest Side, so it makes finding the best ingredients quite easy.
You just represented the North West on Great British Menu, how did this opportunity come about and how do you feel being involved in such a big show?
GBM reached out to us to see if we’d be interested, and it just seemed like the perfect time to do it. It was the first time I had just about the right amount of time to fully apply myself to it, so we decided to go for it and luckily we were selected! I ended up loving it – I was completely out of my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed pushing myself and getting the chance to represent the restaurant and show viewers a bit of my personality too. I knew I wanted to be 100% true to myself the whole time, and do it for the team too to show what we’re about. It was an intense experience with such a short time frame to try and get everything perfect but it was incredible, and I’m proud of how we came across. Being on the show was definitely great for the restaurant, but it also gave me and the team a bit of a confidence boost. I want to go back and give it another go for sure – I don’t like being defeated!
What’s your go-to meal when you’re cooking just for yourself?
I like to do a simple steak night for me and my family, with some bearnaise sauce, chunky chips, and salad – it’s relatively simple but delicious every time.
And finally, are there any foods you don’t enjoy cooking or eating?
Not really, I’ll cook and eat pretty much anything. The only thing that puts me off is ingredients that have been flown halfway across the world when there’s really no need. I’m much more interested in what’s local and in season. And I’m not a big fan of food that’s overly complicated just for the sake of it; good cooking should be about great ingredients and proper flavour, not making things difficult for no reason.
