Isle of Wight Seaview Hotel chef on bringing back nostalgia

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The chef at a popular Isle of Wight hotel is adapting the menu to appeal to locals, while maintaining its renowned quality.

Mark Wyatt, head chef at The Seaview Hotel on High Street, Seaview, is bringing back nostalgia to the hotel's food.

The kitchen, which has maintained two AA Rosettes, has produced a new menu.

Mark cut his teeth in North Yorkshire, before a three year tenure at The Savoy Hotel in London, and has now been at The Seaview Hotel as head chef for four years.

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He said: "We're offering one of the best fish and chips on the Island. 

"Food is about taking people on a journey to your childhood, so we serve scraps and we make chip shop curry sauces.

"We try to bring back a bit of nostalgia."

Mark is keen to shatter the perception of the Seaview Hotel being for holidaymakers or just for fine dining - the hotel's kitchen caters for Isle of Wight residents, running daily specials.

The team - made up of four chefs, plus a pastry chef and two trainees.

They work hard, but crucially maintain a work life balance. Mark is mindful of this when experimenting with new dishes.

He said: "You can't just write a menu - it is very important as a head chef to ensure the team can get it out in volume.

"You have to work within your boundaries - the better everyone gets the bigger your boundaries."

Away from the kitchen, Mark is raising a young family, and bringing his food expertise back home - emphasising eating cleanly, and growing his own fruit and vegetables, including strawberries, raspberries and cucumbers.

He identifies Farmhouse Fayre on St James Street in Newport as a favourite shop of his.

The Seaview Hotel is offering something for everyone - and they are keen to shake any image of exclusivity off.

He said: "The team we have in the kitchen at the minute are really enthusiastic.

"We're open for the local people on the Isle of Wight."

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