Rick Stein facts for kids
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| Born | Christopher Richard Stein 4 January 1947 Churchill, Oxfordshire, England |
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| Cooking style | Asian, Australian, European |
| Education |
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| Spouse |
Jill Stein
(m. 1975; div. 2007)Sarah Burns
(m. 2011) |
Christopher Richard Stein, also known as Rick Stein, is a famous English chef, restaurant owner, writer, and TV presenter. He was born on January 4, 1947. With his first wife, Jill Stein, he built a successful business of hotels and restaurants in the UK. Most of these are in Padstow, a town in Cornwall, England. He also has restaurants in other places like Marlborough, Winchester, and Barnes.
Rick Stein also co-owns "Rick Stein at Bannisters" restaurants in Mollymook and Port Stephens in Australia with his second wife, Sarah. He has written many cookbooks and presented popular cooking shows for the BBC.
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Rick Stein's Early Life
Rick Stein was born on January 4, 1947, in Churchill, Oxfordshire, England. He grew up on a farm. He went to different schools, including Uppingham School. After school, he tried a hotel management course but didn't finish it. He worked as a chef for six months.
When he was 19, after a difficult time when his father passed away, he traveled to Australia. There, he worked in an abattoir (a place where animals are prepared for meat) and at a naval dockyard. He also visited New Zealand and Mexico. During this time, he read a lot and thought about his future. He then got into New College, Oxford, where he studied English and graduated in 1971. Soon after, he moved to Padstow.
Starting His Cooking Career
After finishing university, Rick Stein turned a mobile disco he used to run in Padstow into a nightclub with a friend. The nightclub was known for its curries. However, it lost its license because of fights. Since they still had a license for a restaurant in the same building, they decided to open a small bistro. Rick used his cooking experience to run the kitchen.
In 1975, he opened "The Seafood Restaurant" with his first wife, Jill. This restaurant became very famous. Today, his business includes several restaurants, a bistro, a café, a seafood shop, a pastry shop, a gift shop, and a cookery school.
Rick Stein's businesses have had a big impact on Padstow's economy. Some people even call the town "Padstein" because of him! In 2009, he took over a traditional pub called "The Cornish Arms" in a nearby village called St Merryn.
Expanding to Australia
In October 2009, Rick Stein and his future second wife, Sarah Burns, opened "Rick Stein at Bannisters" in Mollymook, Australia. Rick had always loved the seafood and blue sea of Australia's South Coast. He wanted to open a restaurant there that would celebrate local fish and shellfish.
In 2018, they opened a second "Rick Stein at Bannisters" in Port Stephens, Australia.
Rick Stein on TV
Rick Stein became well-known for his TV cooking shows. He first appeared as a guest chef on other shows in the 1980s. Then, the BBC offered him his own series. His shows often involve him traveling to different places to find and cook local foods.
Some of his popular TV series include:
- Rick Stein's Taste of the Sea
- Seafood Odyssey
- French Odyssey
- Mediterranean Escapes
- Far Eastern Odyssey
- Rick Stein's Spain
- Rick Stein's India
- Rick Stein's Cornwall
Rick Stein's Jack Russell Terrier dog, Chalky, often joined him on his adventures until Chalky passed away in 2007. Chalky was so popular that a brewery even named two special beers after him!
Rick Stein has also written many cookbooks. His book English Seafood Cookery won an award in 1989. He has received special honors, including the OBE in 2003 and the CBE in 2018, for his contributions to tourism and the economy.
In 2020, his restaurant in Porthleven, Cornwall, had to close permanently because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rick Stein's Personal Life
Rick Stein met his first wife, Jill Newstead, in Padstow. They married in 1975 and started their restaurant and hotel business together. They have three sons: Edward, Jack, and Charles, who are all involved in the family business today. Rick and Jill later divorced in 2007 but continued to run the business together.
Rick met Sarah Burns in Australia in 1997. They married on October 7, 2011.
Rick Stein has a brother, John, and a sister, Henrietta. He also has a half-brother, Jeremy. His nephew is the DJ and music producer Judge Jules, and his niece is the artist Lucy Stein.
In 2022, Rick Stein had open heart surgery to fix a heart valve. He shared that this experience inspired him to create simpler recipes for his book, "Simple Suppers."
Rick Stein's Restaurants
Rick Stein owns or operates several restaurants. Here are some of them:
Restaurants in England
| Restaurant | Location | Date Opened |
|---|---|---|
| The Seafood Restaurant | Padstow, Cornwall | 1975 |
| St. Petroc's Bistro | Padstow, Cornwall | 1997 |
| Stein's Fish & Chips | Padstow, Cornwall | 2004 |
| The Cornish Arms | St Merryn, Cornwall | 2009 |
| Rick Stein, Winchester | Winchester, Hampshire | 2014 |
| Rick Stein, Fistral | Newquay, Cornwall | 2015 |
| Rick Stein, Sandbanks | Sandbanks, Dorset | 2015 |
| Rick Stein, Marlborough | Marlborough, Wiltshire | 2016 |
| Rick Stein, Barnes | Barnes, London | 2017 |
Restaurants in Australia
| Restaurant | Location | Date Opened |
|---|---|---|
| Rick Stein at Bannisters Mollymook | Mollymook, New South Wales | 2009 |
| Rick Stein at Bannisters Port Stephens | Port Stephens, New South Wales | 2018 |
Rick Stein's TV Shows
Rick Stein has presented many TV shows, mostly about food and travel.
- Taste of the Sea, BBC TV, 1995
- Fruits of the Sea, BBC TV, 1997
- Rick Stein's Seafood Odyssey, BBC TV, 1999
- Rick Stein's Food Heroes, BBC TV, 2002
- Rick Stein's French Odyssey, BBC TV, 2005
- Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escape, BBC Two, 2007
- Rick Stein's Far Eastern Odyssey, BBC Two, 2009
- Rick Stein's Spain, BBC Two, 2011
- Rick Stein's India, BBC Two, 2013
- Rick Stein: From Venice to Istanbul, BBC Two, 2015
- Rick Stein's Long Weekends, BBC Two, 2016
- Rick Stein's Road to Mexico, BBC Two, 2017
- Rick Stein's Secret France, BBC Two, 2019
- Rick Stein's Cornwall, BBC Two, 2021-2023
- Rick Stein’s Food Stories, BBC Two, 2024
Awards and Recognition
Rick Stein and his restaurants have won many awards over the years.
Awards for Restaurants
- RAC/The Sunday Times Taste of Britain Best Restaurant Award 1984
- Decanter Magazine Restaurant of the Year 1989
- Egon Ronay's Guide Restaurant of the Year 1996
- The AA Award – English Seafood Restaurant of the Year Award 2002
Awards for Rick Stein Himself
- The Good Food Award Television and Radio Personality – 1995/1996
- Caterer and Hotelkeeper 1999 Chef Award – Chef of the Year The Catey Awards
- AA Guide Chefs' Chef of the Year 1999–2000
- The Glenfiddich Trophy – 2001
- OBE – 2003: For services to tourism in Cornwall
- In 2012, Rick Stein was chosen by artist Sir Peter Blake to appear in a new version of his famous artwork for The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover. This celebrated British cultural figures.
- On July 5, 2016, Rick and Jill Stein received a Special Award at the Catey Awards for their amazing contributions to the hospitality industry for over 41 years.
- CBE – 2018: For services to the economy
