A day in the kitchen with Greg

A day
in the kitchen
with Greg

We spent a day with Greg, getting to know the person behind the work, to create a website and visual identity that felt unmistakably his. We'd come armed with questions for a traditional Q&A.

Instead, here are extracts from the transcripts.

No formal interview. Just fragments of a conversation.

The conversation
08:00

First Draft

  1. Branding teamMorning, Greg. We've made the changes you asked for.
  2. GregAll of them?
  3. Most of them.
  4. Right. Coffee?
Greg in the kitchen in the morning, holding a cup of coffee

08:08Coffee acquired. Easily pleased.

10:40

Questions

  1. Branding teamWhat's your favourite thing to cook?
  2. GregSeriously?
  3. What?
  4. [Pause]
  5. We thought we'd start with something simple.
  6. Start with something simple?
    For a first date, maybe.
10:52

Questions, Revised

  1. Branding teamDo you think your standards have made your life better or just more difficult?
  2. GregJesus, are you charging me for this session?
  3. [Laughter from the kitchen]
  4. I brought that on myself, I suppose.
  5. Erm, definitely harder. The standards and expectations you have in a professional environment can't help but extend into your private life, and inevitably shape what you expect of other people.
Greg leaning over the pass, looking down at his work

10:52A mind elsewhere.

13:15

Obsession

  1. Branding teamWhat's the last thing you became obsessed with?
  2. GregUsually the last thing I learnt.
  3. So you obsess over everything?
  4. Only if it interests me. I'm not very good at being half interested.
Greg at the pass, picking leaves from a sprig of herbs

13:15Somewhere between the conversation and the kitchen.

16:20

Good Food

  1. Branding teamWhat do people misunderstand about good food?
  2. GregSeasoning. Salt, acid, sweetness. Balance.
  3. Anything else?
  4. People think cooking is difficult. It really isn't.
  5. Where most people miss the mark is the time, care and attention it takes.
  6. I’m not talking about fancy food. Just good food.
20:30

In Service

Low kitchen ambience recorded during service, plays only while this extract is on screen.
  1. Branding teamWhat's the worst thing someone can say to you during service?
  2. GregWalk-in table of two. One vegan.
  3. [Pause]
  4. I'd rather turn them away than compromise everyone else's food.
Four plates of white asparagus, caviar and dill in turned wooden bowls on the steel pass

20:30From the pass.

23:45

After Hours

  1. Branding teamWhen do you know something isn't right?
  2. GregDo you mean in the context of a dish?
  3. Yes.
  4. Once I've had a bit of headspace.
  5. Annoyingly, that's usually in the middle of the night.
Greg seated in a velvet booth at a laid table, smiling, one hand at his collar
23:45Bonne nuit