Pictured above: New head chef, Marcus Swain (left) and
new sous chef, Marco Sack, prepare to turn up the heat in the
kitchen at The Park Inn Hotel in Telford
Two chefs who between them have cooked for royalty and world
leaders are preparing to serve up something special for diners in
Shropshire after taking charge of the kitchen at one of Telford's
leading hotels.
The Park Inn hotel has appointed a new head chef, Marcus Swain,
with the aim of making the dining room a destination restaurant,
which will attract people from around the county, as well as hotel
guests from further afield.
The 35-year-old, who lives in Lower Gornal in Dudley, has spent
years honing his skills at hotels around the region, including the
Mount Hotel in Wolverhampton, and Westmead Hotel in Longbridge, and
wants to use his experience to help put the Park Inn on the
culinary map.
The restaurant, RGB, which reflects the colourful red, green and
blue of the hotel's logo, was renamed in October, and introduced a
new menu featuring a range of healthy and hearty dishes, from
gourmet burgers to select cuts and local specialities.
Though offered all day, the menu also includes daily specials,
designed and perfected by the team of chefs.
Marcus, who has cooked for Princess Diana, as well as a number
of celebrities, says he wants to use the many positives Shropshire
has to offer to make his menus a success.
"It is no secret to anyone living here that Shropshire has a
great wealth of fantastic restaurants, though it may be to the rest
of the country, and I want to help create a buzz about our dining
room," he said.
"Part of the success lies in the wonderful ingredients we have
growing and grazing on our doorstep, all of which I want to make
full use of," he added.
With new sous chef, 42-year-old Marco Sack, from Berlin, the
hotel is hoping to combine Marcus's local knowledge with experience
gained working in kitchens all over the world.
Marco has transferred from the Park Inn in Klosterneuburg in
Austria, having worked in many different countries, including
Japan, Germany, Egypt and the Czech Republic.
He has cooked for French president, Francois Mitterrand and
Mikhail Gorbachev, the last President of the Soviet Union, and is
looking forward to the challenge of an English audience.
"Although I have travelled extensively, cooking in the UK is a
new experience for me, and I am really excited about what we can
achieve at the hotel," he said.
Adrian Pickard, general manager of the Park Inn Telford, who
himself only joined the team in May, said he is looking forward to
making the restaurant a real talking point for foodies.
"Marcus and Marco bring lots of fresh ideas and enthusiasm with
them, and I am really looking forward to seeing what they can do
for the restaurant," he said.
"We have a great location, not far from the M54 and major links,
and I want to make RGB the kind of restaurant people are quite
happy to travel to."