Victor Garvey outlines 'special' vision at Midland Grand
Victor Garvey outlined the vision for his new London restaurant, stating: “I'd like people to come on pilgrimages to The Midland Grand and experience the kind of fun interpretation of food that we've created.”
Following the departures of Patrick Powell and Charlie Crote, New York-born Victor last month teamed up with acclaimed hotelier Harry Handelsman and took over at The Midland Grand Dining Room, launching Victor Garvey at The Midland Grand.
Chef patron of Michelin-starred SO|LA in Soho, New York-born Victor arrived in London with an impressive culinary CV, having worked at the likes of El Bulli, French Laundry, Noma and Las Vegas’s two-starred Picasso.
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Partnership with Harry Handelsman
In 2019, he opened SO|LA, going on to become the first American restaurant in Europe to win a Michelin star two years later, which it has retained since.
While SO|LA is based around Californian dining, Victor is showcasing his classical French cuisine at Midland Grand.
“We're giving the dining room what it deserves, I think is the most succinct way to put it,” Victor told The Staff Canteen.
“I've known Harry for quite a long time now as friends. I have SO|LA, which in its own right is something I'm incredibly proud of, having created the only Michelin-starred American restaurant in Europe.
"Harry one day asked if I'd like to take over The Midland Grand. My response was, absolutely, but it's my restaurant, I'm too old to be somebody's employee. He said ‘that's absolutely what I want’, so we've formed a partnership.
“It's incredible. When you think about these moments in a chef's career, you only get handed a dining room of this significance and grandeur once, maybe twice if you're lucky, in your entire career.
“This is the kind of room that makes the Alain Ducasses and the Joël Robuchons of the world. And so I'm incredibly privileged and excited to be working in such a hallowed space.”
He continued: “I think Harry is a genius. I don't mean that blowing smoke, I genuinely think he's a genius in putting projects together and seeing value where others might not.
“At one point there were plans to tear The Midland Grand down. Harry saw an uncut diamond and decided to invest more money than you or I will ever see in our lifetimes into turning it into what it is today.
“It's one of the most beautiful places in the world. So I like to think perhaps that same eye for opportunity is what led him to me, somebody who's going to respect and honour the history of that room.”
Asked what he hopes to bring to The Midland Grand, Victor added: “Not many people know this, just simply because SO|LA is I guess what made me known, and people assume that I'm cooking American food, but I was a chef de partie and then sous chef and then chef de cuisine at a classical French restaurant with two Michelin stars in Las Vegas.
“My formative training was in classical French cuisine. My grandmother was personal chef to Charles de Gaulle when he was in Africa.
“So it's something that's very close to my heart, but it's something that I haven't done in a while.
“If
Harry hadn't come along and offered me this, it's something I would have done anyway. Obviously in a less grand space, but it's kind of refreshing to be able to go back to my roots and do classic French cuisine again.”
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Homage to French Gastronomy Legends
Under the slogan ‘Old World. New Ideas’, the opening menu for Victor Garvey at The Midland Grand includes ingredients such as duck liver, Carlingford oyster, wagyu cheek and amberjack sashimi.
“I always like to start menu design with a question, that's kind of become a habit for me,” explained Victor.
“The question on this one is what would (Auguste) Escoffier or Paul Bocuse cook, if they had access to all the information, all the technology and all the international produce that we have today?
“I suspect the food would look a lot different than it does in the textbooks. So we are certainly paying homage and respect to these superstars of French gastronomy.
“Every time you pick up a fork and knife, in one way or another, you need to be thanking these guys for what they've done. But we are going to respect it and honour it in a way that brings it into 2025 and makes it relevant.
“So perhaps a bit less butter, a bit less cream, a bit less flour, more intense flavours, products from around the world that perhaps fit better in their roles, in certain dishes, than only the fish or meat that was available in France 300 years ago.”
Discussing his chef mentors, Victor said: “At the beginning of my career, it was certainly Ferran Adrià. That was one of my first jobs in the kitchen, at El Bulli.
“In terms of this kind of food that we're doing, my mentor is Julian Serrano, chef patron of Picasso. They're named best restaurant in the US multiple times over.
“He's a Spanish gentleman who trained under Alain Ducasse and was the pre-eminent face of classic French food in the US, basically for 20 years until Thomas Keller came along.
“I worked under him for the better part of five years and he's probably been the biggest defining force in what I do.”
Victor, who appeared as a guest judge on MasterChef: The Professionals last year, will split his time between Midland Grand and SO|LA, explaining: “Getting the ball rolling on a new project is always more labour intensive than maintaining a successful one.”
Looking ahead to his hopes and plans for his new restaurant, he said : “I think that Midland Grand is a gateway to Europe. We are quite literally sat there at the terminal of the train that goes to the continent.
“I would like to think that we'll be able to reflect all of the continent's grandeur in what we do, possibly in the way that Hans Zimmer makes all of the music in his movies reverential, almost like you're having a bit of a holy experience.
“I'd like people to come on pilgrimages to The Midland Grand and experience the kind of fun interpretation of food that we've created.
“I really want it to be a special place. I want it to be a unique place. I want it to have a singular spot on that fine dining pantheon that the room calls for.”
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Victor Garvey outlines 'special' vision at Midland Grand
