Restaurateur Of The Year At The Cateys

The Cateys are the big night of the British hospitality trade. In 2018 the award for independent Restaurateur of the Year went to Richard Corrigan^[1].

The Caterer's citation read like a career summary. A star at Fulham Road in 1994. Another at Lindsay House in 1997. Bentley's in 2005. Corrigan's Mayfair in 2008. And an Irish country estate in 2013^[1][3].

Slow And Steady

His way of growing is unusual in London. He told The Caterer that he opens a new restaurant about every five years^[2]. He pays off the debt first, then moves on^[2]. He does not want a formula group with the same room in every street.

That patience impressed the judges. So did his reach. He has cooked for the Queen and at the White House^[1]. He is an ambassador for the Slow Food movement and helped get the Slow Food Chefs' Alliance in the UK off the ground with his own money^[1].

A Family Business

The award also came as the next generation stepped in. His son Richie had run Corrigan's Mayfair, his daughter Jess worked in the business from the age of 16, and his sister Deirdre runs the weddings in Cavan^[1][2].

Television kept his face familiar. He was a regular on the BBC's Great British Menu, where he won four times for Northern Ireland before returning as a mentor and judge^[1][3].

There was more to celebrate in Cavan, where the estate had added twelve shepherd's huts for guests and was working towards self-sufficiency^[1].

By 2018 his career had already lasted almost four decades. The Caterer described a chef who had worked his way up the ladder over 38 years, from a teenage cook to the owner of a group^[1].

The Cateys honour people who build things that last. In Corrigan's case, that meant a group of restaurants with real history, run by a chef who still talks first about farmers, fish and flavour^[1][2].