Here in the flesh, a celebrity chef who's offally clever

Sydney Morning Herald

Thursday October 1, 2009

Kelsey Munro

THOSE who prefer their British celebrity chefs to be foul-mouthed, egotistical tyrants will be disappointed to meet Fergus Henderson.The owner of St John restaurant in London, whose book Nose to Tail Eating: A Kind of British Cooking helped revive the appreciation of offal, is warm and witty, with a pleasantly arch sense of humour.The 46-year-old chef arrived yesterday to launch the Sydney International Food Festival at Astral last night.His reputation for cooking up the neglected parts of animals �� bone marrow is a signature dish �� precedes him.��I think there's a mistaken notion that there's this bloodlust, testosterone-led kitchen [at St John],�� he said at his Sydney hotel yesterday. ��In fact we're quite nice.��Vegetarians, contrary to scurrilous rumour, are welcome.��I embrace vegetarians,�� he said. ��We always have something vegetarian on the menu. I only have one tripe dish on the menu, and no one says to me, 'Are you anti-tripe?' I think [vegetarians] are missing out, but that's a personal view.��He is amused, too, by the sudden enthusiasm for sourcing seasonal produce.��It's a strange thing now that every chef seems to be saying, 'Cook seasonal and local.' What were they doing beforehand? Going as far away as possible? ... I'm not knocking any other chef, of course.��Henderson, who was diagnosed in 1998 with Parkinson's disease, no longer cooks in his restaurant, but oversees its operations daily when he's in London.��I don't know if it's vanity,�� he said, ��but when you're like a windmill" �� he gestured with his arms �� it's not great to be in the kitchen. I annoy myself when I can't do things as fast.��He is ��a million times better�� since receiving deep brain stimulation surgery in 2006, a then-revolutionary treatment to help control involuntary jerks and shakes in Parkinson's patients.It is an operation done under local anaesthetic.��They bolt this sort of Darth Vader helmet on you and suddenly you go, 'Well, I can't move my head any more,' �� he said. ��Then they drill these holes in your skull and scrape the scalp; this sort of squeaking noise. Then they put wires into your brain ... It's amazing.��On Saturday morning at the Pyrmont Growers Market, Henderson will lead 12 well-known Sydney chefs in cooking a nose-to-tail barbecue. "I've never spit-roasted a pig, so there we go �� a new adventure. They've got me a spit-wizard to help, which I need. It will be in safe hands."TONIGHTAn evening of fine wine and cinema: Julie& Julia An exclusive preview screening of Nora Ephron��s new culinary drama Julie & Julia, starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams. The first 50 Herald subscribers to visit heraldbenefits.com.au and submit their details will win a free double pass to this screening at Palace Verona cinema, Paddington, at 6.15pm.