We need more Jamie Olivers

[Beeankey]

I watched a programme last night with Heston Bloomenwhatshisname about Britains love of Italian food.

It was mainly about the River Cafe and they were interviewing various well known chefs like Oliver, Theo Randall and Hugh Fearnley Whittanstall who have all worked there.

Anyway my point is you can say what you want about Jamie Oliver but he has a set of balls and makes things happen. He said he bought the River Cafe cookbook and was mesmerised by it as it was so different and he immediately decided he wanted to go and work there. He picked up the phone and phoned either Ruth or Rosie who own the restaurant and 16 hours later was sitting down in front of them being interviewed and got the job. A a couple of years later a film crew were in filming and Jamie seized the opportunity and played up to the camera. A month later he had his own tv show, a book out and the rest of history.

Fair play to him and none of this sitting about expecting things to happen attitude the majority of kids have these days.

 

[BJH]

Heston whateverhis name really winds me up.

Cut your chips, fry for 5 minutes, take out, massage, chill for 5 mins, deep fry for the length of a larks song, remove, freeze overnight marinade in the semen of a virgin mermaid then serve in an ice cream cone with slice of Daily Mail for a napkin for that authentic look.

What a pile of pretentious bo77ocks !

 

[Arch]

Yeah, I like Jamie. He's good at getting across the fun of food, maybe demystifying it a bit - I think a lot of people think cooking is something magical and difficult, and that's why we're losing generations who can't cook.

What's more, he does seem to come across as a nice bloke, for all his pushiness. No idea if that's true though.

 

[Noodley]

...none of this sitting about expecting things to happen attitude the majority of kids have these days.

Yeh, effing kids, they're as bad as the immigrants.

 

[swee'pea99]

He's probably done more for the future generations of this country than anyone else in living memory.

"The report by the Children's Food Trust (CFT) shows the proportion of teenagers having chips at lunchtime has dropped from 43% to just 7% between 2004 and 2011, while those consuming starchy foods cooked in fat or oil, such as garlic bread or yorkshire pudding, is down from 50% to 17%. The number of schools offering pizza every day has fallen from 66% to 50%.
At the same time the number of pupils eating sandwiches has risen from 13% to 29%. Those having vegetables and salad has doubled, albeit only to 12%, while 98% of schools now have both foods on their menu four or five days a week – up from 60%. Two-thirds fewer pupils now opt for sweet treats such as cakes and biscuits.
And today's average school lunch is more nutritious than in 2004, containing a third less salt, sugar, total fat and saturated fat, and 50% more vitamin A."
and...
"In 2009, a report was released that after the implementation of Jamie's School Dinners program test scores in English and science improved. The report was conducted by the Institute for Social and Economic Research located at Essex University. It measured the performance of 11 year old students from Greenwich, south London from 2006-2007, allowing a full year of performance to be measured.[5] The results showed the number of students to receive a 4 or a 5 on their science exams increased by 8%, while English scores rose by 6% & maths also showed a slight increase in performance.[6]"
Most importantly, he's made an entire generation at least begin to think about food, and the importance of food, and stemmed the ever-rising tide of fat, salt and sugar pushed by a vast and powerful (and utterly shameless) mega-industry. He's done all this pretty much single-handedly, for no other reason than that he believes in it.
He was also recently reported to be Britain's 22nd largest charitable donor.
Not a lot of people know that.
Which kind of proves a point.
The man is a saint.

 

[Saluki]

Heston Bloominheck is a chemist who happens to cook food. I am convinced of it.
Jamie's recipes are easy to follow, not as easy as the St Delia but great nonetheless. I didn't know that about River Cafe but then I'm not that into cooking programmes.

 

[Noodley]

Which kind of proves a point.

Indeed it does, he's a first class nobber.

 

[Arch]

Heston Bloominheck is a chemist who happens to cook food. I am convinced of it.
Jamie's recipes are easy to follow, not as easy as the St Delia but great nonetheless. I didn't know that about River Cafe but then I'm not that into cooking programmes.

I quite like some of Heston's stuff, in a sort of academic interest way - it's not cooking exactly, it's exploring flavour etc. If it makes a few people think more about their food, and experiment, fine.

 

[swee'pea99]

Indeed it does, he's a first class nobber.

"Oliver, 34, was speaking after it was reported that he will appear in 22nd place on the Times Giving List, which estimates he has given £2.7m to charity."

Nobber. No question.

 

[fossyant]

Like Mr Oliver I do. But his 30 bloody minute meals... Got the book for my son. Son and wife spent about two hours preparing it. Yes it cooks in 30 minutes. Was bloody lovely, but it was mid week so time short. One for the weekend.

 

[Globalti]

We ate in his restaurant in Edinburgh last weekend and the food was delicious; just simple touches but far better than anything else.

 

[AndyRM]

We really don't need more like him. He is an irritating, fat-tongued buffoon.

 

[Booyaa]

We ate in his restaurant in Edinburgh last weekend and the food was delicious; just simple touches but far better than anything else.

I thought the Edinburgh one was very poor, and the waitresses were appalling! The Glasgow one I have never has an issue with (it also helps I have a discount there as I work in the same building).

I'm not too keen on Jamie though, I think it's the tongue.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Yeh, effing kids, they're as bad as the immigrants.

No, mine are worst ....

 

[Fab Foodie]

I quite like some of Heston's stuff, in a sort of academic interest way - it's not cooking exactly, it's exploring flavour etc. If it makes a few people think more about their food, and experiment, fine.

Yep Arch, you've got it. He's making the links between the 'art of cooking' and the science of the the Technologist. There are reasons why chefs do stuff a certain way, because it works and they've been taught that way, Heston is trying to demonstrate the loose science why stuff is done a certain way in the kitchen and gives a certain effect. The difference is that he does it with grams in kitchens and we do it in tonnes in factories, but the principles applied are the same.