Five months ago London based chef Lewis Sully posted his first video on his very own YouTube channel Fishingcheflew. His videos are now filled with everything from his own fishing, cooking and outdoor endeavours to visits to food businesses, producers and industry enthusiasts.
With Lewis touring the Highlands of Scotland this August to produce new content for his channel and soon-to-be-coming website, The Staff Canteen spoke to the aspiring digital influencer to find out more about his career as a chef, what lead him to YouTube and what we can expect from Fishingcheflew in the future.
Lewis Sully
“I caught my first fish when I was 4 years old in Epping Forest with my dad who had built me a rod from a stick with a piece of line and hook from his tackle box. I caught a Mirror Carp about 5cm long, since then I’ve been hooked,” Lewis said when talking about the roots of his fishing passion. Since then his interest has grown massively: he now goes Coarse, Sea and Fly fishing and has caught fish from Japan to Norway and all around the UK.
Lewis loved eating from a young age and was even known as “the dustbin” by his family. Over the years he developed a love for foraging and took his first steps in the industry. “I had a job as a kitchen porter for Dan Doherty at The Old Brewery in Greenwich, who I then did my apprenticeship with at Westminster Kingsway College to become a chef,” he said.
Lewis worked with Dan Doherty at Duck and Waffle for three years and then moved to Fera at Claridge’s for four months, before deciding to go freelance and focus on his YouTube channel.
He said: “Working long hours and living a routined existence disillusioned me from fine dining, so from there I took to freelancing for a while to develop my channel and explore the areas of food which are simply not accessible to a chef solely working 75 hours in a kitchen."
Confit trout, green strawberries,
asparagus, jersey royals,
champagne sabayon,
hop shoot tempura
“My passion for food extends much further than working in the kitchen and I wanted a chance to explore the different areas such as sourcing, foraging, street food, artisanal produce and specialist farms,” Lewis added.
Since then he has gone back to the kitchen and is currently the sous chef for Restaurant Associates at a high profile bank in Canary Wharf, where he has access to “the very best equipment” and cooks with “some top notch ingredients”.
said: “We grow our own micro herbs in the urban cultivator and we get to play around quite a bit with menus which change monthly, so we get to develop our cooking quite rapidly. We offer an array of catering options, fine dining, working lunches, buffets, canapés and finger food.”
He added: “To be honest it has been a lot harder finding the time to balance both endeavours. I started producing my youtube videos when I was freelancing just over a year ago and with the shortage of chefs it wasn't hard to call on work when I needed it and not take it when I needed to work on the channel.”
Lewis wants to make the channel his full-time commitment, but until then he plans on making good industry contacts while working here and there and producing new videos. His aim is to create a platform for people who share his passion for food and are enthusiastic about special and unique produce.
He said: “Be they a farmer who grows a specialist crop, a dairy that makes a cracking cheese, a brewer who has a special ingredient or even someone who knows a special place for foraging or fishing. You might be a chef who is offering a truly unique concept or a baker who’s family business is centuries old. I want to find those enthusiasts who really deserve highlighting and enlightening.”
Lewis Sully
Fishingcheflew, as described by Lewis, offers a down to earth connection for your foodie interest needs. “I like to meet people and hear their stories, not just eat their produce. There are so many points of interest and stories out there that are in my opinion essential for a chef’s inspiration. But not only chefs, we all deserve to know about the significance of different foods,” he said.
Lewis is touring the Highlands of Scotland in August to produce new videos for his channel, one being "3 Easy Loch Side Recipes for Trout". He is also planning on launching his website soon, which will be a mixture of new videos and blog entries with high resolution photos.
He said: “A longer term goal would probably be to have a section where viewers and followers could purchase the produce I’ll be highlighting with the youtube channel and any other unique products and interesting ingredients I find on my travels. I’m hoping to have it ready by the end of the summer.” We can't wait!
