{"podcast":{"title":"The Go To Food Podcast","slug":"the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885","podcast_index_feed_id":6768885,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/67cb0e5722c74795c356299d","website_url":"https://audioboom.com/channels/5124710-the-go-to-food-podcast","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/67cb0e5722c74795c356299d/1748525611564-07069aa5-9f7c-418e-bee0-60faf857314c.jpeg","author":"Go To Podcast Company","episode_count":230,"summary":"The Go-To Food Podcast is where the world’s most influential chefs, restaurateurs, food writers and critics share the stories behind their craft. Hosted by award-winning presenter Freddy Clode and chef and food writer Ben Benton, this weekly show dives deep into the experiences, inspirations, and “Go-To” favourites that define a life in food. From hidden gems to the restaurants they return to time and again, each episode serves up intrigue, insight, and the untold moments that shaped their journey. With food and drink inspired by their stories, expect stories from the food world, insider knowledge, and a true celebration of food culture at its finest. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-09T14:18:00.572066+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885"},"episode":{"title":"Part 1 - Raymond Blanc - From Getting Brutally Exiled From France To Winning 2 Michelin Stars At Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons","slug":"part-1-raymond-blanc-from-getting-brutally-exiled-from-france-to-winning-2-michelin-stars-at-le-manoir-aux-quat-saisons","published_at":"2026-04-16T04:15:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885/part-1-raymond-blanc-from-getting-brutally-exiled-from-france-to-winning-2-michelin-stars-at-le-manoir-aux-quat-saisons","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885","url":"https://shows.acast.com/the-go-to-food-podcast/episodes/part-1-raymond-blanc-from-getting-brutally-exiled-from-franc","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/67cb0e5722c74795c356299d/e/69df729559baa7e2288cb121/media.mp3","summary":"Few chefs in the world can match the Michelin legacy of Raymond Blanc. With over 40 years of continuous Michelin-starred excellence at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, he stands among the most consistent and influential figures in global gastronomy. Yet, as he reveals in this episode, he never chased stars—only excellence. The stars, he insists, were always a by-product. From the electric moment he was told mid-service that he’d earned his second star, to his conscious decision to walk away from a Michelin star at his first brasserie concept because it didn’t align with his vision, Blanc’s relationship with the guide is anything but conventional. Behind those accolades lies a story that is equal parts grit, instinct and extraordinary luck. Blanc takes us back to his early life in France—hunting, foraging and selling wild ingredients as a teenager before stumbling into his first transformative restaurant experience. From there, his path is anything but linear: training as a nurse, talking his way into a restaurant job by boldly claiming he’d become the best chef in the world, and starting at the very bottom as a cleaner. He recounts learning wine from leftover glasses, studying cookery books obsessively at night, and enduring the brutal realities of old-school kitchens—including the moment a chef smashed a pan into his face, ultimately pushing him to leave France and start over in England. What follows is a series of almost unbelievable turning points. Arriving in Britain to what he describes as a “frightening” food scene, Blanc quickly found himself cooking after a disastrous kitchen vacancy—despite never formally training as a chef. He shares vivid, often hilarious stories: witnessing chefs mixing trifle with their bare hands, opening his first Oxford restaurant in the eco…","meta_description":"Few chefs in the world can match the Michelin legacy of Raymond Blanc. With over 40 years of continuous Michelin-starred excellence at Le Manoir aux Quat’…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3132,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885/episodes/part-1-raymond-blanc-from-getting-brutally-exiled-from-france-to-winning-2-michelin-stars-at-le-manoir-aux-quat-saisons/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-go-to-food-podcast-6768885/part-1-raymond-blanc-from-getting-brutally-exiled-from-france-to-winning-2-michelin-stars-at-le-manoir-aux-quat-saisons.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}