Stepping out from the Kitchen and into the Restaurant to celebrate his 25th anniversary at Chewton Glen, Executive Head Chef Luke Matthews was the guest of honour at a fabulous dinner hosted by Andrew Stembridge, Executive Director of Iconic Luxury Hotels & Managing Director of Chewton Glen, to mark a quarter of a century of culinary history at this award-winning luxury hotel.

Luke, who was part of the winning team that won this year's accolade of England's “AA Hotel of the Year”, welcomed the AA's Managing Director Simon Numphud to the dinner, together with Martin & Brigitte Skan, former owners of Chewton Glen; colleagues, friends, suppliers, leading industry contacts and valued hotel guests, all who have been part of Luke's 25 years of culinary endeavour at Chewton Glen. Also joining Luke and invited guests was his former mentor and great friend Pierre Chevillard, who Luke succeeded in the role of Executive Head Chef at Chewton Glen in 2003 and Luke's wife Claire Matthews, also a former Chewton Glen team member.

Commenting on his 25th Anniversary, Luke said: “I am thrilled and extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to be at the helm of the kitchen brigade at Chewton Glen. To have cooked for royalty, movie stars, sporting heroes and remarkable public figures has been an incredible experience and I genuinely feel very proud to be part of the history of this great hotel, which has for well over 50 years been delighting guests with its tradition of excellent service and world-class hospitality.”

Joining Chewton Glen in 1993 Luke's journey started with an opportune school work experience placement at the hotel when the seeds of his culinary career were sown. He then spent time working in the Channel Islands, Oxfordshire and, in the home of French gastronomy, Provence, before returning to Chewton Glen. Luke's' recent culinary projects have included the creation of Chewton Glen's cookery school and informal restaurant 'The Kitchen'; working with Estate Manager Darren Venables to develop a fabulous walled Kitchen Garden, Nursery and Heritage Orchard, which produces a vast array of ingredients for the hotels' own kitchens; developing relaxed dining concepts for the award-winning Treehouse Suites and introducing a fun element to al fresco dining with the installation of the pizza oven in the Walled Garden.

Luke is a leading advocate of training and is a member of the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts, fully supporting its Specialised Chefs Scholarship scheme for the last 25 years. His educational and training work with local schools and colleges is a shining example for the industry as a whole. Luke makes regular appearances at cookery demonstrations and exhibitions and has appeared on the BBC's popular 'Saturday Morning Breakfast Show' with his good friend and former Chewton Glen colleague, James Martin. However, Luke generally avoids the limelight, preferring instead to share his skills and knowledge with the rising stars of his kitchen brigade. He is immensely proud of their success, as their careers develop and they go on to run their own establishments. His latest star pupil is Luke Phillips, who delighted TV audiences recently on BBC's television series 'MasterChef: The Professionals' and who, this week, took over the helm as Head Chef of London's Hans' Bar & Grill, part of the Iconic family of hotels and restaurants.

For further information please contact:

Angela Day                                                                                       Emma Hartland-Mahon                    

Head of Public Relations                                                                     Director 

Iconic Luxury Hotels                                                                          J Public Relations  

Telephone:  01304 617755                                                                 Mobile: 07921 124668 

Mobile:  07785 619294                                                                      Telephone: 0203 890 5858

E-mail:angela@iconicluxuryhotels.com                                                E-mail: iconic@jpublicrelations.com

www.chewtonglen.com   www.iconicluxuryhotels.com

Editor's Note:

Chewton Glen is a five-red star privately-owned luxury country house hotel, located on the edge of the ancient New Forest National Park in Hampshire and just a few minutes' walk from the sea. Featuring an award-winning restaurant, world-class spa and leisure activities, luxurious accommodation and modern meeting facilities, the hotel has 72 individually designed bedrooms and suites including 14 tree-house suites, a nine-hole par three golf course, croquet lawn, indoor and outdoor tennis courts and a spa which has been voted the best in Europe and a purpose-built cookery school, bakery and informal restaurant opened in association with James Martin.

Chewton Glen is a member of Iconic Luxury Hotels, a collection of England's finest iconic hotels which also includes Cliveden House in Berkshire, 11 Cadogan Gardens in the heart of Chelsea, and The Lygon Arms in the Cotswolds. Each property has its own character but they share a common commitment to delivering outstanding experiences.