Welcome to our newest Chef of the Week – Chef Matt Budden! This incredibly talented chef has over 20 years of experience being a chef! Over that time, this chef has picked up quite a few tips and tricks, as can be seen by the amazing dishes that he creates! Chef Matt was born in Bournemouth, on the south coast of the UK. From there, Chef Matt has lived and travelled all over the world!! He has been a chef in Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam and more! You can see from his dishes, that he has acquired many talents from working in these different locations.
Since Chef Matt grew up along the coast, and has mainly lived along the coast, he has always had access to the freshest seafood. He has used this high quality of seafood to help him create some very impressive, and delicious, dishes! When we asked Chef Matt why he enjoys being a chef, he told us, “The creativity to express yourself through foods and the challenge that comes with the learning process – we never stop learning as cooks.” Chef Matt started this learning journey at a very young age. Growing up, his grandmother was always cooking up something delicious in the kitchen with the fresh produce from his grandfather’s garden. We bet she created some delicious dishes!
In his free time outside of the kitchen, Chef Matt both plays, and coaches rugby! He helps to coach his son’s rugby team and says that he loves the inclusivity, the team bonding, and the ability to work for each other. The most important reason Chef Matt enjoys rugby is the respect that comes from being part of a dynamic team!
Perhaps one of the most important things about Chef Matt is that he is an ambassador for an organization called The Burnt Chef Project @theburntchefproject. This is an extremely important group that focuses on the mental health of chefs. Mental health is an important topic, especially when it comes to being a chef with the constant pressure and stress. Chef Matt helps other chefs to make sure that they get the help that they need.
As you can see, Chef Matt has done an incredible job with not only his career as a chef and an ambassador, but in his home life at well. We are extremely grateful for Chef Matt being our newest chef of the week! Don’t forget to check out @theburntchefproject and @chefmattbudden 👨🍳
Thank you for sharing this amazing experience with us!
Excellent work chef! Keep it up!
I love that you help out with The Burnt Chef Project! Mental health is such an important aspect of being a chef, and sadly it is not one that is talked about often. There is a constant pressure that we are under, and that can cause a high burnout rate. Thank you for all the work you do!
I love the plating of your dishes, nice combination of colors. Also, rugby is the best!
Congrats chef! Very impressive work – also that is amazing you are an ambassador for The Burnt Chef Project!