Simon Boyle

Simon Boyle (born May 27, 1972) is a British chef, social entrepreneur, author and humanitarian.

He is best know for being the Chef Founder of social enterprise restaurant The Brigade in central London and for being the founder of charity Beyond Food Foundation which runs regular training programmes and provides apprenticeships to help the homeless find employment and develop new skills. So far over 1,000 homeless people have been supported and over 100 as at 03/09/16 have been employed full time at The Brigade.

In 2016, Boyle was named as one of the most influential people in London by The Evening Standard’s Progress 1000 for his charitable work.^[1] Boyle’s work was recognized by The Craft Guild of Chefs, and he received the People’s Choice Award in 2013.^[2]

Early life and education

Boyle was born in Glasgow, Scotland to Carol and Edward Boyle. He has two brothers, Nick and David Boyle and was educated at St Teresa’s Primary School, Lancashire and later at Emmbrook School, Berkshire.

At the age of 16, he began training as an apprentice chef at The Savoy Hotel, studying at the Academy of Culinary Arts and Bournemouth and Poole College, receiving a Specialised Chef 4 year diploma.

Career

First positions

Boyle began working at The Savoy Hotel under Anton Edelmann, from 1989 – 1991. There, he learnt the skills and techniques of professional cookery.

While working at the Chewton Glen in Hampshire between 1991-1993 his team gained a Michelin star.

Between 1993 - 1995, Boyle worked as a Sous Chef at the prestigious Bell Inn Aston Clinton and The Dormy House Hotel, Broadway. In 1995, he took to the seas for two years, working on board Oriana, a brand new P&O superliner.

Boyle landed his first executive chef role on the 5* Minerva cruise ship in 1997, catering for British aristocracy. Two years later, he started cooking for a leading Saudi Prince in Riyadh. He then went on to manage the prestigious Mosimann's Academy for world famous chef and restaurateur Anton Mosimann in 2000.

In 2002, he became the first ever Culinary Ambassador for Unilever. During this time, Boyle started to work on his own business ventures, which eventually became Beyond Food and Brigade. This took off in 2005 and he continued to be Unilever’s Ambassador until 2008.

Beyond Food

After volunteering in Sri Lanka in the wake of the tsunami in 2004, Boyle wanted to continue to help others within his own community. From there, Beyond Food was born.

Beyond Food offers vulnerable people the chance to move away from homelessness and learn new skills to find employment. The former charity, - now a Community Interest Company – run a series of programmes, all designed and implemented by Boyle. Freshlife and Get Stuck In run 3 week motivational workshops for homeless people, promoting wellbeing, passion for food and meaningful employment. Out Front is a traineeship for vulnerable people seeking to find employment in the Hospitality sector specifically front of house service delivery. United Kitchen is a fully certified apprenticeship programme, where apprentices study towards an NVQ Level 2 Diploma in Professional Cookery. They also receive personal mentoring and career coaching, and gain work experience with some of London’s most prestigious hotels, restaurants and caterers.

Boyle appeared on Dragons Den in September 2008 to ask for funding for Beyond Food. On his appearance, Boyle said “I went on Dragons Den…I didn’t get any money, but I got a lot of love for what I did.” In July 2009 the Beyond Boyle Foundation obtained £60,000 funding from the Spark Challenge.^[3][4]

Beyond Chocolate

In 2010, Boyle partnered with Waitrose selling Beyond Chocolate – offering homeless people a chance to gain skills in food production and factory work. Between 2010 – 2012, 250,000 boxes were sold.

Brigade

In 2010, Boyle partnered with PwC, De Vere Venues and the Homes and Communities Agency to bring Beyond Food’s apprenticeship scheme to a restaurant: Brigade Bar & Bistroon Tooley Street, London. Apprentices receive on-the-job training in its kitchens. Brigade serves seasonal, British inspired cuisine and has several function rooms, private dining menus and a cook school. It is a 2-star member of the Sustainable Restaurant Association. Since opening in 2011, Brigade has been awarded various industry awards and recognition for its food, service and social impact. In 2016, Brigade won OpenTable Diners' Choice.

Stirring Creativity

In 2012, Boyle set up his own creativity consultancy business, which offers culinary brand building, product development and workshops. Stirring Creativity has worked with high profile clients including Unilever, Colmans, Knorr, Heinz, Jordans, Hilton, Aqua Fresh, Elephant Tea, Carte D’Dor and Pizza Express.

Recent events and ME'N'U

In 2015, Boyle joined the editorial board of Chef Magazine.

In 2016, Boyle founded ME’N’U – a social investment food brand. A portion of the profits are allocated to the Eat Well Give Well fund, which supports people and organisations who are tackling social exclusion. Products from the ME’N’U range include artisanal popcorn, home baked cookies and craft beer.

Accolades

Boyle’s work was recognized by The Craft Guild of Chefs, and he received the People’s Choice Award in 2013.^[2]

In 2014, Boyle was honored by Le Club des Chef des Chef for his work in the hospitality industry. He received an honorary diploma at The Dorchester hotel.

In 2016, Boyle was named as one of the most influential people in London by The Evening Standard’s Progress 1000 for his charitable work.^[1]

Publishing history

Personal life

Boyle has two children, one with his first wife Elizabeth, and one with his late wife Annette Louise Boyle (24/04/74 – 06/04/2013). Annette gave up modeling in order to assist him in helping the homeless and eventually began managing the business full time as Operations Director. Annette lost her 18 month battle with lung cancer in April 2013. Boyle lives in Surrey with his son, Joseph. He is in a relationship with Tracey Bellini.

References

External links

• The Brigade
• Beyond Food Foundation