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Meet our new columnist, Mark Doe of ‘Just Cooking’ cookery school in Firies. Here he describes how he got started in the industry and how he ended up in Kerry.
BE a chef they said. See the world, get a trade, everybody has to eat!
Why did I become a chef? It is the question I get asked more than any other. Was I surrounded by food as a kid? Did I cook from an early age?
Well to be totally honest, although I did do home economics at school, I didn’t really start cooking until I was 16.
Yes, my mother was a great cook and my grandparents did own a very successful bakery in the UK – where they used to bake bread and cakes for the royal family – but I don’t believe this was why I decided to cook for a living.
At the age of 15 I had to choose what career path I was to take and I didn’t have a clue until I attended an open day at the Harlow Technical college.
There in front of me was big posters of chefs in gleaming chef whites cooking with big happy faces, cooking with flames coming out of the pans and wielding big knives!
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It was there I met Andy Wright, one of the lecturers at the college. He was straight up with me saying that it’s one of the hardest industries that you can work in, with unsocial and long hours and bad pay, but he said with hard work and commitment the world can be your oyster.
From that moment I knew I wanted to cook! After talking to family and friends I decided to sign up for the two years City and Guilds 706/1 and 706/2 course.
I excelled in college, gaining distinctions and the Student of the Year award – not bad for a kid that left school with very few qualifications.
After leaving college I went to work in some small local hotels, and although they were producing good food, I knew that to really learn I had to get myself into London.
First stop was the Four Seasons hotel in London. This was then followed by The QE2 cruise liner and then three years at The Ritz Hotel in London.
It was on the QE2 cruise liner that I met my wife Bernie, with whom I travelled to Australia with for 18 months. There I worked in Lynches restaurant in Melbourne, which at the time was one of Australia’s leading restaurants.
We decided to move to Ireland in 1998. After a few short spells in jobs, I was offered the Executive Sous chef position at the Merrion Hotel in Dublin.
I spent three happy years there and learnt everything there was about how to manage a busy 5 star hotel kitchen.
After this I spent one year at Kilkea Castle as head chef, and then three years as Executive chef at the Portmarnock hotel, which was almost a dream job.
But by then we had our first son Cian and for a better work life balance, we decided to move to Kerry where we set up ‘Just Cooking’ in 2007.
My chosen career has taken me to some amazing places, I have met some great friends for life and there are many people I could thank for helping me on the way.
But if I hadn’t met Andy Wright in that June of 1986, I may never have cooked!
• Mark’s book ‘Just Cooking’ is available in book shops now. For more, see Mark’s website here.
