My last supper and other meals

Former Waitrose boss Mark Price, who admits to a life of eating well, reveals the dinners– and breakfasts, elevenses, lunches and teas–he would choose for his last day on Earth

Ten in 17? no, not the number of times Manchester United has won the premiership in the past 17 years, nor the working braincells of a reality TV favourite, but the inches by which my waistline has expanded during 17 years on the Waitrose board. no wonder, as I tried to sample all new lines, visit suppliers and have meetings over breakfast, lunch and dinner in some of the world’s best restaurants.

I have treasured memories of Peking duck in Peking (Beijing), prepared by men stripped to the waist turning a massive spit suspended above an open fire pit, of a huge Argentinian steak, flame-licked by the red-hot embers of old vines on a barbecue at the Familia Zuccardi’s vineyard restaurant in Mendoza, with the Andes in the background, and of freshly caught salmon, cut into fine slivers, on the banks of the Grimsa in Iceland.

I rarely look at the menu in a restaurant. I simply ask ‘What are you famous for?’ and order it. When asked how I like my meat cooked, I reply: ‘How the chef thinks best.’ When writing The Food Lover’s Handbook, I was often asked what my last meal would be. The truth is, I couldn’t limit myself to a last supper. I’d have to have a gargantuan day of gluttony, combining my favourite foods ‘to try before you die’ and British restaurants.

I was once told that, for a healthy diet, you should breakfast like a king, lunch like a lord and supper like a pauper. On my final day, I certainly intend to do the first two, but would also aim to midmorning like a maharajah, afternoon tea like a tsar and dine like a duke.

‘I would aim to mid-morning like a and afternoon tea like a tsar’