Life is a beach for Jamie Oliver, who celebrated the opening of Fifteen Cornwall on Friday. It's the third restaurant to open under the umbrella of his Fifteen Foundation, a groundbreaking project to aid disadvantaged youngsters. And the celebrity chef couldn't look happier as he posed with his posse of new culinary recruits at the beautiful seaside location.
Jamie, who spent many of his childhood holidays in Cornwall, has already attracted interest in his latest venture which he hopes will help develop the county, one of the UK's poorest. The 100-seater restaurant has already received 3,000 advance reservations ahead of the grand opening. Diners at the Watergate Bay eatery will be able to enjoy stunning views over the Atlantic coast and feast on a varied menu of fresh seasonal and local produce.
As with his other restaurants, the kitchens will be staffed by wannabe chefs from underprivileged backgrounds. The 21 trainees were picked from some 300 applicants at the end of last year. Speaking of his choice of location Jamie explained: "Cornwall is a beautiful place and buzzing in the summer, but there are quite a lot of dark, rainy, less-busy months in the off season. There is reasonably high unemployment here, and various social problems." His ambition is to have one of his Fifteen Foundation's trainee chefs open their own restaurant in the future.
Not one to rest on his laurels, the 30-year-old is keen to expand his restaurant concept with a goal of ten openings in as many years. He already has Fifteens in Shoreditch and Amsterdam, and next up on the menu is Melbourne.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
