Ramsay restaurant team joins the navy

 The kitchen team from Gordon Ramsay’s Dubai restaurant Verre, located at the Hilton Dubai Creek, got a taste of naval life on a recent visit to British vessel HMS Cumberland.

The ship, which was in port in Dubai for two weeks earlier this month for maintenance work, hosted eight chefs from the Verre by Gordon Ramsay team — including executive chef Matt Pickop, who held a cooking master-class on the flight deck showing the ship’s company how to whip up a chocolate fondant dessert.

Pickop explained that the trip had been organised after the ship’s logistics officer Lieutenant Commander Wayne Middleton had got in touch with him, regarding organising a cooking class at Verre for some of the crew during their stay in Dubai.

“I do get a lot of requests, but this one really struck a chord with me because my dad was in the navy,” he explained.

“I grew up as a navy lad, so this was something I wanted to be a part of — it was really an honour.

“So I asked Wayne if my guys could come on board the ship, see what it was like outside the four walls of the kitchen, and I offered to combine that with a bit of a cooking demo. That’s what I’m all about really — all the things I do are to be fun, give some enjoyment and be a bit educational,” he said.

Pickop added that he had been keen for his kitchen team to gain an insight into a Royal Navy warship, especially with regards to its galley facilities.

“These guys onboard manage to cook out 400 meals every service,” he marvelled.

“They have so much against them; they’re facing all sorts of challenges, and holding their roles in the navy as well as being chefs — plus they have to work solely with the ingredients they’ve got when they’re at sea for long periods of time.

“As a chef I have so much respect for that,” continued Pickop.

“They really are incredible examples of working under pressure. It’s all down to team-work, passion and effort — and that’s really what being a chef is all about as well.”

HMS Cumblerland’s Lieutenant Commander Wayne Middleton said challenges for the kitchen team onboard were numerous.

“To start with there’s the sea state, the conditions, the weather and the heat.

"But the main issue is that we’re at sea for 30 days at a time, so it’s tough maintaining the variety of meals and decent ingredients, as well as maintaining some sense of normality through the weeks, like having fish and chips on a Friday and steak on a Saturday.

“We also do a theme night once a week as well,” he added. “You’ve got to try to have variety and appeal to everyone.”

Middleton said the cooking demonstration had been “great fun as well as a bit of an education”, and added that eight crew members had also arranged to attend a cooking class at Verre.

The on-site gourmet cooking classes at Verre by Gordon Ramsay, launched in February this year, are aimed at cooking enthusiasts who wish to learn the “tricks of the trade” from the outlet’s chefs themselves.