Chef Darryl

CHEF DARRYL (LONDON)

Irish chef, Darryl, bought over Chef’s Compliments in 2014 and brought the company to the next level. Passionate about local fresh, high quality ingredients, Darryl has been cooking professionally for nearly 22 years. He’s worked alongside many famous chefs in 1 and 2 Michelin-starred restaurants, including Chris Galvin and Marcus Wareing where he picked up many of the skills and techniques which are part of his kitchen repertoire today.

As well as running pop-up restaurants, he has a lot of experience teaching cookery, running big events and loves sharing his vast knowledge of modern British and French cuisines.

SAMPLE MENU

Canapes

Sweetcorn Fritter, Red Pepper Hummus, Tomato & Shallot Salsa

Paprika and Coriander Prawns, Spiced Mango Dip

Crispy Hoi-Sin Duck Pancakes

Wild Bore Sausage Roll, Apple Sauce

Caramelised Shallot and Olive Tart Tatin

Starter

Baby Beetroot, Goats Cheese Mousse, Beetroot Crisps, Candied Peanuts

Mackerel Ceviche, Apple, Guacamole, Pomegranate

Seared Scallops, Cauliflower Puree, Candied Cauliflower, Charred Leeks

Watercress and Celeriac Soup, Gruyere Croutons

Salad of Duck Breast, Pine Kernels, Burnt Orange, Watercress and Horseradish Crème Fraiche

Main

Beef Short Rib, Potato Puree, Spring Greens and Braising Liquor

Pork Fillet, Shallots, Onion Marmalade, Roast Garlic Puree & Yoghurt

Loin of Lamb, Pea Ragout, Parisienne Potatoes

Pan Fried Sea Bass, Lemon Crushed Potatoes, Spinach, Black Olive and Tapenade Dressing

Roast Pepper and Parmesan Risotto

Dessert

Apple Tart Tatin, Vanilla Cream Anglaise

Warm Chicory and Chocolate Foam, Caramel, Salted Peanuts and Peanut Powder

Sticky Toffee Pudding, Salt Caramel Sauce, Vanilla Ice Cream

Hazelnut and Chocolate Delice, Peanut Brittle

Spiced Pineapple Upside Down Cake, Clotted Cream

Great and fun experience with Darryl Breen. Would highly recommend this to our friends.
Sarah, London
Darryl is very professional and his great personality made it easy to learn from his skill and experience. Our friends had a very nice time and the food was absolutely delicious. The best sticky toffee pudding I’ve had!
Kewi, London
Great mixture of conviviality, practical hands-on instruction and relaxed informality. Darryl sized up our abilities quickly, and pushed us to do stuff we would never have dared to try on our own. Three hours went by so quickly! – wish we had had longer.
Jim, Australia
This was the first time we have used a private chef and it was a wonderful experience – better than I could have imagined. Wonderful food, impressive evening and no washing up – who could ask for more! Chef Darryl was very unintrusive and we were able to spend time with our guests and enjoy fantastic food – he also managed to cater for guests with a wide variety of (conflicting!) dietary requirements: vegetarian, birthday girl loves cheese, couple of guests can’t have dairy, wheat allergy and alcohol allergy! Can’t have been easy, but he made it look like it. Also one of our guests wants the recipe for the most fantastic chocolate tart you have ever tasted!
Becky, Camden
Excellent service and delicious, well presented, homely, two-course meals provided by Chef Darryl over seven nights for a family of eight visiting London. Two members had special dietary requirements (gluten free and lactose intolerance). Darryl was very knowledgeable of all requirements and interacted with all family members (including the 11 year old twins) in a friendly, cheerful but non-intrusive manner. Very generous meal proportions which provided a bonus with options for lunch the following day. Highly recommended for groups with special dietary requirements, formal entertainment functions or homely meals after a busy day around London.
Hermanus, London
Chef Darryl was great and not only did I learn several dishes that I will definitely try to recreate, but he has given me lots ideas for things I could try out in the future.
Sharon, Crouch Hill
Our meal was completely delicious and cooked to perfection. The Chef was lovely, polite, friendly and unobtrusive and left the place spotless!
Sheila, Willesden Green
Our lesson at home was an unbelievably pleasant experience for a family on a Sunday lunchtime.
Graeme, Balham
"We worked with Chef's Compliments for an event we were running for one of Britain's leading supermarkets. Darryl and his team were professional throughout, not only at providing great quality food for tasting, but also with styling display items, and providing sound consultancy. We'll certainly be working with the team again and highly recommend them."
Geraldine - London
Darryl was really informative with a great personality. we had a great time making the dishes. I would highly recommend Darryl to anyone.
Diana, West London
The whole lesson was simply fun and a truly informative treat. Pots and pans flying around the kitchen (and cleaned by the chef), endless sauces (which we were hands-on in producing) bubbling on the hob, patient and informal teaching, laughter, a relaxed atmosphere with four of us in the kitchen and no pushing, fighting or gouging. I want to play again.
Andrew, Sawbridgeworth