Fotis

I am a former mechanical engineer who worked in many research projects, from aeronautical design to experimental biomedical research and bioengineering. However, I struggled to find a source of deeper meaning and purpose while working in engineering research.

In 2020 I quit the engineering profession to pursue a career in professional cooking and baking. Without any formal culinary training, I managed to step in the restaurant business as a self-taught home cook and proved my worth with my perseverance and learning agility. I have worked in, Asian and Middle Eastern restaurants, and I like giving dishes from my home country (aka Greece) modern twists.

In my free time I volunteered as an assistant baker at Better Health Bakery. At this role I got mainly involved in the production of sourdough
bread namely mixing, stretching and folding, preshaping and shaping loaves and as a
result I learned a lot about sourdough and long fermentation bread making techniques. In
addition, I had the chance to transfer my knowledge to trainees and support them in
recovering from ill mental health. Working at Harrods later on as a baker was an exciting experience where I produced a variety sourdough loaves.

At the moment I am working at The Lanesborough, a luxury 5-star hotel in London, as a Chef de Partie. I specialise in making laminated doughs, croissants and seasonal fruit danishes, afternoon tea, and bread for the hotels restaurant and private dining events.

I am very passionate about passing my knowledge on, especially how food science can help us become better.