Sous Chef

First class. Had the chilli and coq au vin with mash. Really excellent and so much healthier than greasy salty MSG-​laden crap from takeaways.

The question I asked myself when I first heard of this concept was whether this place is filling a niche or trying to create one. So I went along to investigate…
As you may gather from the name, Sous Chef prepares all the ingredients for your lunch or dinner so you don’t have to trawl through the supermarkets, yet still feel like you cooked something from scratch with fresh ingredients. There’s a large choice of dishes from roasted squash & hazelnut risotto to lamb moussaka. Some come in at £5 per person but most are £7−10.
I can see how this kind of venture would work well in the Didsbury area. City suits can pop in on their way home and pick up something for themselves or for a dinner party. Yes, they know it’s much more expensive than buying the ingredients themselves but frankly they have the money but not the time to care.
For most foodies though, part of the process of cooking a good meal is the sourcing, and for me this is where Sous Chef falls short. Therein lies the disappointment because if you’re only throwing it all together to cook then you might as well spend the same amount of money on a decent take away or catering service.
I remember a company in London that had a flash of success selling these kind of meals on station concourses. Then the novelty wore off and the deception was realised.