If ever there was a chef that I had huge admiration for, it would be Marco Pierre White. I know chefs of a certain age all say the same, but he did change the way we eat out. He did make cooking cool, and it was rock and roll then – although not now.

This book, 'The Mirabelle Cookbook', is a piece of art. It isn’t too over the top; most of the recipes inside are achievable by us all at home. It is clever – he thinks a lot about why people eat, and how they eat food.

This was a great restaurant. I ate there once and loved it. It was a big place, scores of chefs and waiters, and it was just simple, well-sourced, good cooking, served well and in a nice space. Marco had demanding standards, something many should now look back on and consider. He got it done, and yeah, he shouted a bit, but he was fair.

A great regret of mine was not working at Harveys with him when I was offered a job. It still plays on my mind. I wonder what I would be doing now if I had. I would have been working alongside Stephen Terry, Philip Howard, Gordon Ramsay and so on – in another life.

It is never good, I know, to have regrets, but to look back and remember the great food at that time was just brilliant. The guys at Cafe take the mickey out of me for my love of chervil. Here, Marco uses it a lot, and I like that…

This book is very Cafe, and it just works. Go get a copy.