Rising Star: Kray Treadwell

After starting out as a pot washer as a 15-year-old for legendary Brummie chef Glynn Purnell, Kray Treadwell embarked on an exciting career that has seen him work for some of the biggest names in the industry. While Head Chef at Michael O’Hare’s The Man Behind the Curtain, Tray wowed judges and viewers on Great British Menu 2019 before opening his own place called 670 Grams and being crowned Young Michelin Chef of the Year in 2021.

When and how did your passion for food and cooking begin?

I got kicked out of school when I was 15 for being a naughty boy and I just needed to get a job. I started washing dishes at the Michelin-starred restaurant Jessica’s in Birmingham and that’s where it all began for me.

Did you know much about food and Michelin stars at 15?

I’m not from a big foodie family so I really didn’t have much understanding of restaurants and the food they produced, especially at a high-class Michelin level. I was brought up on the standard Birmingham dinners, so it was an eye-opener.

Can you remember what it was that hooked you?

Just seeing what could be done with food, certain ingredients and the seasons blew me away. It aroused my curiosity and for the first time, I found something positive that captured my imagination. It was also the first time in my life outside of school that someone showed me how to do something and invested time in me. I’ve never been very academic and at school, I wasn’t interested in what the teachers were telling me. If I didn’t enjoy it, I didn’t want to do it. But at the restaurant, I was being given one-on-one training and attention. I could feel they believed in me. It made a huge difference.

As a kid, I didn’t have massive aspirations. I thought I would just end up working in a factory and I was working in a factory while washing dishes part-time in the restaurant. I didn’t necessarily think I wanted to work in food and cook, I just saw the restaurant as a way of getting a career. I was in the kitchen with Glynn Purnell who came from a similar background. I could see him working hard and achieving great things so it showed me that there was no reason why I couldn’t succeed or make a career in the industry, even without an academic background behind me.

Did you know who Glynn was at the time?

I knew who Glynn was as he was on television a lot. He was the talk of the town and one of the main celebrities in Birmingham to a certain extent. I didn’t realise exactly why he was thought of so highly. I didn’t realise that even though he was this celebrity chef, he was still working 70-odd hours a week. Working at Jessica’s under him gave me that insight. It was definitely a reality check, but it instilled in me that whatever you want in life, you have to work hard for it, especially if you want to get to the top. I always loved working there and the job. I was never jealous if my friends were going out on a Saturday, and I was working. I was happy to be going to work and I looked forward to it. I felt privileged to have a job and be in the kitchen.

How did you develop?

Jessica’s was a great learning experience. Everything was changing constantly, and it was a bit more robust back then. Now restaurants are a lot more cautious when changing menus. It’s often just seasonally that they make changes but back then, it depended on what was being delivered to the back door, what was the cheapest, what was the freshest. That is what gave the chefs and the menu direction, so it was a great time to learn and a thrilling time to cook.

Do you miss that?

It’s great to see restaurants working with the seasons as you get the best choice, and the ingredients are at their best, but the risk is that the food can become very same-y. Once one restaurant has venison on the menu, everyone has it on. When I was starting out there was a little more chaos in the kitchens. You would head in and not really know what you’d be cooking. When I was young and energetic, this was definitely a buzz and part of the excitement. It was almost a bit of a rebel lifestyle of work hard, play hard and I don’t think the food had to look as pretty.

What else is different?

There weren’t combi ovens where you stick a probe in, and it cooks it to a specific temperature or a Thermomix that would do a lot of the work for you. You would actually cook every bit of meat, fish or veg back then and ensuring absolute consistency isn’t easy when you’re having to do that. At Jessica’s, we were doing rabbit lollypops, which probably doesn’t seem that out there now, but 15-plus years ago it was pretty cutting edge.

Has professional cooking become easier due to technology?

Technology has definitely made the processes easier but at the same time, the shortage of skilled chefs means that the technology is crucial. The water baths and probes are great for consistency but just not as fun.

So, is the technology helping to fill the skills gap?

