Here, Graham Herterich shares his life in food, from his earliest memories to his favourite flavours and culinary inspirations.
A native of Athy, Co. Kildare, Graham Herterich grew up living above his family’s pork butcher shop. He developed his love affair with baking as a young child while learning to cook at his granny’s side and continued his training in Culinary Arts at Waterford Institute of Technology. His early career included stints at well-known restaurants and hotels such as Kilkee Castle, Marlfield House, Mount Juliet, Chapter One, Peacock Alley and The Commons. Graham briefly left the industry to spend two years as part of the Carmelite community before returning to it at age 21, ultimately founding The Cupcake Bloke in 2012 and opening his first retail store, The Bakery, in Rialto, Dublin, in 2018.
Graham, a winner of several Blas na hÉireann Awards and Chef Ireland Awards, is passionate about flavour and quality while bringing an element of fun to his food. He is well-known for creating tasty recipes with both conventional and unusual flavour combinations, using traditional Irish recipes as inspiration. His second book, Cook: Traditional Irish cooking with Modern Twists, was released earlier this year, and his first book, Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists, was published in September 2022.
Here, Graham shares his life in food…
What are your earliest memories of food?
I am lucky that my childhood is filled with many food memories because I lived above our family Pork & Bacon butcher shop in Athy Co. Kildare, but if I was to pick one memory it would be sitting on the edge of my Granny Flynn’s kitchen at about the age of seven as she taught me to bake tea brack.
How would you describe your relationship with food?
Thankfully, I have a great relationship with food. If anything, I would say that I have a passionate love affair with food, it consumes me. Like a great relationship, I want to spend as much time as possible with it, and I want to celebrate it as much as possible.
What was the first meal you learned to cook?
I think the first thing I ever learnt was a simple meal of pork chops, peas and mashed potatoes.
How did food become your career?
After completing my Leaving Cert, I went on to train to be a chef in Waterford before going on to work in some great places like Marlfield House and Mount Juliet Estate. So, from the very start of my career, food has always been there.
What’s your go-to breakfast?
I have to be honest I will rarely pass up Eggs Benedict if they are on the menu. On a day-to-day basis, you can’t beat a bowl of porridge,
If you’re impressing friends and family at a dinner party, what are you serving up?
I always keep it simple. I don’t think you can show much more love for family and friends than serving up a simple roast with all the trimmings.
Who is your culinary inspiration?
The women who inspired me to bake and cook growing up were my grannies, my mum, auntie Mary and all the other women who showed love in their baking.
What would your last meal on earth be?
I’ve given this a lot of thought in the past. The starter of a classic prawn cocktail, the main of roast chicken and all the trimmings, and dessert would be my mum’s pavlova.
What’s your go-to comfort food?
Mashed potatoes (with a ridiculous amount of butter), sausages, beans and a fried egg.
What’s the go-to quick meal you cook when you’re tired and hungry?
A simple ‘Egg in a Window’ – fried bread with a hole in the middle where an egg has been fried with the bread at the same time.
What is one food or flavour you cannot stand?
There is very little I won’t eat or drink, but I’m not a fan of very hoppy beers/IPAs.
Hangover cure?
Full Irish and lots of tea!
Sweet or savoury?
I love combining both, like popcorn and Maltesers!
Fine dining or pub grub?
I have to say fine dining, I would happily give up several meals out for the chance to go fine dining.
Favourite restaurant in Ireland?
Such a hard question, can I pick two? Kai in Galway and Locks in Dublin.
Best coffee in Ireland?
I would have to say Clement & Pekoe on South William Street.
Go-to beverage accompaniment?
I like a chilled glass of Riesling.
What are your thoughts on the Irish foodie scene?
I think the food scene is thriving in Ireland and I am so happy to see many more cultures and nationalities being represented, such as Bahay for Philippine-inspired food and Alistair ‘JD’ Jeje for his blend of Caribbean and West African.
What’s your favourite thing about cooking?
Having recently been diagnosed with ADHD I’ve realised that one of the reasons I love food and cooking is that it helps slow down my mind and makes me focus.
What does food — sitting down to a meal with friends, mindfully preparing a meal, nourishment, etc — mean to you?
I firmly believe that one of the most generous things you can do is cook for someone. It’s a labour of love, the joy of giving and the opportunity to sit, eat and share time with that person or people.
Food for thought — Is there room for improvement within the Irish food/restaurant/hospitality scene?
There is always room for improvement. We all need to support each other and promote each other as much as possible. It’s not an easy game to be in at the moment, keep an eye on your friends and colleagues.
Chef’s kiss — Tell us about one standout foodie experience you’ve had recently.
It’s actually quite a simple one but I recently had a pizza in Rascals (Inchicore) and it was absolutely perfect. A beautiful blend of sweet hot honey, tomato, pepperoni, cheese, fresh basil and fresh chilli.
Compliments to the chef — Now’s your chance to sing the praises of a talented chef, beloved restaurant or particularly talented foodie family member.
I kind of always have this Top 10 imaginary list of chefs in my head that always keeps changing, currently, there are four women in my top five they are Jess Murphy (Kai), Graine O’Keefe (Mae), Melissa McCabe (Feast) and Aishling Moore (Goldie).
Secret ingredient — What, in your estimation, makes the perfect dining experience?
Irish sea salt, Irish dairy (butter, cheese and cream), Irish meat, and Irish hospitality.
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