Oxford Guild of Chefs Winter Feast
Green Templeton hosted the Guild of Chefs winter feast on Saturday 17 January.
Head Chef Oliver Snowden reflects
Last summer, I had the pleasure of attending the Oxford Guild of Chefs Gala Dinner at Trinity College, during which I was invited to become a Guild Ambassador. The role involves supporting the Guild’s mission to strengthen professional connections, promote the catering industry and raise standards of professional cookery across Oxford.
Shortly afterwards, we started to explore whether Green Templeton might host the Guild’s first Winter Feast. Conceived as a more informal counterpart to the summer gala, the event aimed to bring together the wider Guild community while creating opportunities for colleges with smaller dining rooms to host.
Slow-roasted sand carrot with Somerset Dairy Fetish and sherry
With several months to plan, I set about creating a menu that reflected both the season and the values we hold at GTC. My priority is always to deliver delicious food while keeping ingredients as local, seasonal and sustainable as possible. The kitchen team supported the process through tastings and trials, and we preserved produce from the summer months to introduce brighter flavours to a cold January evening.
Guests were welcomed with canapés and Henley-based sparkling wine from Hundred Hills. The meal opened with our homemade GTC sourdough, developed and baked weekly by Chef de Partie Jacek, served with Marmite and caramelised onion butter and Ampersand Dairy butter. A first course of slow-roasted sand carrot with Somerset Dairy Fetish and sherry was followed by brill with a Hundred Hills sparkling butter sauce and sea vegetables. The main course featured dry-aged Middle White pork loin with preserved summer apricot, kromeski and Calvados jus, before a dessert of Madagascar Ambanja 72 per cent chocolate cremeux with cherry and cocoa nib.
Middle White pork loin with preserved summer apricot, kromeski and Calvados jus
Personal highlights included the sourdough, the dry-aged Middle White pork sourced from Moreton-in-Marsh just 26 miles from the college, Somerset Dairy Fetish, the preserved apricots carried through from summer and Madagascan chocolate from Pump Street Chocolate. Several key suppliers also generously sponsored ingredients and crockery, helping to elevate the event.
The evening ran smoothly thanks to the hard work of the entire catering team in the lead-up to the dinner. Cooking for fellow chefs is always daunting, but the team rose to the challenge with professionalism, producing some of the best food we have created, supported by seamless service from the Pantry team. The dinner also marked the first service of a new set of plates, which further enhanced the presentation.
I am grateful to the college for its continued support of both me and the catering department since my appointment three years ago. I would also like to thank our sponsors, Chris from Cotswold Meat and Game Co, Tim and Andy from New Wave Seafood and Max from Lordwell Catering Equipment. Most importantly, I want to thank the entire catering team for delivering an exceptional evening and a genuine career highlight.
Photographs courtesy of Ronni Allen Photography.
