When Simon first applied for a casual student job, he only ever expected it to last for a couple of years to get him through his studies. So you can imagine how he feels now, looking back on where his career has taken him so far. From working as front-of-house in restaurants and bars as a student, to opening his own restaurants and becoming the face of BBC2’s popular Sunday morning show, Something for the Weekend, alongside Tim Lovejoy and Louise Redknapp, Simon Rimmer is one of the UK’s most recognised television chefs. Although, it hasn’t all been plane sailing, as Simon admits it was sometimes a struggle to get the balance right, especially when it came to the opening of Earle in Hale alongside having to make several media appearances each week. With a lot of hard work, and a couple of veggie cookbooks for support, Simon has turned his student job into a successful career.

You didn’t start out with the intention of having a career in the food and hospitality industry, how did it all come about?
When I was a student I used to work in restaurants and bars as front-of-house and then decided I liked the idea of having my own place. I managed to get some money to buy Greens with a friend of mine and we’ve never looked back. I never had the intention of being in the kitchen but we couldn’t afford anyone else, so that’s where I ended up...with a couple of veggie cookbooks. 

You are not a vegetarian, so why did you decide to open Greens, a vegetarian restaurant?
It already was a veggie café so that was a good start.  We had no money and it was the cheapest restaurant we could find. We did it more for the location, as West Didsbury was fast becoming the place to be.

If you did become a vegetarian, what meat dish would you miss the most?
Definitely bacon sandwiches, everyone says the same thing.

In 2006 you opened Earle in Hale, how is that going?
Great. We had a bit of a slow start at first, we didn’t quite get it right initially, but four and a half years down the line it’s working really well and I’m really enjoying what we’re doing there.

You have a busy schedule and lots of television appearances, how do you manage to fit that in around the running of your two restaurants?
I equate myself to being an old music hall act. I’m a plate spinner. Most of the time the plates stay on the sticks, but occasionally they come crashing down!

You have been one of the presenters of Something for the Weekend for some time now, who has been the most memorable guest you’ve had on the show?
My favourite guests were Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer. They are talented and hilarious, in fact side-splittingly funny.

Who is the better cook, Louise Redknapp or Tim Lovejoy?
Tim is much better by a million miles! Louise doesn’t cook at all.

Do you have plans for more cookbooks?
Yes, we’re working on them at the moment.

You are the face of Eatthechef.com, what is the website all about?
We are a Youtube for food; a rapidly growing food community where people upload and share their videos of cooking.

You do a lot of cooking at work, who tends to do the cooking at home?
We share it. I still love cooking at home for Ali and the kids. It’s completely different from cooking for 200 people at the restaurant.

During the summer months, what dish are we most likely to find you cooking?
I cook lots of fish and I also cook lots of steak. I like salsas and light salads and paella style rice to go with a meat dish.

Who or what inspires your recipe creations?
Various things. Anything from something that’s seasonal, a location, an article in a magazine. Constantly cooking and working with food is my inspiration.