Over in Battersea, you’ll find a community-oriented restaurant that serves mouth-watering Jamaican food and is heavily invested in giving back to the people and community around it. Paradise Cove is a “local home from home” that brings the feeling of the Caribbean to London, to remind Jamaicans in London of “ITAL, authentic, Jamaican life”. And at the centre of it all is Chef Tarell McIntosh, who uses the restaurant not just to nourish customers, but also to support care leavers and the wider community.
The current restaurant is the third iteration of Paradise Cove and even sits across the road from its previous site. But through the struggles and closures that Tarell McIntosh and the restaurant have faced, McIntosh has remained steadfast in his desire to support the people around him – and serve some damn tasty food.
Hot off the back of chatting with the likes of Athinagoras Kostakos, Jack Coggins, and Nathaniel Mortley (AKA Natty Can Cook), we had a chance for some ‘Kitchen Chatter’ with Tarell McIntosh:
What inspired you to become a chef, and who are your biggest culinary influences that have shaped your cooking style?
The truth is, I became a chef out of necessity. Many times. But on all occasions I was in need of a job and in each phase, cooking has been my saving grace to provide not only a steady income but also stability. It’s a timeless skill. As the expression goes “cook poor, and food will make you rich”.
My cooking style has changed over time. I have a core bank of recipes but they adapt and develop naturally or based on necessity. There is no real culinary influence, I’m a self-taught chef. What I know, I have learned through trial and error and I use my own past as my tool kit to move forward. For example, If I did a banana cake before, I ask myself “How can I edit it this time?” I try to consider a different method or a different ingredient, and in recent months I’ve also been considering different plating styles.
If I delve deeper, there are also certain signatures that make sense to me mathematically. I guess, cooking is a sort of rote habit. I find the endless ability to develop knowledge from food inspiring. That, for me, never ends and is what creates my innovativeness and style.
What are the biggest challenges and rewards of being a young chef in London?
The biggest challenges are naivete, fees, and egos. When you’re young, enthusiasm speaks volumes but I’ve learnt, as time goes on, nothing beats experience. Experience gives you a tool kit for many challenging situations, whereas unknowingness can be costly down the line. Energy is great, especially when needed at the beginning, but it’s the knowledge that saves you thousands.
My advice to anyone is to just be yourself. Find a way to re-centre always and stay true to your style. If you feel your direction is right, then keep doing that and pushing that. This has served me well.
How have media representations influenced public perception of chefs?
Right now, I feel we’re in a phase of moving away from traditional hospitality and the more typical modes, to a more eclectic, self-owned mix of venues and outlets. The digital age and social media have meant that chef profiles (and our understandings of what a chef is) are much broader – and it socially works, not to mention is impactful.
Traditional hospitality (aka. ‘dining out’) has its place but there is now a strong market for street food vendors, private chefs, and even just home chefs. And that’s without even mentioning the explosion of content producers and influencers modernising the scope. It is powerful that a working-class individual can rise in the ranks of the industry, without the need for a TV endorsement or loan through their own media. I certainly think more people are keen to cook these days – or at the very least inspired by it.
How has the London culinary scene changed over the past few years? And, where do you see it heading?
I once heard an expression, that ‘London is about 10 years ahead of Europe with its dining trends’. And I think it is certainly mostly true. I feel hospitality culture has been digitised heavily and I do not see it going back. QR codes, social media content (especially reels), Delivery apps, Ebooks, influencers, pop-ups – this is now the new game.
The change makes sense, what with soaring rents. Gone are the days of critic’s reviews – instead we all wait for the collaborative social media post in earnest. The reality is that people love food and love the restaurant industry – but the culinary scene can be very hard to access. My hope is that we’ll continue to see a wave of new, sustained, digital creatives as well as more innovative networking and collaborations. Whatever form this all takes, we just have to be open to the new possibilities.
Why do you think it’s important for different cultures to have that space in London’s culinary space?
I feel that as a multicultural city, every culture should be able to represent itself. I hope to see more Global majority groups, in the property game.
Can you share a memorable experience or anecdote from your time working in London’s kitchens?
Once every year a well-known company dines with us for Black History. There are usually about 30 covers. There was one night that was smooth as anything. The Jerk chicken was flying off the grill. The rice and peas was perfect. The Rum punch was flowing. And the Banana cake was perfect.
When it came time for dessert, I cut 30 slices of the cake and was impressed at how the night had gone. I had successfully just knocked out 30 portions of Sweetcorn fritters, ackee and saltfish, curried goat, jerk chicken, mac cheese, and cake.
But when I looked up, a few guests were unable to eat their cake. I presumed they were ‘stuffed’ – as is the typical expression. I tried a piece of the cake, and then I looked at the sugar container. I had used 250 grams of salt in the banana cake instead of 250 grams of sugar. Some of the guests still ate the cake with custard. The salt intensified the banana flavour!
You’ll find Chef Tarell McIntosh’s restaurant, Paradise Cove, at 515 Wandsworth Road in Battersea (SW8 4NY). Find out more, and book your table, here.
*This interview has been edited for length and clarity*