Alumni Professional Cookery student, Luke Johnson is now Head Chef at 5* restaurant with rooms, Quite Simply French.

The Lancaster based restaurant specialises in French and British cuisine and has rave reviews on TripAdvisor.

Luke learnt the classical French way of cooking at the college which set him up for a variety of local roles within the industry where he worked his way up to Sous Chef at Standish’s Ashfield House.

Looking back at his time as a student at college Luke said:

“I enjoyed every aspect of my three years training at the college. I met some really good friends and we are still friends to this day.

“The Tutors who taught me were amazing where I learnt the classical French way to cook. Also, learning front of house was a very important aspect to my career as all the best restaurants work as a team.”

The former Hawkley Hall High School pupil passed on some advice to our current learners about what to expect in the industry and how to apply themselves when looking for future jobs.

He added: “Work somewhere where you feel appreciated, under a good head chef or owner. You will get used to the long hours and stressful days too.

“However, a lot of places are doing four day weeks now so you get a good work life balance. Get as much experience as you can, at different places if possible. If you want to take this career seriously, a good attitude and punctuality goes a very long way!”