This week, I've pulled a true classic from my bookshelf: Anton Edelmann's The Savoy Food and Drink Book. As a young chef, I used to pore over its pages, mesmerised by the vivid pictures that still hold up well despite its 1988 origin. The cocktail selection remains particularly noteworthy, featuring both beloved classics and a few interesting new ones.

The Savoy Hotel holds a special place in my heart. I went there for an interview when I was 17, a year before this book came out, having driven all night from Scotland to be there for 9 am. The place was huge, there were kitchens within kitchens and it was terrifying. It was so long ago, I actually parked my Toyota Celica on the Strand, had my interview, and then drove to Reading to have an interview with John Burton Race. I didn’t take either job. However, later in life, I was asked to cook at The Savoy to celebrate Scottish food and drink. I was a guest of the hotel and had a suite overlooking the Thames, a floor down from where Monet painted that famous picture of the river. 

This book not only contains some remarkably simple-to-follow recipes, with very tasty dishes that are easy to recreate at home, but it also imparts invaluable kitchen wisdom, including essential knife skills and kitchen French terminology. It's been a continuous source of inspiration, especially knowing it connects me to culinary legends like Escoffier, who once graced those very kitchens. I find that astonishing. 

Anton Edelmann was a good friend of my dear friend and head chef at Kinnaird, John Webber—he visited us a few times and was a gentleman. Both John and Anton were sous chefs at the Dorchester hotel with another Anton, Anton Mosimann. It’s all connected somehow or other. John was head chef at Cliveden too…adding another leaf to our intertwined culinary family tree.

And let’s not forget that it was at The Savoy where the iconic omelette Arnold Bennet was born—a dish I had the pleasure of savouring for breakfast—a testament to the hotel's rich literary and gastronomic history. As I ponder my next read, I'm reminded of the fascinating tales yet to be uncovered in the world of food and drink.