Introducing Phil Cooke - The Old Bakery's New Head Chef

The only not-for-profit fine-dining restaurant in the Region is delighted to welcome new head chef Phil Cooke.

Phil has taken the reigns at the Old Bakery after success at restaurants around the city including the Bronze Pig and Jews House.

The dad-of-two will be introducing his classic British tasting menu over the next month and he says he can’t wait to get started.

“This is such an exciting and bold restaurant that I just had to go for it when the opportunity came up. I love the fact that all of the profit from the restaurant is used for training at Lincoln College and I the idea of using a top-quality restaurant like this as a finishing school for students is amazing,” he said.

“My college training was so important to my career, it’s given me a way of life I love and I can’t wait to give other young people that same opportunity through the Old Bakery.”

Phil started his career as a pot washer at a family-run pub in Hereford, then while working at a gastro pub in Bath, he studied catering formally at his local college.

The dad-of-two then worked at various restaurants in the Bath area, before moving to Lincoln with his partner in 2013.

Phil has worked at a number of restaurants in Lincoln, including Jew’s House, before introducing his own menu at the Bronze Pig as Head chef.

Phil, who will be joined by new sous chef Andy Wilson, said he hoped locals will love his new menu.

“I’m fine-tuning it now and we’ll be rolling it out over the next few weeks. My passion is classic British cooking. It’s fine dining but I understand the Lincolnshire appetites - it's stylish but there are no measly portions here.

“I’m passionate about the best quality local produce and we’ll be supporting as many local producers as we can across our offer. We’ll also be featuring local game and the best seasonal veg we can get our hands on.

“The British classic tasting menu will also be punctuated by monthly themed nights where I’ll be exploring my wider passion for French and Asian cuisine – I just can’t wait to get started.”