Charlotte Vincent: William Sitwell stopped me leaving the hospitality industry
Chef Charlotte Vincent admitted she was ready to walk away from the hospitality industry, before “godsend” William Sitwell tempted her back in.
Food-critic-turned-restaurateur William took over The White Hart in Wiveliscombe, Somerset, in 2025, with Dom Hewitt running the kitchen initially.
Earlier this year, they turned to Charlotte to help push forward the culinary offering, with her background at the likes of Gidleigh Park and The Five Bells, reaching the National Chef of the Year final and twice appearing on BBC’s Great British Menu.
Charlotte Vincent’s illness
The opportunity for Charlotte came on the back of a turbulent year, which saw her fall seriously ill.
“I had made my mind up to leave the industry,” Charlotte told The Staff Canteen.
“I just felt it was an industry that hadn’t treated me particularly well when I was ill. I hadn’t found anything that supported me.
“I was left without a job. I started to retrain to do something else.
“Then, I was out walking the dog one day and I got a phone call from Dom Hewitt. He said, ‘I’ve seen your CV on Indeed’, which I’d forgotten was even on there.
“He asked if I wanted to come and work at The White Hart, because he was desperate for someone with some talent.
“He was only covering for William until he went back up to the Cotswolds.
“I said, ‘okay, I’ll come and give you a hand and see if I like it.’
“And here I am as head chef. Dom has gone back up to the Cotswolds and Mr Sitwell trusts me completely with his kitchen and lets me crack on.”
When The Staff Canteen last spoke to Charlotte, she was out of work and battling with incapacitating illness.
“I’m now recovered,” she said.
“I’m left with some scarring, but no long-term damage.
“I do feel like I’m not as physically fit as I used to be, but apparently that will come back and I’ll get back to myself.
“Anyway, I’m better and I’m here with William.”
What is it like to work for William Sitwell?
William has become well known in the industry for his work as a restaurant critic in The Daily Telegraph, as well as televised work on the likes of MasterChef.
Asked what it has been like to work for William in the four months she has so far, Charlotte explained: “He has definitely critiqued my food before.
“For a chef, he can be quite scary because you know he’s coming to critique the food and you think, ‘oh God, William’s here, he’s going to rip me apart.’
“But he’s absolutely brilliant.
“He’s very supportive. He’s fiercely defensive of his chefs and his team. His criticism is always kind and he’s got a lot of wine knowledge and food knowledge, which has really lifted my cooking.
“I’m excited to show off a little bit with it, if I’m honest.
“He eats here quite a lot. He’ll come in two or three times a week, come into the kitchen and talk to me, and he’ll stand there grazing and trying things.
“He’s always got great knowledge. He might say ‘a little less seasoning’ or ‘a bit more of this’ or ‘maybe it needs a bit more punch here, can we cook it like that? Is that something we can do?’
“He will always trust my judgement as a chef.
“But his palate is so good that, so far, he is always right.
“My cooking style has completely changed through working with him.
“He’s very good at telling me what he thinks is right or wrong, which is actually lifting the level of the food very quickly.
“I think we have aspirations to achieve whatever we can, basically.”
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She added: “A chef’s biggest fear is being critiqued. I get that nearly every day.
“I think it has hardened me up. I’m less resistant to criticism now. I take it on board and actually use it to grow as a chef.
“That’s what has happened and I’m loving the change. I’m loving the change in style.
“I’m not as refined as I was when it comes to plating. Now I’m all about simple food and big flavour. That’s where we’re going with it.
“William has been brilliant. I think he has been a bit of a godsend.
“I was so disillusioned and was starting to leave the industry, and then I ended up being given a job working with a food critic.
“He’ll stand there and watch you cook.
“For the first month I was working here, I was thinking ‘oh my God, I feel like I’m on MasterChef’.
“But he watches because he wants to learn as well. He wants to be able to write good columns and grow his own knowledge when it comes to food and how it is prepared.
“It’s really, really good. I’m enjoying my journey with William very much.”
The food on offer at William Sitwell’s The White Hart
The food at The White Hart centres around local British produce and Italian flavours, with open-fire cookery.
“We’re British seasonal food through an Italian lens,” Charlotte said.
“That’s my little philosophy.
“William originally wanted a full-on Italian restaurant, which he’s sadly not going to get!
“What we are doing is taking inspiration from Italian cooking, because Italians always celebrate the ingredients.
“We decided to make this an ingredient-led business and simply cook through the seasons.
“We’ve got wonderful charcuterie and cheeses.
“We’ve got Exmoor beef, which comes from literally behind the hotel. So much of what we use is within 10 miles, even the cheese.
“We’ve got wild venison from Exmoor Venison. They bring it to me every week.
“Everything is fresh.
“I normally write the menu weekly and then change it daily if I can’t get a particular ingredient. I can just switch things out.
“I’ve got a pistachio tiramisu which has been on for months and people love it. Every time I try to take it off, they don’t want me to.
“My best-selling dessert is chocolate salami. It is really simple – chocolate with various bits and bobs through it – and it sells incredibly well.
“We’ve had venison carpaccio on one day and wild boar salami the next.
“We don’t do pizzas and we don’t actually do very much pasta.
“I take a lot of inspiration from Italy, but use the larder outside our front door.
“We are still working out exactly where we want to take it. The business hasn’t even completed its first year yet, so we’ll see.”
Enjoying her work and life again
Given Charlotte’s tough time away from the kitchen, being back somewhere she enjoys means a lot personally.
“What I love about here, and I think to be fair Dom created a lot of it, is that he brought back this almost old-fashioned feel of authority, hard work, ingredient-led cooking, routine and just loving what you do every day,” she explained.
“It’s about remembering the reason why we’re chefs in the first place.
“William has also brought his own approach into the décor and the atmosphere of the building, which makes everybody relaxed and happy to be here.
“I can’t wait to get to work every day. It’s lovely.
“The vibe is fantastic and the customers are so nice. It is all turning out really well.
“It feels like I’ve gone back in time, which I needed personally. Because I’m a little bit older, I do remember the good old days.
“People coming to work with me are feeling that as well.
“I hate using the word ‘family’ because it isn’t a family, it’s work. But we are all here to support each other and we are all on one mission, which is to try to put this place, and this part of the country, on the map.”
Michelin ambitions
The White Hart is busy and while William and Charlotte would love some accolades, keeping busy and happy is the main goal.
“We are not having any trouble getting people in,” she said.
“I run a set lunch, because we’re hoping to get into the Michelin Guide, or perhaps achieve a Bib Gourmand.
“We then go into à la carte, and we’re normally fully booked from Wednesday to Saturday for that.
“We have bedrooms upstairs too. They’re being renovated at the moment so eventually we can offer gastro breaks, alongside William’s wine list.
“It is getting busier and I’ve really noticed it.”
She added: “Personally, I think it would be nice for the guys in the team to see some (Michelin) recognition for their achievements and all their hard work.
“But whenever that happens, it happens.
“There’s no pressure and there’s no time limit.
“We’re just doing what we do every day and hoping we get somewhere with that philosophy.”
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