Michelin-star chef Tom Kerridge has reflected on the cost of living crisis and finally explains why his pub charges £87 for steak.
Kerridge, who launched a child food poverty campaign called Full Time with Manchester United player Marcus Rashford last April, opened up about how this juxtaposes the steep prices of food at The Hand & Flowers.
Kerridge said that while “we can all do things” to help those less fortunate, he thinks it is counterproductive to shame ”successful people”.
“A hundred per cent it makes me angry there are more food banks than branches of McDonald’s in this country,” Kerridge told The Times. “But I also think: never punish people who are making good money, who’ve achieved a great lifestyle.”
Kerridge continued: “You don’t help to feed children by making successful people ashamed because I am one of those people. We can all do things to help like donating to a food bank or giving cash.
“Personally I think it’s better for me and Marcus to put 52 budget-friendly recipes on social media, which will help feed a lot of hungry kids, rather than, say, just giving away £50,000.”
The cook and businessman made headlines last year after social media users criticised The Hand & Flowers (which has two Michelin stars) for charging £87 for sirloin steak.
In response to the backlash, Kerridge said: “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if you want to ride in a Bentley, it costs money. If you’re on a budget there’s an intensely farmed Ford Focus available round the corner and that’s fine by me.”
He explained the price behind the steak, revealing that it is a quality meat and his business makes little profit from the meal.
The cow the steak comes from is grass-fed for two years, and the slaughtering, butchering and hanging process takes a further month.
He will only get ten steaks from each cow, which will cost Kerridge £25 each to buy.
Kerridge said his chefs, waiters, rent, energy bills, cleaners and toilet paper will add £35, and that the government will take £18 in VAT.
“We’ll be lucky to make a 10 per cent profit (about £9) and we need that to replace knives and cookers and improve the pub,” Kerridge said.
