A fly-on-the-wall look at the trials and tribulations of opening a restaurant...

It’s an enormous undertaking opening a new restaurant both financially and personally, being one of the riskiest ventures known to man. So here we present you with a fly-on-the-wall look at the trials and tribulations involved. Our grand line-up includes Jacobs Inn due to open later this month in Wolvercote, The Field Kitchen which pops up in various Oxfordshire locations, Baz at St Giles Cafe talking about taking on an Oxford institution, Lucie at The Milkshed who’s been galloping before she can walk since opening a few months back, Shaun Dickens who broke away from working in restaurants like Le Manoir to set up shop at The Boathouse, Andrew Smith’s endeavours to re-open village pub The Cock in Combe, plus the team at Killingworth Castle in Wootton, who have successfully revived their local. All tell inspiring stories infused with humour, anecdotes and much hair-pulling, who will take it in turns week-on-week to entertain you. Enjoy.

My name is Rupert Whitaker, I’m the chef/owner of the Field Kitchen Oxford. Since leaving school in 1990 I’ve been working my way up from wash-up through to chef and general manager. I’ve worked at Harvey Nichols’ Fifth Floor in Knightsbridge; Willi’s wine bar in Paris; and The Lemon Tree and Branca in Oxford, to name but a few. I moved into film-making about 10 years ago – always being one to follow my passions. Back in 2011 I made a movie, Born of War, with Vicky Jewson (my other half), and brought in a catering wagon to help keep the budget down.

Normally film catering comes in at £15 per head per day. With 40 cast and crew for five weeks that’s a tidy sum. I got it all in for £5 per head plus paying a full-time chef to cook it all. The cast and crew loved it and we saved a packet. The film finished and I had time was on my hands. I had a van and 20 years as a chef and manager under my belt. I’d visited Italy that year and came across a restaurant with an indoor/outdoor theme and it struck me… why not try something similar at home? I mean, the weather’s always perfect here too? Besides, I’d always had a block with the ‘normal’ restaurant format – I wanted something that I could create afresh – menu, décor, clientele and location. I try to build my menus around what central ingredient is in season, along with blagging loads off my mum (bless her): flowers, herbs, gooseberries, homemade bread, and pastry that would make Mrs Beaton weep. I set up last summer at Hogacre Common and, after some great reviews, it just took off. Food trucks and pop-ups are a fantastic opportunity for a small group or an individual to express their passion through food. It presents a potential adventure for the customer. I’ve only recently started putting up my menus in advance of the day, but last year I kept the surprise element. People would walk over a railway bridge, into a secret garden and have to go with mystery until they saw the menu chalked up on the side of the van. A great thing happened last week. I was setting up for a summer evening sitting and a young family came up and asked about the van. The chap was a great local artist, Justin Earl, and we agreed to cook dinner for him, his brother, and three daughters in exchange for a painting. There’s something to be said for old fashioned barter.

Last week I cooked a mixed sharing board of:

  • Bruschette of smashed broad bean, peas, sage, garlic, chilli and lemon zest.
  • Bruschette of asparagus and soft English goat’s cheese.
  • Watercress, pea, mint, dill, spring onions and radish salad, lemon dressing on crostini.
  • Sea bream fillet, Charlotte potatoes boulangere and wilted spinach with garlic. Aubergine sliced and char grilled, with feta, poppy seeds, pine nuts, sultanas and flat leaf parsley. Lemon and oil dressing.
  • Then rhubarb and custard tarts.

TRY IT
Find out more about the Field Kitchen at
thefieldkitchen oxford.com or email
invite@thefieldkitchen
oxford.com