Serving it up time after time.

The other month I popped my head into the Ledbury, one of London’s two Michelin star restaurants, not to eat but just to ask if I could interview the Australian head chef Brett Graham. The answer was a much welcomed ‘of course, no worries mate’. At the age of 30 Brett runs this creative ‘up and coming’ restaurant alongside his gastro pub the Harwood Arms (which was also awarded its first Michelin star in 2010). The reason I wanted to interview Brett was that like most Michelin star restaurants, his restaurants are known for ‘consistency and quality’ so that each and every customer has the same valuable experience again and again. This must be by no means an easy feet as the industry is notoriously characterised by a high risk and high pressured working environment with a volatile and uncertain nature. I was interested in how Brett manages to consistently produce the dishes in such a difficult context time after time.

If you think about it an haute cuisine restaurant is fully reliant on innovation and the ability to be creative. Restaurants become famous for signature dishes, such as Alain Ducasse’s Cookpot or Heston Blumenthal’s (slightly strange) snail porridge. The invention usually comes from the head chef who creates a unique dish in the quiet times between services. But what was intriguing me is how that specialised (and usually complex) dish is then passed to a team who work by hand to collectively replicate it on a larger scale in an environment of perfection where the pressure is up, the risk is high, the time tight and there is no room for error. I personally find it hard not to singe the toast at breakfast! It seemed to me that replication to consistently capture value was as important as the ability create value in the first place.

I settled down to a cup of coffee with Brett on the terrace at the Ledbury. He was particularly excited about the fact I brought my dog Poppy along and despite that she is a fully grown Labrador he insisted that she sat on her own seat at the table with us. During the interview I learnt that Brett’s gastronomy is classical with a ‘modern French twist’, so you can expect to find delicacies such as Poached Breast and Confit Legs of Pigeon or Raviolo of Rhubabrb with Buttermilk and Hibiscus. Hailed as the London haute cuisine ‘winner of 2010’ Brett and his team’s ability to ‘consistently cook at a high standard’ for each and every individual over the last four years has placed him in the very top rankings of London’s haute cuisine field indicating the presence of strong replication processes. Brett explained to me how the restaurant is operated and it came across that there are three key interrelated elements needed to set the process for efficient replication in motion; leadership, a ‘top’ team and a fine tuned structure. Leadership is a necessity for the other two factors to work. A top team cannot replicate without strong leadership and structural organisation offers nothing unless it has been organised and then managed by someone. Leaders must be able to talk and relate to every member of their team at an individual level according to Brett. One on one time between leader and a team member is so important to build trust, inspire and motivate. A strong team is also must, not only because the work in a kitchen is done collectively but also because team spirit promotes motivation, drive and openly allows for the passing of knowledge and passion. In particular it creates respect for each other and from this the team can recognise each others’ strengths and weaknesses and are therefore able to support one another when needed. Within the team designated roles provide focus for team members in a chaotic environment and the repetitive actions of these roles increase levels of precision and reduce error and wastage. Role rotation stimulates ambition through the opportunity to learn new skills and thus raises output. And finally, structures in both the organisation and the product are to a point standardised to increase speed, precision and reduce risk, yet they also allow for flexibility to account for uncertainties and be able to adapt to meet the customers’ needs exactly as and when to offer that extra little something. (For me this addresses the common assumption that standardisation and creativity have age old tensions, but in fact if used correctly it seems, certainly in this case at least, that they can enhance one another).

As I finished my perfect cappuccino and plate of delicious petit fours I came away having learnt from Brett’s insight that these three elements, if adhered to in a creative industry such as haute cuisine, can mean that an innovative, mouth watering, and value adding dish can be served up time after time. I wonder if this could be case for other industries.
Note: A special thanks to Brett and his staff for taking the time to help