Winning the Academy of Culinary Arts scholarship at 16, Doherty became a senior sous chef at 21. He opened the Old Brewery in Greenwich at 25, of which this paper's restaurant reviewer said: "I can't think of many better options than dinner at the Old Brewery. He is now mostly to be found 40 floors up the Heron Tower, at the acclaimed Duck Waffle, where he’s head chef. He is 28-year-old.
When I was first in talks about this job, I was surprised to hear we were planning to open on the weekend, and needless to say, astonished we were to be a 24 hour restaurant. I’m not going to lie, city job, cooking good food and weekends off were my initial thoughts, followed by ‘these guys are mental’ when I realised weekends and overnight were a reality.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 20 May 2013 at 1:00 pm
Restaurant dynamics are changing. It didn’t seem too long ago that you had spend 20 years working in various positions before you would even be thought about for a head chef position. One of the coolest things in London right now is the common trait in a lot of the recent restaurant openings. Youth.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 13 May 2013 at 1:00 pm
This was a week of two halves: the epically pleasing and the knock-kneed nerve racking. I’m not writing about last Monday 29 April, to boast about cooking for the World’s 50 best chefs, or about winning Tatler Rising Star award a few hours later, or going out to party with some very key people to our (relative) success, no.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 6 May 2013 at 5:40 pm
On most Thursdays you’ll find me cooking on the 40th floor, but last week my feet were firmly on the ground – I was going to be cooking at The Lab food event.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 29 April 2013 at 1:27 pm
For years now chefs have been making bubbles and balls, hot jellies, everlasting foams and all sorts of magical things using various powders and gels
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 22 April 2013 at 12:00 pm
What is hospitality? Things so simple as giving a smile, remembering a customer’s beer of choice or replacing your sides if your partner has been on the phone for 10 minutes. Hospitality is something that is so easily taught, but rarely mastered.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 15 April 2013 at 1:00 pm
When your restaurant is 40 floors up a tower and open 24/7 your kitchen can be a surreal place, with weird and wonderful people of all types trickling through the door at every hour. It can be tiring, it messes with your body clock, you drink too much coffee – but one thing is for sure, it’s never boring.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 8 April 2013 at 12:18 pm
When you switch on the TV these days you are never more than a tap away from a cookery show. Sure it gets people interested in the food on their plate and in their mouths. But there is another side to things.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 25 March 2013 at 3:15 pm
Sitting at home, cold beer, it’s 2am. Having dealt with a breakfast rush, a brunch rush, and lunch rush and, er… a dinner rush, I realise I’ve not eaten all day. I know it’s bad, but when you are tasting all day, you sort of miss the hunger. I may sometimes reach for a pack of pasta, a pack of crisps or the odd take-out – but not always.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 18 March 2013 at 2:26 pm
Rule number 1 of chef club, don’t slate your brother chefs. Only chains can be slated by a chef; when there’s a face to put to the restaurant, it’s off limits for criticism. Nobody really tells us the rules, but we all know the score.
By Dan Doherty | Dish of the Day | Monday, 11 March 2013 at 12:00 pm
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