It’s like when you go into a supermarket, there will only be one till open and the rest are self-service machines. No one is ever going to be brilliant on the till anymore as there is simply less need for talented till operators. It’s probably a bit similar in the kitchen. People don’t need to be able to judge whether a piece of meat is ready by touch or eye as they simply have a probe for it now. Fifteen years ago, if I were making a lemon curd, I would weigh out the ingredients and cook it in a bain-marie on the stove to ensure it doesn’t scramble. Our recipe now is to scramble the eggs in a pan and then add that to the Thermomix. The old technique is forgotten and instead, you learn a new skill or a new process that saves you time and makes life easier.

Do you miss anything from those early days in your career?

Now I am a bit older, I don’t necessarily miss the chaos of coming in on a Tuesday and not knowing what we’d be cooking that day or week. I quite like the structure now but that is probably because I have three kids under five, which gives me enough chaos. The structure is also vitally important for consistency.

What do you think is key to developing as a chef?

It’s important to have a plan and not to stay in one place too long. You need to keep learning, be tested and develop skills so when you’re not anymore, it’s probably time to move. You have to be a sponge and take all the good bits and learn from the mistakes. You’re not just learning to be a chef, you’re learning how to run a business. You don’t really get sat down after prepping a fish dish and are told about the GPs or VAT. You don’t really learn that until you’re the boss.

When did you feel you were confident enough to run your own place?

I still don’t to be honest. I have a great team around me and my wife is brilliant at the business side of cooking and running a restaurant so I’m very lucky.

You seem confident in your food though?

I have always had confidence in my own food and palate. Even at 17 or 18, I wasn’t scared about creating dishes and backed my creativity and combinations. I remember we once had a mushroom soup on and a sherbet pastry. I remember putting them together and giving them to the chef. He said it was great but didn’t do anything with it. Even at that age, I remember thinking – you’re going to regret that!

How are you with criticism?

It’s part of the game but I would rather people just say nothing. It may sound funny but whether they love it or hate it, I don’t need to know. As long as they pay the bill, I’m happy. It’s weird but everyone is an expert and being a chef isn’t looked on as a profession like a doctor or surgeon. If your wife needs heart surgery and you sat in on it, you wouldn’t say, ‘Bloody hell, I wouldn’t have taken the heart out like that.’ With food, because everyone cooks at home, they all think they’re professionals. There is a skill to cooking but you don’t have to be skilled to do it. You can make a crap dinner at home every night and somehow that seems to give people the confidence to tell a professional chef that something could be better or improved – nuts.

How do you approach cookery?

When I worked at The Man Behind the Curtain, it taught me to back and trust my instincts. It was about doing what I wanted to do, not what everyone else wanted me to do. I don’t mean to sound self-important, but I don’t really cook for customers. I cook for myself. I cook what I think will work and hopefully, the people who come will enjoy it. It’s a bit like a painting. The artist doesn’t create it for someone – they create it to express themselves, a feeling or how they see the world. My menus are my take on an ingredient or a season or a combination of both.

Describe your cooking style?

I would say it is relatable but not in a boring way. I like to think we provide the moreish flavours people enjoy and can relate to but in a way not seen before. Nothing on the menu or for that matter on a dish is there for window dressing or just for the sake of it. It may do us a disservice at the time because everything is bang, bang, bang. We want every plate to make an impression. That may go against us at times as there isn’t much balance – it’s about big flavours.

Who have been your key mentors?

I always decided my next career move based on who I looked up to and who I wanted to work for. I have two key mentors, and they help me in different areas really. On one side, when it comes to the business, professionalism, recipes and how something should be done properly, Glynn is still my key sounding board. If it were anything a bit more spontaneous and quirkier, it would probably be Michael O’Hare.

Does it annoy you that being a chef isn’t seen as a profession?

It doesn’t annoy me until someone questions my food.

Who are your food heroes?

Marco Pierre White and probably not just for his food, but his personality. I like the role he plays and the persona he brings. I bet he isn’t like that at home when making beans on toast. He always had star qualities. He was probably a bit before my time, so I remember watching him on YouTube and from his book. He was the first chef to have cameras in the kitchen and he made being a chef sexy. The celebrity chefs of today owe him everything.

