Fergus & Trevor 25 years of St John

Follow them: @trevoegulliver @st.john.restaurant @fergushenderson

I am beyond honored to call these 2 gentleman friends. I have been fortunate to have many a lunch with them both. Having spent time staging in St John many years ago, to hosting them both at Incanto many years ago for a special dinner. The conversations are always powerful and fun so I hope you enjoy this one. This podcast was recorded in a place with an echo we did our best to make this an easy listen please enjoy.

AN INTRODUCTION

Fergus Henderson and Trevor Gulliver opened London’s St. JOHN Smithfield in 1994. The restaurant was to become one of the most influential restaurants internationally in terms of cuisine, design and philosophy, making Fergus both a food hero and one of the most significant chefs in the world. 

The accolades are many, with a long-held Michelin Star, a collection of lifetime achievement awards, a place on many global restaurant rankings and more. Fergus’ books have remained in permanent publication since his first, Nose to Tail Eating, was published in 1999, going on to be named in the LA Times as the world’s most influential cookbook. St. JOHN is more than a restaurant – it is an icon. 

“The contribution to the London food scene that has been made by maverick restaurateurs Fergus Henderson and Trevor Gulliver cannot be underestimated. From opening subsequent joint ventures and shaking up longheld assumptions about what diners want to eat – and are willing to try – to nurturing and training a whole generation of likeminded chefs and restaurateurs who have taken on board the ethos of St. John and followed it through to their own unique conclusion, Fergus and Trevor’s influence has been monumental. The knock-on effect of their staunch focus on British ingredients and reintroducing parts of the animal to the menu that had lost favour with diners has been felt in restaurants not only in the capital but also around the world.”

-       Cara Frost-Sharratt

FERGUS HENDERSON and TREVOR GULLIVER

Photo credit: Photo from Observer Food Monthly cover 2014

Fergus Henderson is widely recognised as one of the most influential figures in the modern restaurant scene, both in the UK and internationally, responsible for transforming how and what people cook and eat. He coined the now-ubiquitous phrase Nose-to-Tail in his eponymous and multi award winning cookbook of the same name, Nose to Tail Eating, which was published in 1999 and went on to be named in the LA Times as the most influential cookbook of all time. This and his three subsequent books have remained in print ever since; widely read, used and admired and hailed as essential modern classics.

In 2005 Fergus received an MBE for services to gastronomy, followed by Lifetime Achievement Awards from the influential 50 Best list, Tatler, Observer, the BBC and more. He is one of the most iconic and adored figures in restaurants today.

Trevor Gulliver founded St. JOHN with the experience of creating several award-winning London restaurants behind him, including wine bars, diners, microbreweries and the seminal Fire Station in Waterloo where he is credited as pioneering the open kitchen format. He has steered St. JOHN over 25 years to achieve and maintain international prominence and veneration, while guiding thoughtful expansion and development across the many diverse elements of the group. In 2019 Trevor co-authored The Book of St. JOHN with Fergus Henderson, to critical acclaim.

Where Fergus is responsible for putting food on the plate, Trevor is responsible for putting wine in the glass. His close relationships with vignerons have formed the strong reputation enjoyed by St. JOHN’s all-French wine list, and the production of the critically-acclaimed wines at the St. JOHN winery in France is informed and built by his expertise.

THE St. JOHN GROUP

St. JOHN has six operations: two restaurants, a bakery, a wine import company, a winery in France and a branded retail product arm.  Each of the enterprises are unique but they all adhere to the distinct style and philosophy which gathers all branches of the business under the St. JOHN umbrella and make them so instantly recognisable. Each is at the beating heart of the vibrant community in which it was established.

St. JOHN SMITHFIELD 

The first St. JOHN Restaurant in London's Smithfield was opened in 1994.  Housed in an old bacon smokehouse, Trevor and Fergus did little to the space other than whitewash the walls.  In the twenty years and more that followed, St. JOHN has become an institution, much lauded (and copied) for its pared back aesthetic and a simplicity which was shocking at the time, with Fergus Henderson hailed as the godfather of modern British cookery.  

St. JOHN BREAD and WINE

The opening of St. JOHN Bread and Wine followed in 2003, when the baking of bread for which St. JOHN had become lauded outgrew the Smithfield location. Initially intended as a counter for breads and takeaway wines, offering small plates for those who stopped by as they collected their supplies. Its position as a restaurant in its own right soon overtook the original intention and it is widely credited as pioneering the style of seasonal small-plate modern British dining which is now ubiquitous in East London and beyond.

St. JOHN BAKERY

Proper bread is central to the St. JOHN philosophy; Fergus says: “Bread is as essential as your knife and fork in the eating process”.  The Bakery is housed within a Victorian railway arch, from where it produces the sourdough and doughnuts for which the bakery has become famous, along with a wide range of other renowned products destined for the tables of other iconic restaurants such as The Ivy, Siren at The Goring, The Hoxton Group and many more. A St. JOHN Bakery retail site is located in the famous and unique Neal’s Yard, in London’s Covent Garden, selling loaves, doughnuts, morning pastries and wine to the local community and the steady stream of tourists charmed by the area and the shop. Another retail site is to follow in London’s foodie hub Borough.

St. JOHN WINES

The strong principles of genius loci that St. JOHN proudly applies to the restaurant ingredients also extended to the wine list, with Trevor’s resolve that “we would buy from our neighbours” creating an all-French list, bought direct from vignerons.  Trevor works year on year with the various winemakers to decide on the blends for the own-label St. JOHN wines, creating wine that is true to its region, good value and perfectly suited to the table. In 2008 Fergus & Trevor purchased their own winery in the Minervois, France, from where they make their own acclaimed Boulevard Napoleon wine.  Both the St. JOHN label and the Boulevard Napoleon wines are sold to restaurants, retailers and private customers across the UK, US and Canada.