A Tribute

I didn’t have a clue who Adrian Gill was when I first met him in 1997. I had just started at The Ivy, as a buck waiter fresh off the boat from Hendon (north London for those of you in the dark).

I wasn’t allowed to serve him until my training finished, but he was spoken about in awe by my colleagues and I used to watch him from afar in the restaurant.

At that time, he had just finished writing The Ivy Book, in conjunction with Nicola Formby, his partner and he was of course the Sunday Times restaurant critic. A constant smoker and drinker of black coffee, I would change his ashtray time after time over that first year. He always had a smile and a quip, never rude, he always asked questions of me and I found him fascinating.

As with many others, I always did first turn to his restaurant review on a Sunday morning. Remember those days we used to go out and buy the paper? There was a frisson of excitement and sense of anticipation as I used to go to the shop. I was young and foolish then, hence I used to enjoy his destruction of places, not for their failure, merely for his use of language. Since having been on the receiving end of one of these, I can tell you it hurt; although watching friends and loved ones’ reactions to a stinging review hurt even more. Experienced heads explained that every review teaches you something and upon re-reading, I learned. I was also lucky enough to be name checked in a positive review which made me quietly beam at the time.

As frustrated as he used to make me feel, I maintained my respect for him even when disagreeing with his point of view.

We have lost a master scribe and commentator. Whether you agreed or not with his views on restaurants or the restaurant scene, he was opinionated and passionate.

I was honoured to have known him and my thoughts are with his family and friends.