Office crew

Notwithstanding Ash’s Kiwi accent, right from the off he has fitted into Home Counties. He has just the right mix of humour, gravitas, experience, common sense and unpretentiousness needed to herd the flock of seagulls he has under his wing. He is married to Kiri and they have three young daughters including twins, and he is particularly fond of being taken for an Australian.

Richard has been on the scene for as long as anyone can remember, and has seen many changes over the years, so he is the font of all knowledge and knows all the wrinkles. He has boundless energy and bounces around spreading wit and wisdom. Richard is renowned for having the most extensive collection of colourful socks in the UK - and as King Lear said, “Ye may judge a man by his socks..” (No he didn’t – ed)

Tom came to us from eight years in Edinburgh with Malmaison, but before that he spent time cheffing in America. His family home is near the Fox and he's been a customer for many years, little suspecting he'd end up in the fold. Tom's got a curious elbow that bends the wrong way, which he's justifiably very proud of.

Martha holds the key to all things, and is the general factotum for Home Counties (a general factotum is defined as a person having many diverse activities or responsibilities. The word derives from the Latin command fac totum ("do/make everything"), which describes Martha to a ‘T’). Before Home Counties Martha worked in a pub for four years while studying, both behind the bar and in the kitchen. She likes to cook but likes to go out and have someone do the cooking even more, while she relaxes with a nice pint of beer.

Has been with us since 1995 and started out working in the pubs – in fact at some point at some point or another she has managed 10 Home Counties pubs before crossing over to the dark side. She enjoys eating out and drinking cider, beer and fine wine, though not all at the same time. She has three grown up children who have all been sensible and chosen careers outside of the hospitality industry.

Alison, like Richard Knowles, has been on board for over 20 years, originally when there were but a few Blubeckers restaurants even before they came under The Restaurant Group’s wing. She herself used to work in the restaurants before honing her skills in HR. Alison is no stranger to accessorizing, and apparently is most admired for her ‘layering’ talents. She has two rescue dogs, which she’s nicknamed the ASBOs as they both have ‘issues’: one with men, the other with women- it all sounds very complicated. Alison has a holiday house in Poitiers in France, where she retreats to work on her tan and stock up on her collection of beads, scarves, belts, shoes, bags, wraps….oh, and wine.

There are many characters around and about who have been involved for decades, and Andrea is one of them. Andrea is the Mrs Beeton of Home Counties – she’s a dab hand at vinegars, chutneys, jams and baking, and enjoys nothing as much as ‘batch cooking’, which basically means food production in industrial quantities. Interestingly, she has been rendered concussed on two occasions, once by a boat, and once by a fridge freezer.

Lorna wears many hats in the office, as she looks after a hard working team of 22 souls who between them process over 7,000 invoices a week. Which is why, when on holiday, she very much enjoys a nice glass of Champagne.

Florence is now considered a part of the fixtures and fittings, having been mining away in accounts for over 25 years, where she started shortly after her arrival from Sri Lanka. She loves cooking and going out, her favourite dish being curry and rice. She would like to go on lots of holidays but Lorna won’t let her.

Fidelis knows his way around his books, having worked for The Restaurant Group for over 20 years. He enjoys all sorts of sports including golf, squash and hockey, and is no stranger to a sport-related black eye. He was the youngest player to represent his town in the National Hockey League, but he has a lot to live up too – his wife’s uncle played hockey for Kenya in four Olympic games!

Agnes joined us from Deep Pan Pizza and has been working here since 2006. She likes to tuck into king prawns and a nice bit of sea bass, and swims to make up for it. She enjoys nothing better on a sunny day than sitting in the garden with a good book, in the company of her three cats, Daisy, Billy and Gizmo.

After a number of years in various accounts positions, Darshini took the plunge and joined us in 2006. She likes travelling, watching TV and reading.

Leila’s real name is Neda, but somehow it became transmuted over the years. She hails from exotic Persia and has been with The Restaurant Group since 2001 where she started to work after completing her studies. She enjoys reading a good book, and shopping. Her favourite dish is a nice steak and chips washed down with a cold carrot juice.