Graham Garrett and Chris Underwood to open pâtisserie in Tenterden
Chefs Graham Garrett and Chris Underwood have revealed plans to open a pâtisserie in Tenterden, Kent.
Garrett, chef-owner of the West House restaurant with rooms in Biddenden, Kent, and Underwood, executive pastry chef at the Cadogan hotel in London's Chelsea, hope to open Artisserie before Christmas at 53 Tenterden High Street, a Grade II-listed building.
"We just got chatting, he asked if I knew any backers, and the more we got talking, I looked at a couple of sites and we decided we'd do it together," Garrett told The Caterer.
"I'll be involved in what we do and how we do it. On the day-to-day making of stuff I won't be involved because I'll be in the restaurant, but Chris will be in there full-time."
The pair received the keys to the building this week and are now refurbishing the site, which will serve high-end, handmade cakes, macarons, madeleines, chocolates and bread.
Garrett added: "I always get customers asking me if they can buy my bread at the restaurant and I struggle to make enough for the restaurant, so hopefully we'll be able to sell the West House sourdough at the bakery.
"We'll have a couple of tables out the front where people can sit and have a coffee, maybe a couple inside – it's not going to be a café, but we will sell coffee and a few products to buy around the shop."
Garrett and Underwood are financially backing the project themselves and hope to expand the business to include a wholesale arm, which would supply bread and pastry to local pubs and restaurants, as well as run pastry, chocolate and baking classes.
Before the Cadogan, Underwood was head pastry chef at the Michelin-starred Restaurant Tom Aikens, Fera at Claridge's and group pastry chef for the Adam Handling Restaurant Group. He runs his own pâtisserie consultancy, also called Artisserie. Graham and Jackie Garrett opened the West House in 2002.
Continue reading
You need to be a premium member to view this. Subscribe from just 99p per week.
Already subscribed? Log In
