Clavelshay Barn are proud to announce a new venture – the Clavelshay Barn Cookery School run by award winning professional chefs Olivier Certain and Andrew Dixon.
This full day course will immerse you into what it takes to expertly select and prepare fish and seafood at home. Knowing the essential cooking methods and flavour profiles for fresh and fish, as well as shellfish, will help you produce appetisers, soups, and entrees.
Start Date : Tuesday 15 March 2016
Course : Fish & Shellfish
Cost : £125 per person (includes lunch and wine)
Olivier first met Andrew when they worked together in a hotel in Ashford, Kent. Andrew moved to Somerset to start Andrews on the Weir and Olivier joined him at Porlock Weir as his sous chef, where they achieved great success together for 5 years. They are delighted to be working together again to run the cookery school.
OLIVIER CERTAIN
Marseille-born Olivier moved to England in 1998 following his Michelin star training in La Bonne Etape, Chateau Arnoux and Hotel Les Roches in Le Lavandou, France. In 2001 he joined Andrew Dixon at Andrews on the Weir, Porlock Weir and together they achieved 3 AA rosettes with outstanding food.
Olivier was Head Chef at Woods in Dulverton for 6 years where he achieved 2 rosettes and the accolade of Somerset Dining Pub of the Year 2008, 2010 and 2011. In 2009 in reached the finals of the South West Chef of the Year competition.
Olivier is now creating stunning dishes with French flair at Clavelshay Barn in North Petherton. His style of cooking is typical classic French but after living in England for over 18 years, he has learnt English dishes to an extremely high standard.
ANDREW DIXON
After training in some of the UK’s best restaurants and country house hotels, Andrew and his wife Sarah fulfilled a dream of running their own restaurant, and bought a beautiful old Manor House bed and breakfast at Porlock Weir, which opened as Andrews on the Weir.
After only 10 months of opening and at a very early stage of renovating the building, Andrews On The Weir was catapulted into the top ten percent of restaurants in the British Isles by gaining the 3 AA rosettes for food and gaining 4 out of 5 stars for accommodation. Andrew held the prestigious 3 AA rosettes rating for a further 9 years, five of those years he worked closely with Clavelshay Barn’s very own Olivier Certain.
In 2011 Andrew and Sarah changed direction of the restaurant and rebranded to The Cafe Porlock Weir to offer a less informal style of dining but offering the same quality food, and using the same quality of ingredients by sourcing the very best Exmoor and the West Country has to offer.
Andrew’s ethos about food has not waned at all and he still strives to offer some of the best food the region has to offer in the beautiful setting of the tiny waterside village of Porlock Weir.
In November of 2015 Andrew was recognised for his dedication to his craft and was awarded Best Somerset Restaurant Dining Experience at the Somerset Life Food awards.
Exmoor Food Fest 