The regional heats of Great British Menu are coming to a close this week – but the show has one more trick up its sleeve.
This week’s North East contestants will be judged by a familiar face for Londoners, Cornish foodies and fans of the show.
Fresh from triumphing on the show just two years ago, Tom Brown has joined the illustrious ranks of the judging chefs, alongside the likes of Richard Corrigan, Angela Hartnett and Tom Aikens.
Brown has had a big couple of years, opening his own London restaurant and consequently picking up just about every award going (well, almost).
Wondering what this bright young thing has got in store for the contestants? Here’s everything you need to know about Great British Menu’s Tom Brown.
Who is Tom Brown?
Tom Brown is the chef-owner of acclaimed seafood restaurant Cornerstone in east London. Originally from Cornwall, 32-year-old Brown’s first experience in a professional kitchen was as a kitchen porter at his local pub. After helping out making pizzas, he realised he wanted to be a chef and wrote to all the famous chefs he could think of – including Bryn Williams, who invited him to do a stage in his restaurant.
From there, Brown went on to work in one of Rick Stein’s Cornwall restaurants under the tutelage of Paul Ripley. Brown then gained roles at St Kew Inn and St Enodoc Hotel in 2012, where he first began to work with renowned seafood chef Nathan Outlaw. Brown became a protege of Outlaw’s, and went on to be head chef of his Michelin-starred London restaurant Outlaw’s at the Capital.
In 2018, Brown struck out on his own and opened his first solo venture, Cornerstone. The restaurant – named for a favoured Arctic Monkeys song – has since won multiple accolades, including being named London Restaurant of the Year award at the 2019 AA awards, scooping the Best Seafood and Fish Restaurant prize at the Hardens awards in the same year, and placing third in the National Restaurant Awards’s 2019 list of the top 100 restaurants in the country. Cornerstone was hotly tipped to earn a Michelin star in the 2020 guide, but missed out.
Why is Tom Brown on Great British Menu?
Tom Brown is no stranger to the Great British Menu kitchen, having appeared on the show as a contestant in both 2017 and 2018, when his fish course was so highly acclaimed that it made it to the banquet. Brown is returning this week in a new role as judging chef, putting the chefs of the North East regional heat – Josh Angus, Ruth Hansom, Samira Effa and Alex Bond – through their paces, and ultimately deciding which two will go through to cook for top judges Oliver Peyton, Matthew Fort and Andi Oliver.
Where is Tom Brown’s restaurant Cornerstone in London?
Tom Brown’s restaurant is located in Hackney Wick, east London. It can be found at 3 Prince Edward Road, E9 5LX.
What’s on the menu at Cornerstone?
In short, quite a lot of fish. Tom Brown’s experience working with some of the finest seafood chefs in the country has led to him becoming increasingly revered for his talents with a turbot and skills with a salmon.
Arguably his most famous dishes are his crumpets. Brown’s versions of the breakfast treat – which come topped with the likes of crab and Welsh rarebit, or potted shrimp, gherkins and kohlrabi – have become a must-try London dish.
While the menu changes often, other recurring dishes include pickled oysters with celery, horseradish and dill, Brown’s salmon pastrami and a pavlova for dessert courtesy of pastry chef Kelly Cullen. The most recent menu also included the likes of grey mullet tartare with egg yolk and soy, as well as John Dory with roast chicken butter sauce, mushrooms and leeks.
Of course, Cornerstone has had to temporarily close during the lockdown – but Brown is still keeping himself busy by producing salmon pastrami and chalk stream farm trout ham, that he is serving for takeaway only at the restaurant. Brown has also been closely involved with charity Hospitality Action’s drive to help support workers in the restaurant industry who have been impacted by the virus.
