My Life ... Will Cole
We chat with Will Cole, Development Chef & Head Chef of Maray Chester and Café Barbette
Where is home? And work?
Home is on the Wirral. I spend a lot of my free time in and around West Kirby. There are some lovely independents in Wekka. Work is in the centre of Chester. I’ll be found either at the pass in Maray or Barbette, or in the prep kitchen working on something delicious.
You previously worked at two of London’s top dining spots - The Barbary and The Barbary Next Door - before making the move to Maray in Chester. What drew you back to Chester?
London was my home for about eight years, and I had the opportunity to lead some really great restaurants down there. My wife is from West Kirby and I worked in Chester many years ago. We always said when we had kids we’d move up this way, then along popped our daughter and here I am. I feel like it’s a bit of a full circle moment cooking in Chester again.
Name a few of your favourite places to be...
Paris for the culture, London for the food and drink and Mauritius for the ocean.
Name a few of your favourite dishes to create…
A recent favourite is the Chocolate and Barley Malt Ice Cream Sandwich at Barbette, with Whey Caramel and Candied Buckwheat. I have an unrelenting sweet tooth so I took a lot of joy in testing that one!
After hours in the Maray kitchen, what simple, comfort food meal do you most look forward to eating when you get home?
Usually when I get home it’s late and my wife and daughter have gone to bed, so it’ll just be a slice of sourdough, eggs and the hottest hot sauce I can get my hands on. I’m currently going through the Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce from Yellowbird in Texas.
Favourite indulgent dessert?
Marks & Spencer Milk Chocolate Cookies, by a long way. Also a custard tart from Tuile in West Kirby, run by my friend and old colleague Mike. I can’t resist it.
What inspires your menus?
The chefs around me, mainly. I like to cook with methods and ingredients they may not have had exposure to before, like the Salt Baked Pork Collar we have at Barbette, or the Vadouvan Spiced Leeks we had as a special at Maray a couple of months ago.
What was the last gift you gave someone?
I gave my wife a necklace when my daughter was born. Her due date was the day before Mother’s Day, so I had to have a contingency plan.
Tell us a secret/fun fact?
I used to do card magic when I was a kid. When cooking at The Barbary, my childhood hero, David Blaine, walked in and asked for a table. He was the most courteous and engaging guest and asked me to cook whatever I wanted for him. After dinner he did some card magic for the kitchen team, then came to thank me. It was a real “pinch-me” moment
What’s been your biggest life lesson?
It’s not your job to do it; it’s your job to make sure it’s done. I have a horrid tendency to take on a lot of work and not delegate, so this piece of advice was given to me by an old Head Chef when I took my first Sous Chef role, and it still rings true in my day-to-day work now.
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