It can be hard to keep up with chefs. A stage here, a stint there – they’ll happily up sticks and move to another country at the drop of a hat for the chance to work in a famed kitchen or experience a new style of cooking. Whether it’s driven by career progression, a desire to see the world or just a change of pace, chefs often have a lengthy list of restaurants they’ve worked at by the time they reach head chef level.
For some restaurants, however, retaining staff isn’t a struggle at all. The River Cafe is just such a place. Good working hours (a rarity in the industry, although this has improved slightly in recent years), combined with the chance to work with incredible ingredients and the fact that no two days are ever the same mean the chefs who get a job at Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray’s Michelin-starred restaurant tend to stay put. That’s certainly the case for its three head chefs, who between them have racked up an impressive fifty-seven years cooking super-seasonal Italian fare for legions of fans.