Legends, Icons & Celebrity Episodes

What a treat I have for you this week as I managed to get some time with the incredible Robert Cook, CEO of Hostmore PLC (https://www.hostmoregroup.com/) and all round industry Titan. Robert has such an epic career so far and is an inspiration to us all. He's a natural story teller throughout and my word he's done some very cool things. We get through sooo much, including :- Peterhead Being born into the industry Learning 5 star Stephen Carter Climbing the ranks The first GM role Malmai...

Today we bring you the superstar that is Jane Sunley, Founder and CEO of Purple Cubed (https://purplecubed.com/). As always, we get through loads including:- Humble beginnings Being the naughty one Being spurred on by negativity Becoming a manager Moving to Reading London Starting in contract catering Setting up a temp agency Purpled Cubed Culture Book writing Shenanigans in the dry store And so much more. Jane is one of the most recognisable humans in hospitality and has an epic s...

I was so happy to get some time with todays guest, one of the most recognisable names in the Hotel industry, none other than Danny Pecorelli, MD of Exclusive Collection (https://www.exclusive.co.uk). Danny is a 2nd generation hotelier but as we find out, that didn't necessarily translate into a clear path being formed for him as he took time to forge his own career and capability. This chat is rammed full of useful stuff from start to finish including:- Danny - the man, the Mystery Staying b...

Ever since I saw today's guest on BBC 2's Great British Menu in 2020, I knew I wanted to get some time with him on the show. Now Head Chef at Boiler & Co (https://boilerandco.com), Kerth Gumbs is everything you hope for in a chef working in Hospitality. No doubt he brings the flair and creativity but more importantly, he brings just a wonderful zest and passion for what he does that is incredibly infectious, and we definitely need more of that. We get through loads including:- Spring Boiler ...

It has arrived. I can't quite believe we got here but episode 100 has landed! And to do something a little bit different, I've taken a look back at some of the best stories from season one (The longest ever season on any show in any format no doubt). There's some crackers in here:- First day mistakes - Jon Dawson Gnomes being stolen - Anne Golden Getting the "Craic" with Arnold Schwarzenegger - Shane McHugh Being Thrown in Jail - Debra Ward Bob Geldof impressions - Phil Street Guests mak...

I love who I get introduced to as part of the Podcast. Todays guest represents that. I chat to Stephen Carter OBE, one of Scotland's most legendary hoteliers. For someone whose career has spanned over 40 years, you can imagine we get through a lot including:- East Neuk Untrue reputations Scottish seafood Humble beginnings Picking up accents Rejecting the Seychelles Holiday Inn Moving to Scotland The Motivated Team The Tobacco Patch Buying the rights to Le Man Cars Setting aside tim...

Where to begin on this weeks guest? I always had a dream to interview Harry Murray MBE, Chairman of Lucknam Park (https://www.lucknampark.co.uk) and today is a fulfilment of that dream. We get through a lot as always including:- Hospitality as show business The industry of dreams Having a vision Salford tech Breakfast for 2000 people Respect Leadership Learning French quickly Climbing the ranks in hotels Becoming GM Unexploded bombs South Africa Being made a chief Moving to the En...

What I love about chatting to such a variety of people from Hospitality is one, exactly that, the variety of stories is incredible but two, sometimes I get to stumble on such a wonderful human story that it makes me feel incredibly lucky. Enter, Peter Avis the General Manager at the quite wonderful Galvin at Windows on London's Park Lane (https://galvinrestaurants.com/restaurant/galvin-at-windows-mayfair). Peter talks as openly on his struggles as he does on his successes and as a result, it's...

This week, we got some time with Hotel Human Resources Legend, Jon Dawson, recently appointed Group Director of People Development at Lore Group (https://loregroup.com). Jon has forged an enviable career so far working in some iconic hotels including the St Pancras Renaissance, The London Edition and the Mandarin Oriental. As always, we get through lots including reciprocal back scratching, exercise, football, USA, Marriott, the beauty of the St Pancras Renaissance, picking your interview atti...

I really am a lucky pup. There's so many stories of the different people and roles in hospitality that it will take several lifetimes to tell them all. Today's guests is an absolute cracker. I got some time with the inspirational beacon of positivity that is Kellie Rixon, Founder of Rixon Associates (http://rixonassociates.com) and the new Chair of the Institute of Hospitality (https://www.instituteofhospitality.org), the professional body for the Hospitality industry. As always, we get...

