After sojourns at The Falcon and Chimney’s Restaurant, he settled as commis chef in 2001 at the hallowed Winteringham Fields, and was named head chef two years later, at 23.
After maintaining two Michelin stars and winning one of his own, he departed for Waldo's at the Cliveden and was ultimately seduced by running his own business on the Isle of Wight at The Hambrough.
Four months after taking on head chef duties in 2008, Thompson won the island its first Michelin star. The Hambrough is currently rated No.26 in the Good Food Guide restaurant rankings.
Thompson also runs the more relaxed The Pond Café, which has two AA rosettes and is listed in The Good Food Guide where he regularly conjures up his crowd-pleasing lemon tart recipe.
The Independent’s Tracey MacLeod describes Thompson’s style as ‘classic-with-a-twist’. Pan-fried scallops with cauliflower ‘cous-cous’, Ras el Hanout and coriander shoots shared space on a recent tasting menu with a pressing of smoked eel, pork belly, foie gras and Granny Smith apple.
Cooking from Ventnor, Thompson has easy access to prized ingredients that he treats with respect and a generous portion of imagination - roasting local pork with purple sage and serving it with black olive Niçoise puree, a Spanish omelette and fava beans.
Thompson’s food is never plain, but neither is it obtuse or inaccessible. According to The Chef Hermes' Blog, '[Thompson] doesn't want the starched, stuffy service and has managed to find a happy medium.'
Thompson contributed a range of recipes for the Feastive Great British Chefs app - our favourite being his citrus cured sea bass on blinis with ossetra caviar and creme fraiche. He has also provided some stunning recipes for our Summer recipe collections including a rib eye of beef recipe, served with Polenta, a highly tempting grilled sardines recipe and a crowd pleasing roast peaches recipe.