FOOD + DRINK
THE ART OF BUTCHERY
MEET THE BUTCHER :
SIMON RICKWOOD
Owner , The Butcher ' s Block
© Joe Josland Photography
How did your passion for butchery start and how long have you been in the business ?
Rickwoods at Bearsted was my dad ' s business , so it was inevitable that I would end up a butcher ; my grandad was a butcher , my dad was a butcher , so it was all I really knew growing up . As time passed , my passion grew and I was there for a total of 32 years . My dad sold the business to Crouches , who I still keep in touch with and visit regularly – the butchery industry is very supportive of one another .
Could you tell us a little bit about The Butcher ' s Block and what drove you to open your own restaurant ?
I got to the point where I needed a bit of a challenge – I couldn ’ t see what the next step was . One year , my wife Joanna took me away for my birthday , and we visited this quaint little pub in the middle of nowhere . As the night went on this place just got busier and busier , and Joanna looked at me and said : “ Do you think we could do something like this ?” That sparked the conversation for the rest of the weekend , and we haven ’ t looked back since .
The Butcher ' s Block seems the obvious name for your restaurant , but can you tell us a little bit about what you wanted to achieve ? Was it about educating people about meat and where it comes from ?
The concept was definitely about showcasing great meat , but I don ’ t think at the time we realised just how much people wanted good steak – we aren ’ t a steakhouse and we do offer an à la carte menu but we have built up a great reputation for our meat which we are really proud of . It ’ s very much farm to table here ; I ’ m quite particular about meat - a lot is locally sourced and it ’ s always the finest cuts . I think it ' s very important for people to know where their meat and ingredients come from .
How does your knowledge of butchery influence your menu choices ?
I love to cook , but I ’ m a butcher at the end of the day , so that ’ s where my talented team of chefs come in and I have learned so much from them . I will prep the meat which is great for them to see and then they can play around with ingredients and flavours to create the dishes . The menu is seasonal , so we will often all sit down together and discuss dishes , ideas etc . It ’ s about team work here .
Ok , so we have to ask it , what ' s your favourite cut of meat ? And dish ?
Ribeye or rib of beef – you can ’ t beat it for flavour along with all the naughty fatty bits . But if we ’ re talking about a dish , steak is steak , so I would probably choose lamb or fish – they ’ re both diverse with lots of taste .
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