Adam Peter Ritchie Handling MBE (born 17 September 1988 in Dundee, Scotland[1]) is a British chef and restaurateur. He is the owner of the Adam Handling Restaurant Group of four food and drink venues in London, England .

Adam Handling
Born
Adam Handling

(1988-09-17) 17 September 1988 (age 36)
ChildrenOliver Handling
Culinary career
Current restaurant(s)
    • Frog 1 Michelin star
      The Loch and The Tyne
    • Ugly Butterfly
    • Eve Bar
Websitewww.adamhandling.co.uk

Career

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Handling started his culinary training aged 16 as apprentice chef at Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland. He went on to work in London before becoming sous chef at the Malmaison hotel in Newcastle. He then moved back to Scotland to become the Fairmont Group's head chef at the Fairmont St Andrews.[2][3]

In 2013, Handling took on the role of head chef at St. Ermin's Hotel in St James's Park, London. From there, he entered and became a finalist in series 6 of Masterchef: The Professionals.[4]

In 2014, Handling officially opened Restaurant Adam Handling at Caxton,[5] which won a three rosettes award from the AA.[6] The next year, it was named Best Newcomer UK Restaurant by Food and Travel Magazine.[7]

Handling published his first cookbook in October 2014, entitled Smile or Get Out of the Kitchen, with a foreword by Masterchef judge Monica Galetti.[8]

In June 2016, Handling opened his first independent restaurant, The Frog, in Spitalfields, London,[9][10] and appeared in series 11 of Great British Menu.[11]

In September 2017, Handling opened his flagship restaurant, Frog by Adam Handling in Covent Garden[12] and his first stand-alone bar, Eve Bar.[13]

Handling was chosen to cook for the G7 world leaders during the G7 Summit 2021 in Cornwall. In keeping with the goal of making the event “carbon-neutral,” most ingredients were sourced from within a 100-mile radius.[14]

In 2021, Handling opened his first restaurant outside London - The Loch & the Tyne, restaurant and pub with guest bedrooms in Old Windsor.[15] Later that year, he also opened Ugly Butterfly restaurant and bar in St. Ives, Cornwall.[16]

Handling published a set of three books in 2023, Frog by Adam Handling, Why Waste? and Perfect, Three Cherries.[17]

In March 2023, Handling was a guest judge of the segment Quickfire Challenge on Top Chef: World All Stars.[18][19]

In April 2023, Handling won BBC's Great British Menu Champion of Champions award.[20]

Adam Handling created a trifle chosen as the official pudding for the Coronation of King Charles III in May 2023. It is made with Parkin, ginger custard and strawberry jelly.[21]

Restaurants

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Adam Handling Restaurant Group operates four food and drink venues in London. The Group is committed to a zero waste policy and eventually eliminating all food waste by creating dishes from offcuts that are usually thrown away.[22] Frog by Adam Handling opened in September 2017,[23] alongside bar venue Eve Bar.[24][25][26]

The Group also launched Hame in May 2020, a home delivery service that provides their restaurant food at home and delivers nationally.[27]

The Group’s first pub, The Loch and The Tyne in Old Windsor was opened in May 2021.[28] Handling opened his first restaurant and bar by the coast, Ugly Butterfly on the Carbis Bay Estate in St. Ives, Cornwall in August 2021.[29]

In July 2024, the company opened the Tartan Fox pub near Newquay in Cornwall.[30]

Honours and awards

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Handling was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2024 New Year Honours for services to hospitality and international trade.[31]

  • Acorn Award 2013 by magazine The Caterer as one of "30 under 30 to watch".[32]
  • British Culinary Federation "Chef of the Year 2014".[33]
  • Scottish Chef of the Year Award 2015.[34]
  • Chef of the Year Food and Travel magazine 2019.[35]
  • Restaurateur of the year British GQ Food and Drink Awards 2020.[36]
  • Scottish Power’s COP26 Green Power List.[37]
  • Restaurant Chef Award 2023 Craft Guild of Chefs Awards.[38]

Bibliography

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  • Handling, Adam; Galetti, Monica (1 October 2014). Smile or get out of the kitchen (1st ed.). Sheffield: Meze Publishing. ISBN 9780992898120.
  • Handling, Adam (2022). Why Waste? A Way With Media Ltd. ISBN 978-1-910469-58-3[39]
  • Handling, Adam (2022). Frog. A Way With Media Ltd. ISBN 978-1-910469-57-6[40]
  • Handling, Adam (2022). Perfect, Three Cherries. A Way With Media Ltd. ISBN 978-1-910469-59-0[41]

