INTERVIEW: Myles Smethurst on Eat Clean Cuisine, catering for Alex Turner and why he is considering The Apprentice

He is known for his business nous despite not looking the conventional part with his stocky build and tattoos and he has helped many reach their health goals through his business.

In both cases he has proved he is not to be underestimated.

The former Bridgewater High student launched the healthy eating takeaway Eat Clean Cuisine in January 2016 and he recently expanded the chain with a branch in Northwich.

And Myles now has plans to open a contemporary British restaurant in Stockton Heath, building on his experience working with the likes of Marco Pierre White, Gary Rhodes, Aiden Byrne and Paul Heathcote.

So Weekend caught up with the businessman and chef to talk about the success story so far.

Myles originally came up with the idea for Eat Clean Cuisine when he was weighed 17 stone.

He put on weight after a shoulder injury meant he could not go to the gym but shed four stone in 16 weeks when he changed his diet.

Myles said: “It evolved from my weight loss journey and what I was eating. I basically ate chicken and spicy rice and barbecue sauce five times a day.

“The weight dropped off but I found there were few places to get anything healthy to eat on the go.”

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After identifying that gap in the market, Myles now enjoys helping others with their health or diet goals and competing against the convenience of fast food while making a living.

The 35-year-old added: “We have a customer who comes in every day who has lost 6lbs.

“It does make a massive difference and does make you happy giving these people confidence.”

Myles found his love of food through his nan Evelyn.

He said: “We used to make cakes and scones. I’d always help her weigh the ingredients out and it went from there.”

When he was 13 he started washed dishes at Don Pino in Stockton Heath.

Myles added: “I looked up to the chefs. There was a guy called Adam who I thought was cool. I wanted to be like him.”

Then he got his first stint in the kitchen at Lymm Hotel when he was 18.

Myles first worked at Lymm Hotel

He said: “They started me washing up for a bit but in kitchens people come and go fairly quickly so as soon as somebody went I was given my chance. I never looked back.”

His trial by fire was working for Gary Rhodes.

Myles added: “That was incredibly hard. That was my second proper job so I went from the Lymm Hotel in a quiet village to working in this prestigious restaurant in Manchester.

“It was intense. Chefs were walking out every day. That’s how fast paced it was. I went from working eight or nine hours a day to 17 hours a day with 150 people at each service. That was where I learnt the most.”

Myles also attended Paul Heathcote’s School of Excellence while one of his highlights was working at The Juniper in Altrincham.

He said: “It was one of the only Michelin-starred restaurants around here at the time. When I worked there we went from winning three AA rosettes to four. There were only around 20 restaurants that had that back then.

“On the back of that we got to eat at some of the UK’s best restaurants. I got to eat at Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck in the year that it won best restaurant in the world. It felt like we were in the Premier League of food.”

But it was opening a restaurant for Marco Pierre White that inspired Myles’ entrepreneurial spark.

Marco Pierre White was an idol

He added: “I got to meet him which was a great honour. He was my cooking idol when I became a chef.

“He was like a rock star. It was what made me want to have my name above the door. I didn’t want to just be in the background.”

As a private chef Myles has also catered for the likes of Michael Jordan, Ronan Keating, Danny Fletcher and Andy Cole.

He even did all of Michael Owen’s events for four years, including Christmas dinner.

Myles cooked for Michael Owen

Myles said: “Whether I’m cooking for the Queen or Joe Bloggs they all get treated the same way. But it’s a bit different when you’re cooking for them in their home and you might have memories of them growing up. It makes it easier in a way as you’ve got something to talk about.”

Myles admitted he did feel slightly taken aback catering for Arctic Monkey’s Alex Turner and singer Miles Kane at Wimbledon though.

He added: “I was a little bit star-struck with them because Alex Turner is cool. They had a champagne breakfast and came back for a spot of lunch.”

Watch this space for news about Myles’ restaurant but meanwhile the bodybuilder is also considering applying for BBC’s The Apprentice 2019.

Myles hopes for a spot on The Apprentice

He said: “I believe I would get on The Apprentice because I look ‘wrong’ – stocky, tattoos, beard – but I believe I’m articulate, intelligent and know what I’m doing. So if I’m going up against someone from Cambridge with glasses and a tie and they don’t know what they’re going on about but I do I think it’ll make good television.

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