Starry-Eyed?

[cabrales]

Chef Blumenthal -- Thanks for your efforts to date in participating in this Q&A.

If you are comfortable discussing it (and I appreciate this may be a sensitive topic), could you discuss whether your dream is to ultimately obtain a third Michelin star? Is a third star, in your assessment, something that one could pin one's goals on, given the unpredictable nature of certain determinations that might be made by Michelin?

Separately, do you believe the standards for achieving three-star status are different outside of France than within?

[Heston Blumenthal]

Hello Cabrales,

I wold be lying to say that it was not an ambition to obtain a third Michelin star.

It is however, not the driving force for me. If it were then I agree with your point about the guide being unpredictable and would be cooking food that was far "safer" and appealed to a much wider audience.

I have come this far though and have obviously taken a fair amount of flack in the past for various aspects of what I do, that to change now is just not an option. After all, I love it as I am learning so much each week. The more I learn, the more I realise I don't know.

We also have a problem that the building we are in is not sufficient for us any more. We need more space, a bit of land, somewhere to have a drink before and after the meal and a lot more kitchen space.

We have so much more to achieve in terms of the food and I hope that, with that will come other things but all in good time. I am not going to pin my hopes on it as I may either become disappointed, or try to figure the guide out and adapt my cooking accordingly. Not only would this probably not make any difference but is also wrong. The guide is for the customer and not the restaurant and should not be responsible for influencing the way that people cook.

The develpopement of the food is definatley being held back.

I would have said that a couple of years ago, the standards for achieving a third star in France were loaded on to the grandeur and sevice but in the last couple of years, things have changed so much that now I don't know.

I think that any guide on earth is going to cause strong feeling as to who it does and does not award ratings to.