Best Chef gong goes to Bampton culinary artist

Olivier Certain is the head chef at The Swan in Bampton and was nominated for the award by readers of Food Magazine

A chef from a popular Devon pub has made it to the finals of the Food Reader Awards in the Best Chef category.

Olivier Certain is the head chef at The Swan in Bampton and was nominated for the award by readers of Food Magazine in January.

He said: “I am over the moon to have reached the grand final in these reader-voted awards. To know that people took time out of their day to nominate me in the Best Chef category is extremely humbling and I’d like to say a huge ‘thank you’ to everyone who did.

“I joined The Swan in 2018 and love working in the kitchen with my fellow chefs and of course with the owners, Paul and Donna Berry, who have been extremely supportive. They are very encouraging when it comes to creating dishes, and I am thrilled that my work here is being recognised.”

Marseille-born Olivier moved to Somerset in 1998 following his Michelin star training in La Bonne Etape Chateau Arnoux and Les Roches in Le Lavandou. His first job in the area was with Andrew Dixon at Porlock Weir where he was second chef.

In 2006, he joined Woods in Dulverton as head chef where he achieved two rosettes and the accolade of Somerset Dining Pub of the Year 2008, 2010 and 2011. In 2009, he reached the finals of the South West Chef of the Year competition.

In 2017, he was crowned Somerset Life’s Best Chef at the magazine’s annual Food and Drinks Award, and he was also a finalist in the 2018 Trencherman’s Award and was in great culinary company. His fellow finalists included Michael Caines, Josh Eggleton and Nathan Outlaw, who all have Michelin stars.

Co-owner of The Swan, Paul, who jointly runs the business with his wife and fellow Chef Patron, Donna, said: “We are both so pleased that Olivier’s hard work, dedication and passion has been recognised and for it to have been recognised by our customers and readers of the magazine makes it that extra bit special.

“We’ll have everything crossed for Olivier when the winners are announced. He is already a winner in our eyes.”

The Food Magazine has crowned the South West’s finest chefs, restaurants, retailers and more in its Food Reader Awards since 2012. Past winners in the awards include Nathan Outlaw, Michael Caines and Paul Ainsworth.

The finalists are nominated solely by readers and this year, more than 10,000 votes were cast across all the categories.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony at Darts Farm in Devon on February 10, 2020.

To find out more about The Swan, call 01398 332248 or visit www.theswan.co.