What’s your career highlight?

Winning Young Michelin Chef of the Year in 2021.

Any goals for 2025?

To stay open would be good. Obviously, a Michelin star would be nice as well, and as I have been working in that area for over 15 years, it is definitely an aim, but I don’t think people realise how difficult they are to get. Don’t get me wrong, there are some venues that have stars that I think we’re better than, but there again Paul Ainsworth only has one Michelin star as does Adam Smith at Woven and for me, they both deserve at least two. I don’t think we’re at that level yet, so I’m relaxed about it for now.

What’s the big goal for the business?

I’m not really interested in having tonnes of restaurants. I have three kids under 5 at present so one is fine for now but someday, I would really love a pub as well. That’s probably it. It’s hard enough having one. I take my chef hat off to the ones who have multiple sites.

Are Michelin stars the key aim?

There has to be an end goal and as I have dedicated 17 years of my life to high-end cooking, I probably will feel like a failure if I don’t get one at some stage. We’re a self-funded business though and put everything we have into it. We have no sugar daddy or investors and there is no pot to keep dipping into. I could spend £200,000 on a new kitchen to help push for a star but I would be shut in a few months.

What about TV?

Yes, I would love to do more TV but it’s competitive and you have to fit a certain niche to be chosen. For example, if you have 250,000 social media followers, it will make you more attractive to TV producers than a chef with a restaurant and reputation. I would like to see some of the TV shows like Saturday Kitchen showcase some different chefs.

What trends do you see hitting in 2025?

Parker House rolls and tart cases. Everyone seems to be going crazy for them.

What annoys you most at the moment in the restaurant scene?

I think a lot of venues at the top look very similar. They all have the same tablecloth, the same plates, the same glasses, the same dishes – it’s becoming so generic. This isn’t a dig at the restaurants or chefs because they’re extremely talented but if someone took a picture of one and showed me, it could be one of ten places. I would like to see a bit more personality, individuality, and variety.

Are you happy with where the business and the food are at?

I’m as happy now with how the business is going and the menu is as I have ever been. In the past, we often changed things for the sake of it, but I think we have found our niche and personality. I’m not sure if the balance will ever be right and I’m not sure I ever want it to be. I want every dish to be big on flavour and hard-hitting. Balance is not easy when that is the main aim.

How are the changes coming into force in April relating to employer NI and minimum wage going to affect your business?

For any restaurant, even Nando’s, most of your staff will be students at college or university working a couple of days a week part-time. Due to the increases coming in, employing them at £15 an hour just won’t be feasible anymore. For us, we have 20 covers and three part-time staff who are at university. It would be better for us to do fewer covers and cut the labour costs. Come April, we won’t be able to employ them as it’s just not worth it and I think this will be the case across the industry.

What are your three desert island ingredients

Garlic, vinegar, and caviar.

Three tips vital for success in a kitchen

• Write everything you learn down and keep a backup as you will lose it.
• Don’t just ask questions about the food but ask about the cutlery, plates, glasses, GP, VAT etc. Get an understanding of the business.
• Always be on time.

What was the last place you ate at?

Woven by Adam Smith.

How often do you eat out?

More than I should. My wife is a chef as well so we eat out as much as we can. Weirdly, I’m eating at Ynyshir tomorrow. I like supporting restaurants so would rather put money into them.

Is it business or pleasure?

Both, but I just appreciate the individuality of every venue. That’s what I love the most. I love going to a place and thinking – ‘wow, how did they think of that before me.’ It doesn’t have to be related to the food. It could be hand towels or something else.

Is there a risk that chefs are going to lose or not be taught basic skills?

It depends on the route a chef takes, and on the chef and the restaurant. If you’re interested in the older techniques, you will find places where you can develop and learn them. As labour gets more expensive, technology will be used more, especially in smaller businesses.

Any rising Stars in your orbit?

Adam Smith is going to be the next superstar in cooking, and he thoroughly deserves it. The meal we had at Woven was honestly the best meal I have had in my life, and I eat out a lot.

For more information on 670 Grams and Kray, visit https://670grams.com/