Meet the Executive Chef at Venus – Nick Warnes

A warm greeting and a broad smile lets me know I’m in for an engaging chat with Nick Warnes, one of Venus’s many long-standing team members. A sense of humour is key to Nick’s work ethic: “We’re like an extended family at Venus. We spend a lot of time together, so I think it’s important to have fun and a giggle,” he grins.

Nick joined Venus in 2017. “I have always lived in Devon, and I have a chef’s background, working in various kitchens. There are a maximum of three chefs in every café kitchen. I travel around all our sites, training staff and developing menus. I was closely involved with the opening of our new café in Teignmouth, getting to know the staff and how they operate, as well as teaching them how we do things,” Nick explains.

We are familiar with the quality of food served at these restaurants and the sustainable message which is at the forefront of what the Venus family does. But how this is achieved is perhaps less well known. The process begins in the Venus kitchens at Halwell. “Our menus are created in Halwell, where we make almost everything. We then distribute the food across our sites – the same menus are available in all our cafés. From creating sauces and marmalades, to poaching chicken and making our hugely popular cakes, our products are all handmade using quality ingredients in classic recipes with our special twist,” Nick continues.

Homemade garlic slaw, Asian salad, arancini, traybakes, hummus and falafel are all made in small batches, to the exacting standards expected at Venus. Meat and dairy are bought from English (mainly West Country) suppliers. When I politely enquire further about any recipes he’d like to share, that glimmer in Nick’s eye returns: “Top secret,” he declares!

The Halwell operation could not run as smoothly as it does without a brilliant team – Mary Barnett is the backer and Richard Goss is the manager. “Mary and Richard make my job a lot easier. Louisa, our co-founder, is also fundamental to the whole operation and recipe development. Louisa initially set up Hallwell and many of the recipes before passing the baton to me, and she remains focussed on food quality and ingredients. Together with Pete, our warehouse manager, and Kris, it’s like working with an extended family,” Nick enthuses.

Furthermore, operating from a central hub saves around 250,000 food miles per year. In fact, sustainability is central to the café’s ethos. Venus was the first in the UK to adopt fully home-compostable palm plates, hot cups and lids, cake wrappers, cling film and cleaning materials.

A typical day could see Nick starting at Halwell and then, by midday, working at the Bigbury site. “I love the variety. I never know what I’m stepping into – for example, I might help troubleshoot if we have any absences, or deal with problems in the kitchen. I could even work front of house if required.”

“I would sum up Venus’s style as ‘simple, tasty wholesome  food, done consistently well’. We are all about flavour and proud to have sustainability at the heart of our operations,” concludes Nick.