The chef, whose restaurant only opened four months ago, told BigHospitality that because the business was still so young he had ‘hoped’ not ‘banked on’ receiving a star, so was surprised to have received it so soon.
“It sometimes takes 12 months to get noticed, but we have a good relationship with Michelin whose inspectors came in just two weeks after we opened,” he said.
The secret to gaining a star, Rankin believes, is due to being consistent throughout the business, maintaining a good relationship with Michelin and not compromising with what you do.
He said: “I had a star for 10 years at Bohemia, so I understand what the inspectors look for. They like you to keep consistent and we source our ingredients well.
“Michelin’s input of course is very little and they only comment when they need to, but we have kept things consistent and try and understand what they are looking for and it has paid off.
“All that said and done, we have got a fairly new restaurant so it is good to be recognised so soon.”
New stars for new openings
Ormer is among a number of new one star restaurants to have received the accolade within less than six months of opening.
Adam’s in Birmingham, Ametsa with Arzak Instruction at the Halkin Hotel in London and Tom Sellers’ restaurant Story all opened in April while Jason Atherton’s Social Eating House, overseen by head chef Paul Hood, opened in April.
Adam Stokes, chef-patron of Adam’s in Birmingham, who told BigHospitality last year that Michelin stars and other accolades were a target for his first restaurant, said he would be opening the Champagne tonight after receiving a Michelin star within just five months of opening.
“We put everything in place before we opened and with it being our own restaurant we had to hit the ground running and be consistent from the off,” he said. “We haven’t compromised on the food quality at any stage either so I think all those things put together have helped us get recognised by Michelin.”
Stokes said the 20-cover restaurant had been full every night since opening, so was not expecting a big change to the business with the reception of a Michelin star, but said it may help boost lunch trade.
“It’s really exciting for us, but for Birmingham has well,” he added. “Obviously there are already three restaurants in the city with a Michelin star, but this firmly puts it on the map as a culinary destination.”
The 2014 Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland saw two restaurants gain a second star and 15 new restaurants gain one star.
Michelin Guide editor Rebecca Burr said this year’s guide provided readers with ‘diversity and variety’ and said London in particular had offered ‘a number of exciting new restaurant openings.
“The Michelin guide has always reflected what’s out there and London in particular has never offered so much choice – there really is something for everyone and for every occasion and there appears to be no end to the number of exciting new restaurant openings,” she said. “With cuisines and culinary influences from all parts of the globe, it’s no surprise that the capital is one of the most exciting cities in the world for food.
“We’ve seen internationally acclaimed chefs open restaurants over here but we’re also delighted to witness the rise of the next generation of talented British chefs and the continued evolution of British cooking.”