Farrel Hirsch: Michelin star chef at Morston Hall

Farrel Hirsch is executive chef at Morston Hall, the Michelin-starred restaurant and hotel on the North Norfolk coast, where the kitchen has held its star every year since 1999.

Farrel joined Morston Hall a little over a year ago, in September 2025, as head chef, working alongside newly appointed executive chef Phil Kearsey. He was promoted to executive chef in April 2026, when Phil left the business.

The appointment follows a period of significant change at the restaurant. Galton Blackiston, who founded Morston Hall with his wife Tracy in 1992 and ran its kitchen for more than three decades, stepped back from the business after it was sold to hotelier Henry Elworthy in April 2025.

Early career and background

Farrel was born in Durban, South Africa, and found his way into cooking at a young age.

He enrolled at New College Nottingham in 2005 to study professional cookery, spending time in UK kitchens before returning to South Africa in 2009, drawn home by the country's developing restaurant scene.

In 2014 he joined Greenhouse Restaurant in Cape Town as sous chef, working under chef Peter Tempelhoff.

Two years later he moved to The Test Kitchen, working as senior sous chef alongside Luke Dale-Roberts. The restaurant climbed to number 22 in the World's 50 Best Restaurants list in 2016, a period Farrel has described as one of the most exciting of his career.

He went on to take his first head chef role, running the fine dining restaurant at the Four Seasons hotel in Johannesburg, before Tempelhoff asked him to return to Greenhouse, this time as head chef. He stayed for a further three years, taking his total time at the restaurant to five.

During that second spell, Greenhouse picked up three plates in the JHP Gourmet Guide, a place in La Liste's Top 500 Restaurants and recognition in the World's 50 Best Discovery list. Tempelhoff has since opened FYN in Cape Town, currently ranked 65th on the World's 50 Best extended list.

Joining Morston Hall

After leaving South Africa, Farrel moved to London to become head chef at Kudu, the South African-influenced restaurant group founded by chef Patrick Williams.

He joined Morston Hall in September 2025, initially as head chef under Phil Kearsey, who had just been appointed executive chef as Galton stepped back from the kitchen.

Phil, who trained at the Waterside Inn, The French Laundry and Pied à Terre, left Morston Hall in April 2026, and Farrel was promoted to executive chef in his place.

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Farrel Hirsch's cooking style

Farrel describes his cooking as built on French technique, Japanese ingredients and British heritage.

Farrel said: "When it comes to my cooking style, I would describe it as French techniques, Japanese ingredients and British heritage. I have always been drawn to the structure and foundations of classical French cooking, but I love the precision, ingredients and flavours of Japanese cuisine."

Food at Morston Hall

Bringing those influences together with the seasonal produce available in Norfolk gives him a style he says feels natural, one built on understanding where an ingredient comes from and when it is at its best.

Since arriving at Morston Hall, Farrel has moved away from the traditional format of a single sitting at 6.30pm, introducing a more flexible dining experience with a half or full tasting menu.

He said: "It was a big change, and naturally there were some concerns about how guests would respond, but the feedback has been fantastic. We are constantly evolving the menus, changing dishes and looking at ways to improve the experience."

Food at Morston Hall

Michelin star at Morston Hall

Morston Hall has held a Michelin star every year since 1999, one of the longest unbroken runs of any restaurant in the Michelin Guide Great Britain & Ireland.

The star survived Galton's departure after more than three decades in the kitchen, the sale of the business to Henry, and Phil's brief spell as executive chef.

Farrel is now the chef responsible for carrying that record forward, having been promoted to executive chef in April 2026, a little over a year after joining the kitchen as head chef.

In the space of a year, Morston Hall has had a change of ownership and two changes of leadership in the kitchen; its Michelin star has outlasted them all. For Farrel, the task now is to keep it that way, while making the kitchen his own.