References

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  1. ^ Gran, Maria (8 April 2023). "Adam Handling Q&A: Dundee chef on winning Great British Menu and future plans". The Courier. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Adam Handling – Head Chef at The Frog restaurant". Adam Handling – The Head Chef. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  3. ^ Rayner, Jay (14 December 2014). "Adam Handling at Caxton: restaurant review". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  4. ^ "MasterChef: The Professionals 2013 – Steven Edwards, Adam Handling and". The Independent. 13 December 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  5. ^ "Chef Adam Handling Gets Personal with his New Menu". Hospitality & Catering News. 3 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Adam Handling". Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  7. ^ Rankin, Gregor (28 October 2015), Food and Travel Reader Awards 2015, retrieved 12 December 2019
  8. ^ "Book review: Smile or Get Out of the Kitchen". The Caterer. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  9. ^ "Adam Handling - Chef / Owner". Adam Handling.
  10. ^ Richardvines, Richard Vines (13 July 2016). "London Hasn't Yet Discovered This Millennial Chef But Should". Bloomberg News.
  11. ^ "BBC Two - Great British Menu, Series 11 - Adam Handling". BBC. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  12. ^ Bronte, Georgia (15 August 2017). "Adam Handling's flagship Frog to open next month". restaurantonline.co.uk. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  13. ^ Landon, Alex (1 February 2019). "The Sinfully Good Cocktail Bar With Temptation On The Menu". Secret London. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  14. ^ "G7 Summit Menu". washingtonpost. Archived from the original on 14 June 2021.
  15. ^ Gatens, Katie (27 September 2023). "The Loch and The Tyne, Berkshire, hotel review". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  16. ^ Anna (3 December 2021). "Cornwall's Most Luxurious Restaurant: Ugly Butterfly by Adam Handling". The Cornish Life | Cornwall Lifestyle Blog. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  17. ^ Lew, Magdalena (13 January 2023). "Chef Adam Handling Publishes Luxury Book Collection". Lux Magazine.
  18. ^ "Top Chef's Season 20, with World All-Stars, Features Some "Really, Really Serious" Competition". Bravo TV Official Site. 25 January 2023.
  19. ^ Montgomery, Daniel (7 April 2023). "'Top Chef' 20 episode 5 recap: Were the judges too harsh in the criticisms during 'Holiday Vacation'?". GoldDerby. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  20. ^ Russell, James (1 April 2023). "Adam Handling crowned Great British Menu Champion of Champions 2023". Hospitality & Catering News. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  21. ^ "Adam Handling's Coronation strawberry and ginger trifle". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  22. ^ bighospitality.co.uk (20 December 2019). "Latest opening: Ugly Butterfly". bighospitality.co.uk. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  23. ^ "Making the second successful leap". The Independent. 6 October 2017. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  24. ^ "The Sinfully Good Cocktail Bar With Temptation On The Menu". Secret London. 1 February 2019. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  25. ^ "Restaurant Review: The Frog Hoxton, the latest from chef Adam Handling". The London Economic. 18 September 2018. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  26. ^ Carington, Francesca (18 March 2019). "The lowdown on Adam Handling's new restaurant at the Belmond Cadogan Hotel". Tatler. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  27. ^ "Adam Handling launches Hame - his home delivery service and yes, the cheese doughnuts are included". Hot Dinners. 18 May 2020.
  28. ^ Ellis, David (29 March 2021). "Adam Handling: 'This year broke me, but I'm fighting'". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  29. ^ "Ugly Butterfly at Carbis Bay Estate". www.carbisbayhotel.co.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
  30. ^ "Cornish pub earns its place in Michelin Guide just five months after opening". Falmouth Packet. 1 November 2024.
  31. ^ "No. 64269". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2023. p. N21.
  32. ^ "Acorn Awards 2013 winners revealed". The Caterer. 10 June 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  33. ^ BigHospitality.co.uk. "Adam Handling named BCF Chef of the Year 2014". BigHospitality.co.uk. Retrieved 10 March 2016.[permanent dead link]
  34. ^ "Adam Handling announces cook book signings in Scotland". Citylicious®. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
  35. ^ "Chef of the Year". Food and Travel Magazine. Archived from the original on 13 December 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2020 – via Pressreader.
  36. ^ West, Millicia (2 October 2020). "GQ Food and Drink Awards winners 2020". British GQ. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  37. ^ "ScottishPower's COP26 Green Power List". ScottishPower. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  38. ^ "Simon Rogan and Adam Handling win top gongs..." The Caterer. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  39. ^ South, Alex. "Adam Handling: "It's probably the hardest thing I've ever done in my life."". www.thestaffcanteen.com. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  40. ^ Chomka, Stefan (10 February 2023). ""It was the hardest thing I've done in my career" Adam Handling on his debut book collection". restaurantonline.co.uk. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  41. ^ "Adam Handling publishes luxury book collection". The Upcoming. 13 January 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.