Bucks &amp; Oxon


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-1000x1000.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-138968" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-1000x1000.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-800x800.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-400x400.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-525x525.jpeg 525w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-500x500.jpeg 500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino-1100x1100.jpeg 1100w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Will-Dimartino.jpeg 1500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Here at Muddy, we love a good nose around the kitchen &#8211; especially when they&#8217;re in a Grade II-listed manor house hotel! After our recent stay at Horwood House in Milton Keynes (<a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/travel/review-horwood-house-hotel-little-horwood/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">read our review here</a>), we pinned down Will Dimartino, Executive Head Chef of in-house restaurant and bar Harry&#8217;s, for a chinwag. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-your-first-job-in-a-kitchen"><strong>Your first job in a kitchen? </strong> </h2>



<p>My first job was at Lords Cricket Ground, working during the summer holidays. It sounds exciting, but it was basically peeling tons and tons of vegetables all day long!&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Career highlight?</strong> </h2>



<p>Winning 3AA Rosettes and being voted in the UK top 100 at the National Restaurant Awards when I worked at Holbeck Ghyll in the Lake District – it was a lot of hard work, but so worth it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Sum up your food philosophy? </strong></h2>



<p>Simple. Great produce, cooked simply, made tasty.  </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="966" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-966x1000.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-138969" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-966x1000.jpg 966w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-773x800.jpg 773w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-387x400.jpg 387w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-1485x1536.jpg 1485w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu-507x525.jpg 507w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Restaurant-menu.jpg 1500w" sizes="(max-width: 966px) 100vw, 966px" /><figcaption>Food at Harry&#8217;s Bar and Grill, Horwood House</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Most memorable moment at work?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Unfortunately, cutting the top of my finger off. I was cutting potatoes and a commis chef was doing something wrong, so I turned around to try and correct him and sliced my finger off in the process. I got in a taxi and went straight to hospital &#8211; luckily I had a team of about fifteen chefs who just took over, so me not being there made zero difference. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Ever cooked for anyone famous?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Honestly, there are too many to list &#8211; I&#8217;ve been very lucky. My absolute favourite has to be Ron Dennis, the ex McLaren boss. He and his family were spending Christmas in <a href="https://www.thegrove.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Grove in Watford</a>, where I worked at the time, and I was their private chef for the day. Luckily the room had a private kitchen so they weren&#8217;t watching me chop carrots. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Your biggest mistake at work?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Forgetting a pan of stock on the stove. It was a silly mistake and many fire engines attended, much to my embarrassment. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Favourite kitchen gadget? </strong> </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-1000x1000.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-138973" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-525x525.jpg 525w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-500x500.jpg 500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen-1100x1100.jpg 1100w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Harrys-Bar-and-Kitchen.jpg 1500w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>A charcoal oven. We have one at Harry’s Bar &amp; Kitchen and it produces the absolute tastiest dishes. In fact, a lot of our new menu was created around this fantastic piece of equipment.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>You’re tired, starving and impatient: what do you cook for dinner?</strong>  </h2>



<p>I wouldn’t &#8211; I&#8217;d just order in! There is an Italian deli just two minutes from my house and they do great pasta, which is always my go-to when I don&#8217;t want to cook. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>What would you cook to impress a date?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Easy. BBQ butternut squash, green Thai lentils, yoghurt and pomegranate.&nbsp;That&#8217;s what I cooked my girlfriend on our third date &#8211; we&#8217;re both vegetarian &#8211; and it&#8217;s obviously worked. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Who&#8217;s your favourite chef? </h2>



<p>Keith Floyd &#8211; he was really old school, and I found it hilarious as a kid that he would just be pissed all the time while cooking. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Favourite cookbook? </h2>



<p><em>The Ritz London: The Cookbook. </em>I&#8217;ve never cooked anything from it, but I loved reading it. I don&#8217;t keep cookbooks in the kitchen, they&#8217;re more just to have for decor to be honest. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Favourite type of cuisine?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Italian &#8211; all day, every day.&nbsp;My dad&#8217;s Italian and my mum learnt about the culture from him. We used to go to Italy maybe ten times a year, so I spent a lot of time enjoying the food there. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Favourite local restaurant?</strong> </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1042" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria-.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-138972" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria-.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria--800x556.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria--1000x695.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria--400x278.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Lartista-pizzeria--756x525.jpg 756w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p><a href="https://www.lartistawatford.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">L&#8217;artista Pizzeria</a> in Watford (above) &#8211; I have been going there for over 20 years, and the food hasn’t changed one bit. It’s always as good as it was the last time.&nbsp;They know me so well there that I don&#8217;t even need to order; they know what I&#8217;m eating, they know what I&#8217;m drinking, they just bring me a bill at the end! </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Your three favourite suppliers?</strong> </h2>



<p>We use a few great suppliers but three of the best are <a href="https://www.thebuckinghambutcher.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Buckingham Butcher</a>, <a href="https://www.collinsfresh.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Collins</a>, who supply our vegetables, and <a href="https://www.sticklebackfish.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stickleback</a>, where we get our fish. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Favourite things to eat when you’re on holiday?</strong>  </h2>



<p>Pizza, always pizza.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Favourite ingredient and why? </strong> </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1500" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-138971" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-800x800.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-1000x1000.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-400x400.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-525x525.jpg 525w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-500x500.jpg 500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/11/Minus-8-vinegar-1100x1100.jpg 1100w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>Right now I absolutely love Minus 8 vinegars, which are made out in Canada and named after the temperature at which the grapes are harvested. They just make such great dressings and enhance the flavour of dishes so much !&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Most overrated ingredient? </h2>



<p>Beef fillet. It&#8217;s so expensive but doesn&#8217;t have the flavour of other cuts &#8211; if I wasn&#8217;t a vegetarian, I&#8217;d have a nice beef cheek, skirt or brisket any day of the week. To me, beef fillet is like a person who spends all their money trying to look rich, but doesn&#8217;t have anything in the bank. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>What are you proud of at work? </strong></h2>



<p> What makes me proud is when one of my chefs come to me with a dish they have created and it’s menu-worthy. That means I&#8217;ve taught them well and allowed them to be creative, which is my goal with all my team.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Three dishes every home cook should master?  </strong></h2>



<p>Oxtail stew, because it&#8217;s perfect for winter, sticky toffee pudding because it works all year round, and ravioli, just because!</p>



<p><strong>Find Will at <a href="https://www.horwoodhouse.co.uk/dining/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Harry&#8217;s Restaurant &amp; Bar</a> in <a href="https://www.horwoodhouse.co.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Horwood House</a>, Milton Keynes. </strong></p>



<p><em>Mursley Road, Little Horwood, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK17 0PH. Tel: <a href="tel:01296722100">01296 722100</a></em></p>


What’s cooking? Will Dimartino, Harry’s Bar & Kitchen

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