I was born in London and grew up between England and France, so I was fortunate to experience two wonderful food cultures from an early age. Food was always at the centre of family life. My father, Michel, and my uncle Albert [Roux] were passionate about cooking, but there was never any pressure to follow them into the profession. By the age of 14, after spending countless hours watching the brigade at The Waterside Inn, I knew I wanted to become a chef. I loved the atmosphere, the camaraderie, the fascinating ingredients and the sense of creativity and purpose in the kitchen. It simply felt where I belonged.

Some of my earliest, happiest memories are of my grandmother’s garden in Picardy. She grew beautiful vegetables, fruit and herbs, and kept chickens and rabbits. We would pick produce before preparing meals together. Those experiences taught me the importance of seasonality and respecting ingredients and delicate flavours. My mother was also a wonderful cook, so I grew up surrounded by great food and hospitality.

I began my career at 16 with a pastry apprenticeship under chef Denis Ruffel at Pâtisserie Millet in Paris. It was an extraordinary education. Pastry demands precision, discipline and patience, lessons that have stayed with me throughout my career. From there I spent several years training in some of France’s finest restaurants before joining my father Michel at The Waterside Inn in 1992. I started my career there at the bottom and worked my way up like any other ambitious chef. In 2002, I assumed the role of chef patron alongside my father.

I was fortunate to work with some of France’s most exceptional chefs including Alain and Jacques Pic at Restaurant Pic in Valence, Jean Yves Bernard at Domaine d’Orvault, Jany and Pierre Gleize at La Bonne Étape, Christian Germain at Château de Montreuil and Michel and son, Jean-Michel Lorain at La Côte Saint Jacques. I also completed my national service cooking at the Élysée Palace and was the private chef for President François Mitterrand. Every kitchen taught me something different, both professionally and personally. I still learn something new every day, you never stop. That’s what I love most about our beautiful industry.

In 1972, my father Michel and uncle Albert bought what was a rather run down riverside pub. With a string of successful restaurants and businesses in London, including Le Gavroche, they wanted to open a flagship restaurant in the countryside. This had always been their intention. My father stepped inside the grubby building, took one look at the cascading willow tree and stunning riverside views and fell in love. He saw the potential and opportunity to create something unique. Bray offered a beautiful setting, close enough to London yet surrounded by Berkshire countryside.

Over the years, The Waterside Inn has grown into much more than a restaurant. Today it includes 12 luxurious bedrooms, culinary gardens, private dining, a culinary school, which is unique for a three Michelin-starred restaurant in the UK, plus the Michel Roux Library. We have evolved over the years but we are still very much a family business remaining true to our founding principles.

Everything begins with the ingredients and the seasons. We seek out exceptional produce at its very best, and work closely with suppliers and producers who share our passion for quality. The ingredient always dictates the dish.

Our menus reflect the foundations of classical French cuisine, from time-honoured family classics to refined seasonal compositions that continue to evolve. We have enormous respect for tradition, but we are never afraid to question, refine and improve. Every dish on the menu represents years of craftsmanship, collaboration and continuous evolution by our kitchen team.

I am fortunate to work alongside a talented brigade whose breadth of knowledge, creativity and technical skill constantly inspires new ideas. Together, we look for harmony on the plate, pairing exceptional seasonal ingredients with carefully considered complementary elements, all brought together by sauces that are meticulously prepared. Sauce making remains one of the defining disciplines of classical French cooking and is central to our style.

Travel, conversations with producers, the changing seasons and, above all, our guests continue to influence our cooking. Our philosophy has always been one of clarity over complication and flavour above all else. We want every dish to feel elegant, balanced and memorable, allowing the quality of the ingredients and the craftsmanship behind them to speak for themselves.

It is a privilege and a responsibility. We’ve held three Michelin stars consistently since 1985, longer than any restaurant outside France. It’s a record that sits squarely on the shoulders of our brilliant team members across the years, a story of incredible consistency. But the stars do not drive us. We approach each service, every day, with the aim to improve on the one before, our goal only to serve our guests and make them happy.

