FORKING OUT ON A NEW KITCHEN
BY DREW TERRY
I’d spent a small fortune designing and installing my dream kitchen and couldn’t wait
to throw my first get-together. But instead, a calamitous soiree with friends set me on a
path to find the one thing missing from the perfect dinner party.
I pictured my new kitchen being a
room in which I’d spend countless
hours preparing the food I adore
for those I love. Creating wonders.
Entertaining. Proudly serving up my
finest endeavours, course-by-course, to
hungry smiles waiting with anticipation.
“I spent months pouring over
magazines and designing
the perfect kitchen.”
I’d paid attention to every last detail;
the finish, the floor, the lighting, the
hinges and handles, right down the hue
of the tile grout. So why did I stop when
it came to the crucial job of delivering
food from the plate to the palate?
I hate to admit it, but I completely
overlooked the importance of the one
thing we all hold and interact with
throughout the entire meal. Cutlery.
On the night in question, my £39.99
home catalogue canteen became the
centre of much mockery. One pal took
up two spoons and began playing them
on his knee, while another challenged
everyone else to race across the living
room while dangling them from their
noses. After rinsing them off, I reset
the table. After washing the ‘starter’
cutlery and resetting the table yet
again for the main course, I could only
cringe as I watched another friend
hack through his steak with a regular
table knife. Then out came a mishmash
of spoons in different sizes so people
could chase their dessert around the
ill-chosen crockery. It was a disaster.
So, I set off on a personal journey to
find the perfect tools to grace my table.
Cutlery that would look and feel
the part, and would be as enjoyable
to interact with as the food itself.
Premium cutlery that wouldn’t
break the bank.
‘Perhaps only the most discerning
diners appreciate such things’
I thought to myself as I browsed
the usual suspects online. The same
designs; banal, mundane, void of
any personality. A trip to the high
street turned up even less.
So I decided to look at who supplied
my favourite restaurants. After all, if
it’s good enough for Blumenthal… am
I right? And what do you know? Many
Michelin Starred restaurants today use
cutlery created by one Great British
designer. A name that came up again
and again - but only in those cool, trendy
circles made up those in-the-know.
They spoke of a designer to the
stars, whose sensual culinary
forms are, and I quote “stunning in
their simplicity”, that they can be
found in permanent exhibitions at
the Victoria & Albert Museum.
WELCOME TO THE WONDERFUL
WORLD OF WILLIAM WELCH
It turns out that William Welch, Founder
of Studio William Cutlery in Stratford-
Upon-Avon, is unlike any other designer
in this space. When I called in at his
showroom in the Cotswolds he was
more than happy to explain, “You’ll find
with most designers that their product
range is chosen by sales and marketing
and approved by a board.
As a designer, I retain full creative
control over the brand, the design
process and the products that make
it to market.” The result is cutlery that
is inspired and designed around the
science of food and form. William
adds, “Studio William is a design-
led brand. Good design and good
quality is what you buy. Every time.”
“Perhaps only the
most discerning diners
appreciate such things.”
Control Team here in the UK. As a result,
their designs stand the test of time.
Today, Studio William Cutlery can be
found in some of the most prestigious
and iconic venues in the world, from
Number 10 Downing Street and
the Sydney Opera House to the
Mandarin Oriental, and Burj Al Arab,
Dubai. And now… my kitchen!
Studio William fork during production
PERFECT CUTLERY WITH
PERSONALITY
In the end, I chose a design called
KARRI, which stood out and captured
my personality perfectly. Winner of
the Red Dot Design Award and the
Good Design Award from the Chicago
Athenaeum Museum of Architecture
and Design, KARRI breaks the rules
of traditional cutlery design.
With stylised, slender fork heads,
a heavy gauge that screams 5-star hotel
quality, sophisticated lines and a cheeky
knife designed to stand up on the table,
it demands attention … and it gets it.
Last week, those same friends came
over for dinner again, and I’m pleased to
report, not a single spoon was played.
BUT THIS ISN’T JUST CUTLERY
William Welch – one of no more than five
leading experts in his field worldwide,
creates sensory shapes that tease and
delight. So revered are these pronged
pieces of perfection, that the most
celebrated chefs rely on them to elevate
their dishes to a whole new level. While
a growing army of loyal customers
frequently describe his creations as,
“elegant and beautifully designed”.
Forged from the highest quality
materials, each piece of Studio
William cutlery goes through
approximately 45 processes and
finishing techniques before being
painstakingly inspected by a Quality