Carlton Tower Hotel London With Chef Bernard Gaume Circa 1970

These were two of the  sous chefs. They were both very knowledgeable  I can only remember the name of the one on the left as Mike Sullivan who had the distinction of working for a couple of years in Maxims of Paris when that was the place to work. I think that the man on the right was called Gerhard and he came from the Savoy. They were both wonderful mentors. 

This was the chef entremetier. His name as far as I can remember was Jimmy and he was always in good mood and ready for a song. I only saw him angry once in my time there. A memorable fellow.

This is Jimmy and a Portuguese cook being stirred by a sous chef by the name of Jean Pierre. I had worked with Jean Pierre in the Savoy before he came to the Carlton Tower. We never got along very well but he was very knowledgeable if a little arrogant.

This was me in my long hair and hippy stage which I very much regret.

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This was about a year before I left for Germany. I still remember all these fellows. I wonder where they are now. Too bad we didn't have digital cameras then. Think how many photos would exist.

The culinary brigade in the Carlton Tower London under Chef Bernard Gaume. This was one of the most pleasant work experiences I have ever had. Mr. Gaume was a very progressive thinker and the start of a new wave of chef at the time. He was very quiet and well mannered, no tantrums , although there was no mistaking his displeasure when he chose to show it. He was a very young man at a time when most of the chefs in the major hotels in London were of a certain age. He was also a very shy person in his own way. He did not hug the limelight and was not interested in the hoopla that has become part and parcel of what is now called ' The celebrity chef ' circuit. This was long before Paul Bocuse popularized and romanticized  the industry.
He brought a new approach and tolerance that I had not seen in hotel brigades up till then and it was very refreshing .
I first witnessed the taking of a brigade photo in the Savoy Hotel London and I thought it was a wonderful idea to have a lasting memento of not only the places where one worked but also the people there. I remember each of these people just as though the photo was taken only last year. All the culinary photo shoots you see on the blog were organised by me except for the Savoy Hotel. Hopefully someone will come across this photo in a search and get in touch. Wouldn't that be nice.

The Hotel had a few restaurants from what I remember, one was the famous Rib Room of the Sonesta Chain and the other was the main restaurant called the Chelsea Room. This menu is from the Chelsea Room at the time.

The decimal system was just beginning to come in then and the items are priced in both the old and the new pricing.



Article From The Caterer, London's Hotel Industry Paper

A fond farewell to Gaume 

Thursday, September 10th 1998, 0:00

Friends, colleagues and hotel guests gathered at a reception last week to celebrate the career of Bernard Gaume on his retirement after 30 years as executive chef at the Hyatt Carlton Tower, London. 

Gaume, winner of the Chef of the Year Catey in 1994, joined what was then the Carlton Tower hotel in 1968. He has since presided over the hotel's Rib Room, the Chelsea Room (now renamed Grissini) and the restaurant lounge, the Chinoiserie, as well as all banqueting functions. 

"To me, Bernard has represented the school of chefs who know everything from A to Z about the kitchen," says hotel general manger Michael Gray. "He has always remained hands at the stove, constantly passing on his knowledge to young commis chefs." 

Gaume's replacement as executive chef is Rainer Becker, who joins the hotel from the Park Hyatt Tokyo.

This is the present executive chef:

http://www.thestaffcanteen.com/featured-chef/simon-young-executive-chef-jumeirah-carlton-tower-london