Taking a Punt on a Dream

“My mother’s poor cooking,” is how Mark Poynton describes his motivation for becoming a chef. Born in Chester in 1980 - “a disappointing year for wine” - he worked as a waiter before discovering chefs had “more fun”. He jokes: “they also finished in time for last orders at the pub.” His big break occurred at Altrincham’s Juniper restaurant where he proved his determination to chef Paul Kitchling by working unpaid initially. Of Kitchling (now patron of Edinburgh’s 21212) Poynton remarks: “Some called his cooking wacky. But for a 20 year-old it was wonderful to be involved in it. At first, just four of us produced often wild 20-course tasting menus.”

Read at Harper's Wine & Spirit magazine » (pp. 38-39)
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