Chef’s Table: An Exclusive Chat with Ben Queen-Fryer

Dish Cult: Huge congratulations on winning your first Michelin star this year.

Ben Queen-Fryer: Thank you so much! It’s been an incredible year for us.

DC: Was it an ambition to achieve that coveted star?

BQF: To be honest it has always been a personal ambition to earn a star, but it has never been something I have consciously pushed for through the business. I always felt it would be the wrong thing for the business to be defined by an attempt to achieve a star.

DC: How did you come up with the menu?

BQF: Our menu is quite flexible, it changes regularly. But this is down to the excellent suppliers we have now. The suppliers help define the menu, if it’s in season and high quality we use it whilst it’s available. The menu is less choreographed and more about being able to change alongside our suppliers’ availability.

DC: Is there one particular dish you’re most proud of?

BQF: I think the dish I’m most proud of is our venison suet pudding, it’s the only dish which has been on the menu since we opened, though it’s gone through a constant process of refinement but hopefully without losing the satisfying nature of a suet pudding with great chips. To have this particular dish mentioned in the Michelin Guide is something that I’m very proud of.

DC: What inspired you to get into food in the first place?

BQF: I was working for Chris and Steve Johnson in Ulverston, Cumbria, front of house, and they both advised me I should go to college and learn how to cook. The idea was to gain an understanding of how a kitchen should operate, which would then give me the knowledge to be able to help them run their pubs. I started my college course and the sense of enjoyment I got from being in a kitchen environment and creating plates of food was totally compelling. It was something I very much accidently fell into.

DC: What is it about Cumbria that makes it such an attractive place for foodies?

BQF: I think the main reason is the quality of ingredients available to the chefs now. They have some of the best suppliers in the country for lamb and beef in particular, add in the Lake District and it’s an inevitable draw for people wanting high quality food.

DC: What makes The Dog & Gun truly stand out?

BQF: We set out with a simple outlook, which was to focus on the food on the plate, and allow other parts to follow. This means we don’t have table cloths or sommeliers with huge wine lists, it’s super relaxed, where flavour comes first.

DC: Which other restaurants really impress you

BQF: I have always admired the restaurants of Phil Howard, especially what he did at The Square; to gain two stars and still retain the ethos that first and foremost he was serving food, which needed to satisfy as a meal.

DC: Which ingredients do you enjoy cooking with most?

BQF: I really love using anything alongside pasta, from making filled ravioli to tagliatelle with a ragu and gnocchi. It’s got so many uses.

DC: Have you got any food that’s your guilty pleasure?

BQF: Mars ice cream.

DC: What’s the most exotic thing you’ve ever eaten?

BQF: Probably when I ate grey squirrel fritters cooked by Kevin Tickle when he was at Forest Side.

DC: If you could invite any three people – dead or alive – to come and eat your menu, who would they be and why?

BQF: The first guest would be Thomas Keller because The French Laundry is still my all-time favourite book. The second would be Peter Kay, for no other reason than I think he’d be hilarious! Finally Thierry Henry because I still think he’s the most exciting striker to have played in the Premier League and I would love to hear his insights and stories about playing the game.