Food at Westergate House Care Home
Meet our Head Chef, Chris Gray Grana Priego
I live locally to Chichester and I joined the team at Westergate House as Head Chef in 2021. I qualified as a chef in 1992 and served in the Royal Navy for 24 years, both in service and as a head chef. After leaving the Navy, I had an amazing experience of being able to take part in ‘MasterChef: The Professionals’ and reached the quarter finals.
I have also cooked for several members of the Royal Family, including the Queen, Prince Philip on his 90th birthday and the Countess of Wessex.
My role is to provide a nutritionally balanced diet to our residents, with the odd sneaky treat thrown in. I enjoy planning menus catered around the residents’ favourite dishes, as well as trialling new and exciting dishes from around the world. I source and use fresh ingredients to prepare delicious, nutritionally balanced meals throughout the day for the various needs of the residents in our care.
Food and Nutrition at our home
Our dishes here are constantly evolving, and take into account the desires of those we support, integrating seasonality into everything we prepare. Food and nutrition are at the heart of the home, so it is important that residents can enjoy a balanced diet that caters to individual dietary requirements. Whether people want to try something new and exciting, or just enjoy an old favourite, there is something for everyone on our menu. Please see below for more information:
Dietary requirements
For residents who have difficulties swallowing, we modify the menu of the day so that the dishes are more palatable for them. To support our chefs in producing these dishes, our hospitality team and our Chef Academy organise theory and practical workshops. The chefs work with the chef trainer to prepare tasty, modified meals safely and according to IDDSI frame work. This encourages residents to eat and enjoy their food. All our chefs have been trained in IDDSI food descriptors.
Attracting top chefs
Our chefs are recruited on the basis of an interview with the regional hospitality support team and the manager of the home. Selection also involves a practical element, where potential chefs are asked to cook for and meet a panel of people living in the home. Chefs take their job extremely seriously and the annual Barchester Chef Competition sees our chefs battle it out in regional heats and then at a national final for the accolade of 'Barchester's Chef of the Year'.
