All shuck up
BOBBY GROVES • Chiltern Firehouse
WORK • Oyster Routine
BOBBY GROVES • head of oysters • Chiltern Firehouse
Neighbourhood you work in: Marylebone
Neighbourhood you live in: Felsted, Essex
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
There’s no typical day at Chiltern Firehouse (currently closed for renovations after its fire), but after coffee and breakfast with the chefs, I’d typically start a court bouillon to poach fresh seafood for the day. Then I check the oyster, scallop and langoustine delivery and move to the courtyard to set up the raw bar for service with the oyster team. Once set, I cook the crustacea, prep scallop, peel shrimp and finish the check sheets before heading to housekeeping to get into my oil skins – it’s wet business shucking on the cobbles. Ordinarily, I shuck English, Irish and French oysters through lunch and dinner whatever the weather. I can’t wait to get back to it when we reopen.
What’s on the agenda for today?
I recently became the first ambassador for the Shellfish Association of Great Britain, which involves lobbying MPs and promoting UK shellfish. Did you know France produces 10 times the shellfish we do in the UK, but with one-fifth of the coastline? We need to eat a lot more shellfish, like we did in the late 1800s.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Round the corner from Chiltern Firehouse is La Fromagerie, or The Ginger Pig on Moxon St. for a snack or grocery shop, plus Daunt Book Shop on Marylebone High Street. Restaurant-wise, I’m a fan of Notting Hill legend Chris D’Sylva’s spots: Eel Sushi, Tuna Fight Club and Dorian. I love Jackson Boxer’s Brunswick House in Vauxhall. In east London, there’s Sebastian Myer’s Planque or Galvin La Chapelle by the Galvin bros. In Soho, I recommend Quo Vadis, Andrew Edmunds or Suvlaki.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I give lectures on my book, Oyster Isles, spreading the gospel all over the UK and beyond, most recently for the Barcelona Seafood Expo and the Houses of Parliament.
Any weekend getaways?
I highly recommend a trip to the White Horse in Brancaster, Norfolk. The GM, Rob, is a wonderful character and Fran, the chef, makes tasty food from produce so local you can see it being harvested and prepared while you eat – oysters, mussels, smoked fish, lobster and crab. The hotel rooms are cosy and modern and the views across the Brancaster marsh to Holkham are stunning.
What was your last great holiday?
Last summer, I spent two months on Long Island, New York, with my wife and son, staying at Chiltern’s sister property Sunset Beach Resort on Shelter Island. It was a beachy, subtropical, oyster-fuelled escape where we explored everywhere from the old whaling towns of Greenport and Sag Harbor to Montauk and Manhattan. We enjoyed beautiful Atlantic sunrises, world-class seafood from the Peconic Bay and fireflies at twilight.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
A second-hand Globetrotter trunk from a thrift store in Greenport, Long Island, for $200.
What store or service do you always recommend?
Arthur Beale in Covent Garden.