Meet Weston Park's 30-year-old head chef who has led her team to a prestigious AA Rosette
Head chef Anna Jones is living her dream. The 30-year-old has worked her way up the ranks and now leads a kitchen team at historic Weston Park.
Using fresh produce straight from the estate, she creates seasonal dishes and menus for the Granary restaurant and also private parties, weddings and celebrations in the House.
The top job had been in Anna’s sights since she began working at Weston Park, on the Staffordshire/Shropshire border, as a pastry chef in 2014.
“I started when I was 21. In this industry, it’s common for people to stay for a few years, gain experience, and move on.
“But I very quickly fell in love with Weston and I knew I wanted to become head chef,” she explains.
After leaving Idsall School, Anna started her training at Radbrook College in Shrewsbury and earned her Level 1 and Level 2 Professional Chefs Diplomas.
A job as a commis chef at a hotel, near Ironbridge, followed before Anna completed a three-month internship at Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant, The Fat Duck, in Berkshire, which she described as an ‘amazing’ experience. Her next role was as junior sous chef at The Lion and Pheasant in Shrewsbury.
Since joining the team at Weston Park, she has worked as a pastry chef, junior sous chef and sous chef before being appointed head chef in May 2020.
With Covid restrictions in place, Anna, who lives in Kingswinford, had to hit the ground running in her new job.
