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Shanks Restaurant

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Robbie Millar, Michelin starred Chef/Patron of Shanks in Bangor, Northern Ireland, was killed at 2.50am this morning when he lost control of his Maserati in the Craigantlet Hills. No other vehicles involved.

Having known Robbie for years and being a regular at Shanks and having only just seen him last week, my heartfelt condolences go out to his wife Shirley and his family.

At 38 years of age, he leaves behind him three beautiful children.

Words escape me

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Andy Lynes

Andy Lynes

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Here's the news report at Ireland online. This is shocking news. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to spend an evening in the Shanks kitchen a couple of years ago to watch a service. The atmoshpere was very up and relaxed (although busy like any good restaurant kitchen), and my impression was that Millar was much liked and respected by his brigade. He had just returned from a trip to Provance and had overhauled the menu to reflect the ideas he had gathered there. He seemed very excited and fired up and the food was just terrific. I know from spending time in the old Roscoff kitchen that he was highly regarded by his former collegues there both as a cook and man and I'm sure he is going to be missed terribly.
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nicook

nicook

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I'd worked at shanks for the last three years and robbie was a great friend and mentor. It's absolutly gutting for the whole brigade and every single person connected with shanks. he will be sorely missed.

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nicook

nicook

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Please expand?

To be honest, i think it's too soon for the caterer to be publishing a massive " Robbie will be a great loss" Article,

maybe next week. Anyway, fair play to Nigel haworth, who made it to the funeral. We had a good chat, and some thing along the line's of a Robbie tribute will be on the card's.

Hopefully a few E gulleter's will get involved.

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kerriar

kerriar

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There's a well written and informed obituary in yesterday's Irish Times which can read at

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/obituarie...OBITMILLER.html

As is the usual practice in the Irish Times, this is anonymous but the author seems to have known and liked Robbie. It ends with a heart-breaking reference to the recurring tragedy that has been visited on his wife Shirley.

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KaffirLime

KaffirLime

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This weeks Restaurant Magazine carries a perfunctory 90 word news item on Robbie's death which makes it particularly shameful that they decided to continue to carry the recruitment advert for sous, pastry and chef de partie in the same issue asking interested parties to contact Robbie at the restaurant. I'm led to believe that the restaurant probably won't re-open so the least we can hope is that his wife Shirley won't be billed for the ad. I'm assuming she wasn't contacted but even if she did want the ad to run I can't imagine she wanted Robbie's name to appear on the bottom of it. Was the ad rep's commission to important to lose?

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This weeks Restaurant Magazine carries a perfunctory 90 word news item on Robbie's death which makes it particularly shameful that they decided to continue to carry the recruitment advert for sous, pastry and chef de partie in the same issue asking interested parties to contact Robbie at the restaurant. I'm led to believe that the restaurant probably won't re-open so the least we can hope is that his wife Shirley won't be billed for the ad. I'm assuming she wasn't contacted but even if she did want the ad to run I can't imagine she wanted Robbie's name to appear on the bottom of it. Was the ad rep's commission to important to lose?

A little disappointed at the brief news item in Caterer today. I would have thought  Robbie Millar would have warrented a longer piece at the head of the news section.

Gee, I wonder why...

Gee, what's the connection.

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smokinjoe

smokinjoe

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This weeks Restaurant Magazine carries a perfunctory 90 word news item on Robbie's death which makes it particularly shameful that they decided to continue to carry the recruitment advert for sous, pastry and chef de partie in the same issue asking interested parties to contact Robbie at the restaurant. I'm led to believe that the restaurant probably won't re-open so the least we can hope is that his wife Shirley won't be billed for the ad. I'm assuming she wasn't contacted but even if she did want the ad to run I can't imagine she wanted Robbie's name to appear on the bottom of it. Was the ad rep's commission to important to lose?

The implication that Restaurant Magazine has been deliberately insensitive is outrageous. Of course his wife won't be billed for the advert. It's unfortunate that a recruitment ad for Shanks appeared in issue 96. Shanks contacted us to run an ad for a new chef before Robbie's death and the ad was prepared for press, with Robbie as a point of contact, accordingly. News of Robbie's death did not get through to those in recruitment ad department until after the magazine had gone to press.

Robbie's death is a tradegy but that doesn't make your comments any less snide and unnecessary.

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Andy Lynes

Andy Lynes

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Thanks to Joe Warwick, editor of Restaurant magazine, for clarifying the situation. I'm sure that we all appreciate that no one would want to make the situation any harder for Robbie Millar's family and friends than it needs to be.

As a Michelin star chef, Robbie Millar was amongst the elite of his profession worldwide and I know that his loss is deeply felt. I sincerely hope The eGullet Society can contribute in a meaningful way to a tribute to his life and work.

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KaffirLime

KaffirLime

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I think the charge that I was being snide is a little over the top. Don't want to get into a spat over this because at the end of the day it's inappropriate but i've worked in media ad sales for over twenty years and I can assure you if Shanks restaurant was one of my clients I'd have known about the circumstances and pulled the ad - If there was time enough to run a story there was time enough to do that. I accept the plea that the ad was not run deliberately but that just means the rep who sold the ad was ignorant of a fairly tragic circumstance regarding his or her client and whoever it was wouldn't get a job on my paper. Golden rule: know your clients. Call me old fashioned if you will but it's always been my understandiong that one aspect of an Editor's job if to final proof check all the pages and anyone worthy of the position would have spotted the error. Insult me if you like but however you try to call it Restaurant Magazine dropped a bollock.

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  • 3 weeks later...
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Recent news report's suggest Robbie's death was the result of A "tyre blow out". No alcohol was found in his system, And hazardous weather provailed on the night of his death. Still does not make it any easier?

We're lucky not to have the English gutter press tabloid journos here that thrive on gossip, hearsay, mis-information and downright lies. It could have been very messy for Shirley and her family if smalltalk had made it into the papers and accusations of 'drunk in charge', 'driving way too fast' or something similar had been printed. All of it being nonsensical.

He liked to drive. He loved his cars. He drove a Maserati and he died on a stretch of road that's claimed many lives before him. End of.

As Shanks is still closed, any clues as to when or even whether it'll re open? Robbie will be a hard act to follow if and when it does.

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I'm led to believe that Shanks won't be re-opening at all (under the management of Shirley Millar) and that Lindy Guinness is already looking at alternatives. Two 'well known' names have already expressed interest in taking it over apparently. I've seen a few familiar faces from Shanks working elsewhere now and I'm presuming they were all made redundant after the accident.

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