i. Biography
Bagshot, Surrey sets the working context for Modern British cooking at The Latymer at Pennyhill Park, where Steve Smith’s kitchen builds its menus from island produce, the movement of the seasons, and the discipline of sustainable sourcing. The dining room’s point of view is measured rather than decorative: ingredients lead, pacing matters, and the meal is shaped as a complete sequence. A tasting menu depends on more than plate-by-plate assembly. At the restaurant, Smith’s cooking is structured through proportion, progression, and the quieter mechanics of hospitality: snacks to set pace, breads to establish warmth, seven courses to carry the main argument, Brixham Sea Bass as a clear marker of the house style, and service that accounts for welcome, comfort, memory, and farewell.
The Trajectory
Since 2020, the Head Chef role at The Latymer at Pennyhill Park has required both authorship and custody. Steve Smith has held that post by keeping the restaurant’s identity stable while allowing the menu to respond to season, market, and ingredient quality. The work there is defined by focus: a Modern British language, produce from the British Isles, and a tasting-menu format in which detail builds gradually. The cooking is polished without relying on excess, and the pacing gives each stage of the meal a defined job.
The Current Chapter
The current practice in Bagshot, Surrey, United Kingdom is seasonal tasting-menu cooking, with Steve Smith serving as Head Chef from 2020 to the present. The menu is built from sustainably sourced ingredients and presented inside the Pennyhill Park dining room. The format is stated plainly by Smith: "Our current tasting menu is compiled of four snacks, seven dishes and some amazing home baked sour dough and soda bread." The count shows the architecture: four snacks to open, seven dishes to carry the main structure, and bread made in-house as part of the meal. Bread has a practical craft role in this format. The sour dough and soda bread are not treated as filler between courses; they contribute texture, warmth, and generosity to the table. The snacks create momentum, the seven dishes provide the spine, and the bread gives the sequence a tactile centre. Seasonality is the operating system rather than a garnish. The culinary frame remains constant, while the menu changes with the ingredients available, keeping the cooking tied to both place and time.
Signature
Signature dishes include Brixham Sea Bass.
Acclaim
Steve's honors include Michelin star at The Latymer (2021) and 5 AA Rosettes at The Latymer. Recognition at this level points to consistency as much as ambition. Under Smith since 2020, The Latymer’s work has been judged through its seasonal sourcing, refined tasting-menu structure, and attention to the full arc of hospitality.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Steve
What role does Steve Smith hold?
Steve Smith is chef at The Latymer — Modern British.
What recognition has Steve Smith received?
Michelin star at The Latymer (2021).
What is Steve Smith known for?
Modern British cooking.