My advice to aspiring chefs is not to cook for awards. Cook the food that you love and seek only the happiness of your guests. It’s important to build a sound foundation first, based on classical techniques, then you can develop your own style and signature. Above all, stay humble, curious, keep improving and never stop learning. Excellence comes from thousands of small details repeated every day.

I have been approached many times over the years to collaborate on projects, but I have always been very selective. I have never wanted simply to put my name above a door or on a menu. If I commit to something, I want to help shape it, to work alongside the team and to be personally involved. I believe you cannot deliver excellence from a distance.

The Maybach Ocean Club is different. It is an ambitious, pioneering project and the first of its kind. It offers a rare opportunity to create, in effect, a Waterside Inn at sea. And beyond that, a community whose reach extends beyond the ship with experiences shaped in collaboration with ourselves and carefully chosen partners. My team and I are helping shape every aspect of the culinary experience aboard Beyond Horizons, from the design of the galleys and dining spaces to the menus, wine, cocktail and beverage programme, hospitality philosophy, sourcing and training.

The project also has a personal connection. My father spent more than 20 years working with Celebrity Cruises, so I grew up understanding both the opportunities and the challenges of delivering exceptional hospitality at sea. This partnership builds on that experience while taking it to an entirely new level.

What excites me most is the opportunity to work alongside the Maybach Ocean Club team to create a culture founded on craftsmanship, generosity and attention to detail. It is an opportunity to share everything we have learned, while continuing to learn ourselves. That exchange of ideas, knowledge and experience is what makes this partnership so exciting.

The cuisine will reflect my French heritage while embracing the finest ingredients and culinary traditions from around the world. At the heart of everything we do is a commitment to sourcing the freshest, seasonal ingredients, working with local producers wherever the voyage takes us. It is an approach that has always guided my cooking and one that I believe delivers the greatest flavour and authenticity.

The dining experience has been designed to offer something for every occasion. At its heart will be our signature fine dining restaurant, inspired by the philosophy of The Waterside Inn, where guests will enjoy refined French inspired cuisine paired with an exceptional wine programme. Alongside this will be a more relaxed restaurant and pool deck bar, inspired by the warmth and conviviality of Brasserie Roux, our sister restaurant a mile upriver from The Waterside Inn, serving fresh, delicious food and snacks around the clock in an informal setting. There will also be a spa and wellness bar offering lighter, nutritious dishes, together with a range of other hospitality experiences and bars throughout the ship.

One of the most exciting aspects of the project is the opportunity to allow each voyage to inspire the menus. By working with local fishermen, farmers and artisan producers where possible, we will celebrate the finest ingredients each destination has to offer. Whether guests are enjoying an elegant tasting menu, a leisurely lunch by the pool or a light meal after a visit to the spa, they will experience the same philosophy. Fresh, seasonal ingredients, carefully prepared, generous hospitality and meticulous attention to detail.

London has one of the most exciting restaurant scenes anywhere in the world, so choosing a favourite is almost impossible. I have great respect for my colleagues. As joint chairman with my cousin, Michel, of the Roux Scholarship, I am immensely proud of what so many of our Roux scholar chefs have achieved, whether in London or elsewhere across the UK. They represent the future of British gastronomy and many lead outstanding kitchens across the UK and beyond.

Our fathers, Michel and Albert, launched the scholarship in 1984 to improve educational opportunities for British chefs and to elevate their reputation on the world stage. Seeing former scholars leading outstanding restaurants and developing their own distinctive styles gives me enormous pleasure. I also travel extensively throughout Britain and internationally, so I enjoy discovering great restaurants wherever I go.

There is a tremendous amount of talent in London and throughout Britain. Rather than single out individuals, I admire chefs who combine technical excellence with generosity, humility and a commitment to developing young people. Through the Roux Scholarship I have had the privilege of watching many chefs grow into outstanding leaders, and that gives me great confidence in the future of our industry.