Once more West Midlands restaurants are ignored by the BBC in the 2024 Central heat of its Great British Menu series with the chefs chosen to represent the ‘Central region’ working in London, Ascot, Norwich (to be fair the ‘Central region’ includes East Anglia) and as a private chef in the East Midlands. True, there are two West Midlands-born chefs - Sam Ashton-Booth, originally from Worcester, and Adam Smith, born in Birmingham - but the first works at Muse in London (and has never worked in the Midlands) and Adam Smith works at Woven by Adam Smith in Ascot and has also never worked in the Midlands.
What I want to see is not only West Midlands chefs who originally hail from the area but also those who work here and to get a glimpse of the local establishments in which they work. This is another way in which the BBC is choosing to ignore the West Midlands. I expect to be less than interested in this year’s Central heats, especially with the Judge’s episode involving an unbearable, unfunny, facetious, puerile ‘comedian’ and dominated by a chef who guides the voting.
Meanwhile Michelin published its list of new Bibs Gourmands for 2024 on Monday 29 January. There were 116 dining establishments accorded a Bib in 2023 of which just a single restaurant was located in the West Midlands - the Charlton Arms in Ludlow on Ludford Bridge with a grand view of the river Teme below - and twenty new Bib holders were named for 2024 and absolutely none of them are located in the West Midlands. Logic dictates that there must be more than one West Midlands restaurant worthy of the award of a Bib but apparently not.
It remains to be seen how the dining establishments of the West Midlands region will be treated in next week’s star awards ceremony which ironically is to take place in Birmingham’s rival city, Manchester (for long a Michelin star desert). I am looking to Opheem becoming our first two star restaurant and The Wilderness being finally rewarded with one star but I say that every year and Alex Claridge (with, now, Marius Gedminas) has always been passed over.
To return to the iniquities of the BBC, I should note for the record that of the 28 young chefs featured in the most recent series of Masterchef The Professionals, not one was a West Midlander. With so much talent in the region one must draw one’s own conclusions about why that should be. Perhaps, the West Midlands culinary industry will get more of a look in when filming of Masterchef begins in Birmingham. But I won’t hold my breath.
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