Paula Rengger's artistic flair has helped to define the chef she is today.
The kitchen is her studio and Boydell's Restaurant, her gallery. Her food is a delicate balance of flavours and textures that celebrates each season's bounty, and her dishes are creatively and thoughtfully plated.
The Scottish-born chef has made herself at home in the cozy slab-hut restaurant in Morpeth since taking over the kitchen in 2020.
"I would describe my menu at Boydell's as being contemporary and seasonally focused, with many of the dishes' ingredients providing a point of difference that customers would not normally come across in other restaurants," she tells Weekender.
"I also like to take a very modern spin on old-fashioned plates. Our 'Ploughmans' cheese course is a good example."
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Rengger started her working life in jewellery design, training at Edinburgh College of Art where she obtained a degree in design, majoring in jewellery and silversmithing.
"While I was working as a designer in Sydney, my partner had a catering business where I helped out on weekends," she explains.
"This soon developed into a hunger to learn more about cooking, and then there was no stopping me.
"I left my design position to focus on learning as much as I could about the art of food."
She has always viewed food, ingredients and cooking through a creative lens.
Prior to taking the head chef position at Boydell's, Rengger and her partner owned and operated the Hunter Country Lodge and Shakey Tables restaurant in the vineyards for 20 years.
The restaurant also served as a gallery for Rengger's paintings.
"When we first took over, the restaurant space was a bit like a scout hall and certainly needed to be given some personality," she explains.
"So, I decided to paint some colourful whimsical art that usually represented scenes from the restaurant or about the wine that we grew and made. They were quite quirky and provided an element of curiosity for our diners."
She describes her approach to cooking as "classically inspired with solid technique, flavour driven, innovative presentation with a keen eye for new and interesting ingredients".
Her spring menu at Boydell's is a case in point.
Lime zested spanner crab with green apple, potato pave, Avruga caviar and celery shoots. Beef tartare with fresh green peppercorns, truffled pecorino, quail egg and brioche.
There's also the black onyx top cap with baby vegetables, black garlic puree and Parisienne potatoes, and the goats cheese parfait with berries, chocolate sponge, honeycomb and strawberry and merlot coulis to consider.
"I do like to bring in a wee bit of Scotland to my kitchen," she says.
"Often it's small things like some millionaire's shortbread in a dessert or potted kippers on the bar snacks menu.
"Haggis has made an appearance on a couple of occasions at Boydell's; the haggis bon bons with whisky marmalade glaze were a winner.
"Scottish food is steeped in tradition and the necessity that nothing goes to waste. Its personality is defined by the rich and diverse game, seafood and seasonal produce the country has to offer."
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And she's already brainstorming ideas for her next seasonal menu.
"Summer will bring lots of local seafood and fresh tangy flavours, like a new tuna dish I am working on: slightly cured yellowfin tuna with spiced cucumber, soy, sesame and lettuce."
