True fine dining doesn’t need a gimmick to prove its worth. That is the driving force behind Kevin Bonello’s vision at The Grand, York, where the veteran chef draws on years of Michelin-starred kitchen experience to shape a food identity grounded in precision and respect for regional ingredients.
From working alongside global culinary teams to sourcing peak-season Yorkshire produce, Bonello shares how he is building a modern, authentic food offering at the city’s only five-star hotel.
Inside the Kitchen with Kevin Bonello at The Grand York
You’ve spent years in fine dining and Michelin-starred kitchens. What drew you to take on the food vision at The Grand, York, and how would you describe the identity you are building there in three words?
I’d say seasonal, precise and bold.
I’ve been very fortunate throughout my career to work in some fantastic kitchens and alongside chefs who have really shaped the way I approach food. My years in Michelin-starred restaurants gave me a very strong grounding in technique and precision, while travelling and working internationally exposed me to different ingredients, flavours and ways of thinking about food.
I’ve always admired chefs such as Eric Frechon, particularly his philosophy of respecting both the product and the region you are cooking in. That is something I strongly believe in myself.
When the opportunity came to join The Grand, what excited me was the chance to bring all of that experience into a completely new environment. Yorkshire has an incredible natural larder, so there is a lot for a chef to work with. The aim is to take the skills and techniques I’ve developed throughout my career and use them to showcase the very best local and seasonal produce we have around us.
The new approach at The Grand focuses on food that is considered rather than performative. In a world full of theatrical dining trends, what does considered cooking mean to you on the plate?
For me, considered cooking starts with getting the fundamentals right. It is about attention to detail, understanding your ingredients, seasoning properly and, importantly, tasting your food throughout the process. Those things might sound simple, but they make an enormous difference.
My fine-dining background has naturally given me a respect for precision and technique, but technique should always have a purpose. You should never add something to a plate simply to demonstrate that you can do it. The ingredient has to remain at the centre of the dish.
However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a place for theatre. We are actually seeing guests become much more interested in tableside elements and interaction in the dining room. They want to ask questions about where an ingredient has come from, how something has been prepared or why certain flavours have been put together. I think that kind of theatre is very positive because it creates a genuine connection between the kitchen, the team and the guest.
Ultimately, though, the food still has to deliver. The experience around a dish should enhance it rather than distract from it.
Yorkshire has one of the richest food larders in the UK. Since taking on the role, which local ingredients or producers have excited you the most?
Yorkshire strawberries at their peak are fantastic, and spring lamb is another ingredient I particularly look forward to. Yorkshire rhubarb is very special too. It has such a strong identity and history within the region and is recognised far beyond Yorkshire.
We are also lucky enough to have honey produced from hives on the roof of The Grand. Having an ingredient that is quite literally produced at the hotel is wonderful for a chef because there is a real story and sense of place behind it.
How do you ensure that a grand, historic five-star hotel feels genuinely rooted in Yorkshire’s food story, rather than serving a generic luxury hotel menu?
The Grand is a beautiful, historic building and there is naturally a sense of occasion when people come here. For me, luxury doesn’t have to mean using an expensive ingredient simply because it is expensive. It can be taking a fantastic local ingredient at the peak of its season, treating it with respect and using technique to make it the best version of itself. That is much more interesting to me, and it gives the food an identity that belongs here.
What do you think modern hotel guests are actually looking for when they sit down to dinner today compared to five or ten years ago?
I think authenticity has become much more important. Guests travel more, they are more knowledgeable about food, and they are interested in understanding what makes a destination different. If they are visiting Yorkshire, they don’t necessarily want to eat exactly the same dishes they could find in a luxury hotel somewhere else in the world. They want the food to have a connection to the place they are visiting.
At the same time, expectations have broadened. Guests want choice and variety, and they are increasingly curious about different flavours, ingredients and styles of dining.
People also ask more questions now. They want to know where produce has come from, how a dish has been prepared and the story behind it. I think that’s a really positive development because it encourages restaurants and chefs to think more carefully about what they are serving and why.
When you start developing a brand new dish for The Grand, where does the process usually begin for you? Is it an ingredient, a memory, or a technique?
It always begins with the ingredient.
I look at what is at its peak at that particular point in the season and make that the core of the dish. That ingredient becomes the canvas and everything else develops around it.
From there, we think about which flavours naturally complement it, what techniques will bring out its best qualities and how we can introduce different textures without losing sight of the original product.
How do you see the relationship between the main restaurant menus and the interactive experiences over at the Cookery School developing?
They have a very natural relationship, and I think that is one of the things that makes the food offering at The Grand quite unique.
We can take dishes, techniques or ideas that guests particularly enjoy in the restaurants and develop Cookery School classes around them. It gives people an opportunity to go beyond simply eating a dish and actually understand some of the thinking and technique behind it.
Having those different elements under one roof creates a real culinary ecosystem. We are constantly learning from what our guests enjoy and feeding that back into what we do.
How do you manage to stay inspired and keep pushing creative boundaries when running such a busy, high-pressure operation?
The people around me are a huge source of inspiration. We have a large culinary team at The Grand made up of chefs from different countries, cultures and backgrounds. Everybody brings their own memories of food, traditions and experiences into the kitchen, and I think it is important to create an environment where those ideas can be shared.
As a Culinary Director, I don’t believe creativity should only ever come from one person. Some of the most interesting conversations start when somebody talks about a dish they grew up eating or a technique that is used in their culture, and then we begin thinking about how that could influence something we’re working on.
Ingredients keep us creative too. Seasonality means the kitchen never stands still. Just as you become comfortable working with one ingredient, the season changes and something new arrives. That forces you to keep thinking, tasting and developing.
For me, that’s one of the most exciting things about being a chef. You are always learning.
If you could point to one single dish currently on the menu that best captures where The Grand is heading right now, which one would it be and why?
It would have to be the salt-baked celeriac. For me, it captures a lot of what we are trying to achieve because it starts with a very humble ingredient. Celeriac isn’t something people necessarily associate with luxury or fine dining, but that is exactly what makes it interesting.
We take that one ingredient and explore it in different ways, using different techniques, textures and forms to demonstrate both its versatility and the craftsmanship of the chefs working with it. It is very considered: nothing needs to be added simply for the sake of making the plate feel more luxurious.
When that happens, the end result can be mind-blowing.
To explore the current menu at The Grand or book an experience at the Cookery School, visit: www.thegrandyork.co.uk/
