DONOVAN COOKE IS LEAVING US!

Hailed from the North of England, Hull in Yorkshire to be exact, my Mentor and Friend was cooking at home when he was barely 9. At 15 he was working part-time at the canteen of one of BP's industrial operations nearby. At 18, after taking the highest scores at his catering college, his Dad sent him to London. Equipped with youth, raw ambition to take on the culinary world, determination to succeed and not much else he was employed by the Savoy, and the rest is history. Speaking of history, if you walk into the Savoy and ask for the 'Savoy Sandwich' you will taste his first ever creation ie cold veal, gruyere cheese, lettuce and tomato on a toasted baguette. It is still a popular item on the Bar Menu, today, in 2010.

From the Savoy his next stop was the Waterside Inn, where he spent 3.5 years with his first Mentor Michel Roux. Donovan was promoted to Chef de Partie, no small feat at the time because Waterside was at the head of the leagues table. Then came his second Mentor, none other than the legendary - or notorious to some - Marco Pierre White in the early 90's. He joined Harvey's and within 2-weeks was promoted to Head Chef. Assisting Marco to open Marco Pierre White (now how did someone come up with such an unassuming and original name for a restaurant, you might ask) this 3-star Michelin experience in the heart of London gave new meaning to his career aspirations. He called this period 'Finishing School' and he finished with honors alright.

Then came time for self-development, what follows may shed light on what he is about. Firstly, he attended the Academie Culinaire de France in London where he scored 97 out of 100 in an open cooking competition. Apparently 3 points were deducted as penalty for refusing to wear his torque, his neckerchief and for dirty kitchen footwear. It was classic behavior of a talented but rebellious 25 year old Wannabe! Putting that behind him , South of France was next as he wanted a taste of the real thing, in French. He joined La Cote St Jacques as Chef for a year before the next chapter.

With confidence and zest Donovan arrived at the shores of Melbourne in the mid 90s and almost immediately opened Miatta, which lasted like a rainbow, due to his inexperience. He turned to a butcher's factory instead to learn about meat before opening Est Est Est which won 3-Hats (the equivalent of Michelin Stars Down Under) within 24 months. Luxe, a wine bar cum cellar cum restaurant was next, followed by Ondine in 2002, his first fine dining venture. He was a smashing success, per the Age Food Guide in Melbourne and made Chef of the Year in 2003.

Donovan came to Hong Kong in 2004 to head the Derby at the HKJC where he redefined not only the dining culture of its conservative membership, but fine dining in our village generally.

A known entity in the tight culinary fraternity, in part due to his seniority in what I label the 'MM' or 'Marco Mafia' including Gordon Ramsey @ Maze, Hester Blumenthal @ Fat Duck, Shannon Bennett @ Vue de Monde etc his network is strong. You need a table at anywhere 'big', call Donovan, chances are he can fix it for you.

What is your cooking philosophy, Donovan? 'What I do is a modern take on classical recipes, with emphasis on flavors and quality of ingredients. I do not want to complicate my food, but Ido want to incorporate new approaches such as slow cooking, olive oil confit etc I also agree with Marco that rather than creativity, we had lots of refinements in cooking over the years. The wheel is always round and as chefs we just keep putting new tyres on'. Having spent almost 6 years in Asia he does not practice Fusion Cooking per se, nor is he a covert to Molecular Gastronomy. God bless him, I am just so relieved.

Donovan is happily married to the beautiful Tani from the Philippines. They are drowned in parenting bliss, notably by Alfred, their 6-month old son.

My dear wife thinks I am so serious with this blog. Yes, guilty as charged, as it reads like a candidate letter from my previous life ... old headhunter habits die hard. But why not, I want to share this and this is the best way I know how.

Good on you Mate, and good luck in your new venture back home in Melbourne, Donovan!