Sarah Frankland: “I want to develop the chefs of the future”

It's unusual for established pastry chefs to go back into the main kitchen... 

Yes, I suppose it is. I've been a pastry specialist all my career​​, but I have also developed leadership skills that are applicable throughout the business. Exclusive Collection (Penny Hill Park's owner) has seen that we have low staff turnover in the pastry kitchen; people stay because I look after them. They are trained and developed in terms of chef skills but also in people skills, particularly how to lead and train. That's often a missing part of the puzzle for young chefs, although I was lucky to have that throughout my own career. I'm always focused on how I can get the best out of my team. Creating a clear structure is key to that.

Pastry chefs are known for being organised and precise. That should come in handy in your new role

With pastry everything is very recipe focused and done in advance. There's not much flexibility. The main kitchen is a bit different, in some cases it's possible to be a bit more spontaneous. I will look to drive consistency across the kitchens at Penny Hill Park by creating detailed specifications for everything that we serve.  

What about the menu development aspect of the role?

I will be overseeing the development process rather than coming up with all the ideas myself. We have a new head chef joining in January for the hotel's Hillfield restaurant and I will also be working with an experienced chef within our banqueting department. It will be my role to facilitate dish creation and make sure we understand the ethos of the restaurant. For example, Hillfield is a hyper local concept ​​so I will work closely with the team to identify great local suppliers.

Where do you start with a big role like this?

I have been doing some aspects of the role for the past few months. The hotel's previous executive chef left in August, and I wanted to ensure that the team as a whole was continuing to be guided. Sometimes a big change at the top results in people getting nervous and leaving. I did a lot of HR work – including one-to-ones - which has put me in good stead for starting the role in an official capacity.

You seem to be relishing the HR aspect of the role...

It's incredibly important. As a chef I've always wanted to know what I need to do to achieve my next steps. It's my role to give people achievable goals to keep the whole team engaged. In a lot of places, the promotion process can be opaque. We're pretty much fully staffed at the moment because Exclusive Collection – which is now a B Corp ​​- looked after its people during the pandemic and kept the communication up. We retained a lot of staff, which is just as well as recruitment is tough now.

You've only worked at a handful of places in your career. Why? 

I don't subscribe to the idea that once you've worked at a place for one or two years you've learnt all you can. Places are always evolving and you're also growing as a person. There's always something else to learn, especially in a hotel environment. I studied at Westminster Kingsway while also working at The Connaught when Angela Hartnett was there. Neil Borthwick (Hartnett's head chef at the time) suggested I go to work with William Curley (the famed Scottish chocolatier). I ended up staying with him for six years. It was my dream to me a chocolatier, but I realised that being a pastry chef was a bit more open. There were a lot more skills to learn.

Where did you go next? 

I took a head chef role at what was then Hakkasan Group (now Tao Group), which was interesting as I was working in what was essentially a production kitchen sending desserts and pastries across London. I learnt a lot about logistics. I joined Penny Hill Park as head pastry chef in 2016.

You were big on the competition circuit. Have you now hung up your competition apron, so to speak? 

I did a lot of competitions including the World Chocolate Masters and Bake Off: The Professionals​. I'm done with them in terms of competing myself now, but I still want to encourage others to get involved. I get more satisfaction helping others achieve their potential in that environment now. I want to develop the chefs of the future.