43 episodes in and we finally chat to someone from contract catering, although today's guest has done far more than that. We speak to hospitality legend Simon Esner, Founder at Executive business mentoring Uncommon Sense (www.finduncommonsense.com). Simon is also still involved with Baxter Storey (https://baxterstorey.com) and WSH Ltd (https://www.wshlimited.com) working with some world leading chefs and concepts. Simon has had an Epic career and life so far and has achieved so much, with muc...

Hospitality never stands still, there's always something new on the horizon. This week, we've got an amazing chat with the Opening General Manager Anne Golden who has the not insignificant task of leading one of the most exciting projects on the horizon in Europe, the Pan Pacific London (https://www.panpacific.com/en/hotels-and-resorts/pp-london.html) In addition to Anne's amazing journey, we chat about Lockdown fatigue, learning from mistakes, emotional intelligence, training & development, che...

Back in May 2020, we got some time with Eugenio Pirri, Chief People & Culture Office for Dorchester Collection (www.dorchestercollection.com) a global luxury hotel company. Eugenio tells his story with great humility and grace, sprinkled with a large portion of humour. In this weeks chat we cover Scotch, learning and growing, culture (Unsurprisingly), writing, warnings, falling in swimming pools and so much more as well as some wonderful stuff about business culture and guest experience. ...

In early July 2020 (when we were once again allowed to go meet people) we were lucky enough to get some socially distanced time with Chris Penn, Co-Founder of Steel Hotels (www.steelhotels.com) & Birch (www.birchcommunity.com), a few weeks before the doors were opened at Birch for the first time. This chat is crammed full of good stuff as we took full advantage of Chris' natural humour, drive and humility covering off his epic journey to this point as well as topics such as battles, travellin...

In July 2020 we were lucky enough to get some time with Cherish Finden, TV Judge, award winning pastry chef and now Executive Pastry Chef at the Upcoming Pan Pacific London, opening in 2021. Long before TV found Cherish, she was already building an amazing career, working in some of the world's most amazing hotels. Demonstrating humility and drive, our chat is a fantastic insight into how to build a career that takes you to the top. We discuss being thrifty, life in Singapore, The Raffl...

When we launched the podcast, there were some people we hoped to get on the show. Chef Alex Dilling of the 2 Michelin Star The Greenhouse in London was one of those people. In addition to Alex's story and Journey, we talk about the creative process, Per Se in New York (Twice), the noises we make when we taste sublime food, training Phil's dog to truffle hunt and so much more. Alex really is a class act and there's lots of incredibly useful snippets in here. Enjoy! This was recorded on 3...

We were lucky enough to get some time with TV Chef, Restaurateur and Author Cyrus Todiwala OBE in April this year. Cyrus runs the Famous Cafe Spice Namaste (www.cafespice.co.uk) in London and has featured on many a TV show so far. As well as walking us through his journey, we talk about The 80's, Appraisals, Cooking for Dignitaries, Goats and the Origins of the Hot Todi amongst many, many other things. Cyrus is a walking storyboard and we could have chatted to him for hours. Enjoy! ...

Back in February 2020, we were lucky enough to meet Hospitality Royalty, David Cowdery, CEO of the Cavalry & Guards Club (https://www.cavgdsclub.co.uk/) in Mayfair, London. We chat through his story and career journey. Amongst other things we talk about Snobbery, Tech, Recruitment, Looking after Celebs, Selfies and loads more. David has some hilarious stories, be sure to tune in. This was recorded on 18th February 2020 at the majestic Cavalry & Guards Club This podcast uses the following thi...

Hospitality Meets... with Phil Street is a new podcast for the hospitality industry. Join Phil each week as he hosts a new guest in a light-hearted talk about their journey and story to date. Back in February 2020, I had the privilege of meeting hotel Titan, Robin Sheppard, Chairman of Bespoke Hotels (www.bespokehotels.com/) and Chairman of the Institute of Hospitality (www.instituteofhospitality.org/). Robin takes us through some wonderful stories from an illustrious career in Hospitality...