FOOD FROM THE HEART
Michelin-star chefs pull out all the stops to feed workers on Covid-19 frontline
MANY of Wales’ restaurants and cafes are pulling together to ensure our heroic NHS staff and care workers are well fed during the coronavirus pandemic.
This includes some of Wales’ Michelin-starred chefs, who have been putting their kitchens to good use while their businesses are closed in the lockdown.
Restaurant James Sommerin in Penarth and The Walnut Tree, near Abergavenny, are part of collectives making sure healthworkers are able to eat a decent meal during their gruelling shifts.
From dishes like sticky toffee pudding to lamb ragu and Grandma Som’s chicken, the top-rated chefs have been pulling out all the stops to get thousands of meals to staff at University Hospital of Wales (UHW) in Cardiff, Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil and Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny.
James Sommerin, along with wife Louise and daughter Georgia, are working up to 16-hour days to get the meals prepped, cooked, portionedup and out for delivery three times a week.
It’s all part of the Feed the Heath scheme, organised by Waterloo Tea in Cardiff and which involves a number of local businesses.
On Wednesday, the scheme arranged for 1,700 meals to be delivered to UHW from Juboraj, Milkwood, Waterloo Tea, Moghul, Secret Garden, EJ Catering and Cinnamon Tree.
James, who achieved his first Michelin star in 2007, said: “We are a family unit and anything like this we are hell-bent on doing. Week on week we are determined to try and produce more than we did last week or better than we did last week.”
But, with a laugh, he added: “I do think sometimes we bite off more than we can chew.”
James and Louise have also had the help of youngest daughter Elin, who baked Easter bunny biscuits for NHS staff over the Easter weekend.
James said being part of the Feed the Heath scheme is not only keeping him occupied and creative while he is unable to run his restaurant, but it is also something he is proud to be involved in.
“I’m immensely proud,” he said. “There’s something about giving to charity I really enjoy anyway, but we’ve found it exceptionally heartwarming. We’ve had a nurse knock on the door and hand us an envelope of letters and we’ve had people contact us on social media and then I had a midwife come and knock on the window yesterday.
“She told me, ‘You can’t imagine how much this means to people.’ Just the fact that other people are thinking of them and how hard their job is at the moment.”
Louise also ensures that, as well as a hearty meal, every meal goes out with a lovely message on the container.
She said: “It’s just as a little thanks to who is eating the meal for all their hard work and hopefully a little bit of encouragement as well.
“We can’t imagine how tough their days are at the moment. We have such admiration for them. The gratitude we are getting is just so humbling, people are so selfless.”
The meals go to those staff on the wards who struggle to get out for a break to pick up their lunch or dinner and are delivered to the hospital by a delivery driver who then hands them over to volunteers who distribute them.
James said: “We’re trying to upscale to deliver to UHW and University Hospital Llandough, but it’s about the logistics.
“We’re becoming more streamlined – we have a large kitchen, but it’s not geared up for thousands of meals. We’re geared up for 50 covers in the restaurant. And we’re also loaning a refrigerated van so we can plug it into the building, as we don’t have enough fridge space.
“It’s about working smarter, not harder, and how we can produce more in a smarter fashion.
“Once you start upscaling and you do it sensibly, it’s easy. We made a risotto for 325 portions and it was hard work making that quantity, stirring the rice continuously.
“But it’s very satisfying when you see all this food going out to people who will enjoy it. It’s very satisfying.”
The Sommerin family team start in the kitchen at about 10am and can work up until 2am.
They have so far made around 8,500 portions of food since they joined the Feed the Heath movement at the start of the month.
Despite the tremendous effort put in, James said some of the feedback has stung a little.
“It’s very hard,” he said. “We’ve had a bit of backlash from other organisations saying it’s nice that you’re doing that but what about X, Y and Z?
“But we’re not here to take over the world, just a very small band of people trying to do as much as we can.
“We are three people in our kitchen producing 3,000 portions of food a week, which should be impossible.”
In Llandewi Skirrid, near Abergavenny, Welsh culinary institution The Walnut Tree is also doing its bit to cater for the people taking care of the country.
The restaurant is providing homecooked meals for NHS staff at nearby Nevill Hall Hospital and Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr as part of the Feed The NHS Wales fundraiser.
Alongside its sister-venues, The Angel Hotel and The Art Shop and Chapel, the Michelin-starred Walnut Tree has been taking it in turns to turn out quality dinners after Mor on the Mumbles invited them to take part.
Charlotte Griffiths, who along with husband William, owns the trio of venues, said: “I sent out an email to our team to see if anyone wanted to volunteer and the response was overwhelming with so many people saying yes.
“I think it’s really important at this time to be selfless and to give and give that support. We know how to cater and how to cook, so that’s how we give our support.”
The Walnut Tree alternates with The Angel and The Art Shop and Chapel to cook the food, making around 120 meals at each service, ranging from curries, lamb ragus and chicken chasseur.
Charlotte said that, like at Restaurant James Sommerin, all the time put in by staff is voluntary and donations received are spent on food.
“It’s nice that we’re able to do that and give back,” she said. “We feel fortunate to be able to be in that position to be able to help.”
To donate to Feed the NHS Wales, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/ feedthenhswales.
To donate to Feed the Heath, go to www.gofundme.com/f/Feeding-NHSStaff-at-Cardiff-Vale-UHB