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Private Chef to The Stars Opens New Wicklow Restaurant Benjamin’s

Benjamin Patterson has cooked for everyone from Elton John to Elle Macpherson but now you can sample his skills for yourself at Wicklow’s newest eatery – Benjamin’s at The Meetings. Overlooking the stunning Meeting of the Waters in the vale of Avoca, the scene is set for a memorable meal in the most beautiful of surroundings.

Having fallen into the private chef trade by accident, Benjamin turned down the traditional professional kitchen route in favour of cooking first in Regent’s Park and then catering to the Begum Aga Khan, which saw Benjamin catering magazine shoots all over the world. Moving on to working as the private chef for businessman and conservationist Damian Aspinall for four years, Benjamin cooked for rock stars and royalty in this post before moving back to Ireland.

Working for an Irish American family back home, Benjamin continued to live the high life splitting his year between Bermuda and Wicklow. It was during this time that he fell in love with the Garden of Ireland. Here he catered visits from the Democratic Party and even Bono, loving the pace and being kept on his toes by his high profile diners but keeping his eye on moving on to having his own place.

In this time I was looking around for a restaurant space in Wicklow, as I had just had a child and decided I had to leave the private industry to be closer to him. This is how I found the Meeting of the Waters ,it’s hard leaving the private jets but better to be going out on my own!

Having spent years catering cosy dinner parties at his friend’s Berlin music studio, Benjamin found he preferred this atmosphere to cooking for high profile clientele and is trying to recreate this relaxed, laid back vibe at Benjamin’s. Nods to this can be found in its quirky decor of 1930’s gramophones, a vintage Marshall telephone box and a Marshall sound system.

On the food front, Benjamin’s seasonal creations will be artfully presented on Jeff Healy plates he has designed himself and the menu will include some of his signature dishes such as slow cooked duckling with foie gras, roasted oranges and oriental jus. Benjamin aims to hold live demonstrations on a Wednesday nights of dishes and the restaurant will be open Thursday , Friday and Saturday with a roast for Sunday lunch.

On moving from the private chef’s world to a pressurised restaurant kitchen, Benjamin knows he will face challenges like dealing with customers and suppliers on a day to day basis – “I’m used to going out to markets and buying everything from scratch but I’m confident I have some of the best suppliers so I’m pretty sure I can handle it!” he says.

To book Benjamin’s call 0402 35226 or click here.

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