What began as a single cooking class in a cramped North London kitchen has grown into something we never anticipated. Not a business, really, but a community of people who believe that cooking well is one of life's great pleasures.
Where It Started
In 2011, our founder Eleanor Marsh was working as a sous chef at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Mayfair. The hours were brutal, the pressure immense, but there was magic in that kitchen. The problem was that magic remained hidden from most people.
Professional culinary techniques felt inaccessible, locked away in restaurant kitchens and expensive culinary schools. Eleanor wondered: what if anyone could learn to cook this way?
The First Class
The first proper class was knife skills. Six people gathered around a borrowed table, nervously gripping their chef's knives. By the end of three hours, onions were being diced with confidence, and something had shifted. These were not professional cooks, but they had glimpsed what was possible.
Word spread. Friends told friends. Within a year, classes were fully booked months in advance, and Eleanor had left the restaurant to focus entirely on teaching. But teaching alone felt limiting. Some clients wanted private instruction. Others needed someone to cook for their events. A few asked if we could simply prepare their meals for the week.
How We Grew
2011
The Beginning
First cooking class held in Eleanor's home kitchen with six eager students.
2013
Growing Demand
Moved to a dedicated studio space. Introduced personal chef services and private lessons.
2016
Team Expansion
Welcomed our first additional chefs. Launched the meal preparation service.
2019
National Reach
Extended services beyond London to Manchester, Birmingham, and Edinburgh.
2022
Recipe Development
Began working with food brands and publishers on recipe development projects.
2026
Today
A team of twelve chefs serving clients across the United Kingdom.
I have been cooking for forty years and thought I knew what I was doing. Eleanor showed me how much I did not know, but with such kindness that I left feeling excited rather than embarrassed. That is a rare gift.
What Drives Us
The food industry often feels exclusive. Celebrity chefs, complex terminology, expensive equipment. We reject that entirely. Brilliant cooking does not require anything more than basic tools, good ingredients, and the willingness to learn.
Our purpose is demystification. We want to show you that the dishes you admire in restaurants can be created in your own kitchen. Not identical reproductions, perhaps, but expressions of the same principles adapted to your circumstances.
Our Commitment to Sourcing
Ingredients matter enormously. A mediocre tomato will never become a great sauce, regardless of technique. This is why we maintain relationships with producers across the UK who share our standards.
From the organic vegetable farms of Cornwall to the heritage breed butchers in Yorkshire, we know where our ingredients come from. When we work with you, we share that knowledge so you can continue sourcing well independently.
Teaching Philosophy
We do not believe in recipes as rigid instructions. A recipe is a suggestion, a starting point, a record of one way that something worked. Our goal is to help you understand the why behind each step so you can adapt confidently.
When you understand why onions are cooked before garlic, why resting meat matters, why cold butter creates flaky pastry, you no longer need to follow instructions blindly. You become a cook rather than a recipe-follower.
Ready to experience our approach firsthand? Explore what we offer.
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