Chris Wheeler, the previous executive chef on the five-AA-red-star Stoke Park Country Club, Spa & Hotel in Buckinghamshire, has died.
In an interview with The Caterer in 2010, the chef confessed he had grown up desirous to be a zoo-keeper, however after a nine-month catering work placement in France, his thoughts was modified and he couldn’t shake off the idea of becoming a chef.
The information of his sudden demise was confirmed by the Hurlingham Club in London’s Fulham, the place Wheeler has been executive chef since January 2025.
After ending school, he went to work with famend French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli at Le Provence in Lyminton, Hampshire, the place he was later supplied the function of head chef aged simply 20.
Though he turned this job provide all the way down to work as a pastry chef at a Surrey lodge, he was later reunited with Novelli on the Four Seasons lodge in London’s Mayfair, which was subsequently awarded 5 AA rosettes.
He supported the rising restaurant empire as operations supervisor and group head chef and was additionally concerned in opening Maison Novelli in London’s Clerkenwell in 1996.
Wheeler stayed with Novelli till the collapse of the Novelli Restaurants within the early Noughties, having re-mortgaged his home in an try to save lots of the enterprise.
In 2003, Wheeler joined Stoke Park Country Club, Spa & Hotel as executive chef. During his time there, he baked the cake that starred within the 2004 Daniel Craig movie Layer Cake and in 2006 ran the London Marathon whereas dressed as a chef, flipping a pancake for your entire race, ending in six hours and 50 minutes.
At the 2016 Hotel Cateys, he was awarded Chef of the Year (over 250 covers) in recognition of his “immense leadership qualities”, the identical yr he appeared on Great British Menu, serving up a sequence of extremely inventive dishes, together with a foremost known as ‘The Ashes Over and Down Under’, full with an edible cricket pitch.
In 2018, he printed his debut cookbook, wanting again on his 12 years with Jean-Christophe Novelli and his 16 years at Stoke Park.
Prior to becoming a member of the Hurlingham Club, he was chef-patron on the Crown Inn at Burnham Beeches in Slough.
Hospitality pays tribute
The trade has paid tribute to Wheeler, who’s remembered for his ardour and dedication to hospitality.
Jean-Christophe Novelli instructed The Caterer: “It is with the heaviest of hearts that I say goodbye to my pricey pal, Chris Wheeler. His loss is a devastating blow to the trade and to humanity. Chris was a unprecedented chef, however much more extraordinary as a person – heat, beneficiant, regular and endlessly sort. In the kitchen he moved with grace and precision; past the move he carried a gentleness and humour that made everybody round him higher. That is how I’ll all the time bear in mind him. I’ve labored with many outstanding folks, however with out Chris I really don’t know the place I’d be at present. He was a pal, my little brother from one other mom, a pacesetter and the right gentleman. Always calm underneath stress, fiercely loyal, the last word skilled – and in all our years collectively, we by no means had a crossed phrase.
“I invited Chris to return and work for me when he was a 16 yr outdated school scholar. For greater than 30 years he has been greater than a pal to me, he was my rock – however even stronger than that, he was extra like a mountain of titanium. I used to be all the time so proud to see him benefit from the success he deserved and I’ll miss him without end.
“My thoughts are with Simona and the girls and with everyone who had the privilege of knowing him. May we honour his memory by cooking with the same passion, humility, and love that he brought to every single day. Rest peacefully, my friend.”
Chris Wheeler (left) with Jean-Christophe Novelli. Courtesy Jean-Christophe Novelli
Restaurateur Sam Harrison, who’s behind Sam’s Riverside in London’s Hammersmith, mentioned: “I only got to know Chris fairly recently, through the Hurlingham Club., but I greatly enjoyed getting to know him, talking plans for the club, restaurants in general and enjoying his food. I thought he was an exceptional chef and also a very kind and generous person. He always wanted to know how my business was and talk about our most popular dishes and what and wasn’t working for us. I was shocked and saddened to read this news and know he will be hugely missed. My thoughts go out to his family and also everyone at the Hurlingham Club.”
Chris Prow, previously executive chef on the Capital lodge Knightsbridge, mentioned in a submit on Instagram: “Still making an attempt to get head across the information about chef Chris Wheeler — the Ginger Chef. We crossed paths in London kitchens and once more at Boodles Week, and these recollections really feel much more valuable at present. I can’t discover a single photograph from again within the day, however I’ll all the time treasure the guide he despatched me… a small reminder of the kindness and generosity he carried with him.
“My thoughts are with his wife and his two daughters at this heartbreaking time. Rest easy, chef. Your spirit, your laugh, and your love for the craft will be remembered by so many.”
Please ship your tributes to Chris Wheeler to jungmin.seo@thecaterer.com
