Richard admits he was barely nervous about his Claridge’s creations when he opened, however the seeming success (and social media frenzy that swirled) suggests he has completed extraordinarily effectively certainly: “Everything we’re doing is very kitsch, and I was worried that it wouldn’t be pretty enough. Is it ugly? It’s a bit Wes Anderson, isn’t it? I ate a lot of Belgian buns as a kid but with the white icing and the cherry on top they just look like the 1980s, and I was a little bit nervous about that.” The nostalgic truffles and breads remind him of his grandparents, he tells me, and I need to strive a slice of bread lined “in whatever fat you choose – butter or bacon fat or whatever – and fried either side for a few minutes like a steak,” he insists. “The texture will blow your head off. A piece of bread can be the most gourmet thing you’re ever going to eat.” Great bread, he tells me, “should stop and make you think. I’d been baking for a year and a half in San Francisco when I went to Tartine, and I tried a piece of their bread, and I just couldn’t believe this magical thing that they created. It blew my mind, and I’ve continued to bake over the last 18 years. I feel like I’m developing little nuances. It’s not just baking a loaf of bread anymore.” And, above all, “love is the most important ingredient, isn’t it? And at least, if you make [your own bread], you know what’s going into it. Fermentation is so good for your body.”
Mexico City is now dwelling, and it’s a spot he clearly loves. “Every person you pass on the street is beautiful, and it really shines from inside. It’s a gorgeous city, with so much colour, and there’s something happening around every corner. The produce is amazing, and I’ve never seen so many types of avocados. They even have these little ones with edible skin that tastes a bit like almonds. It’s a living, breathing place, and I’m very into the people of Mexico. They’re beautiful in their soul. I feel like I belong there, but I don’t really know why.” He tells me the finest time to go is in October for Day of the Dead and offers me his prime 5 locations to eat (except for Green Rhino, after all).
