‘I was horrifically picky as a child. Like the worst eater. I wouldn't eat fruit. I wouldn't eat vegetables. I was so fussy.’
These words come from the same chef who won the Roux Scholarship in 2023, came third in the National Chef of the Year Awards twice (making her the highest-ranking female in history), set up her own food delivery business during lockdown just to stave off boredom, and now occupies the sole of sous chef at one of the country's most prestigious restaurants, The Ledbury. April Lily Partridge is, quite frankly, a force to be reckoned with, so it’s funny to think there was a time when she wasn’t obsessed with food.
Champagne AYALA: Celebrating over 160 years of history, Champagne AYALA was one of the original twenty-six Grandes Marques Champagne Houses. The House received a Royal Warrant in 1908 and became a part of the Bollinger family in 2005. With its longstanding commitment to the restaurant industry, Champagne AYALA is known for its chardonnay driven, low-dosage wines, crafted with precision and delicacy in a boutique scale. These wines are the ultimate epicurean pairing, it’s no wonder they have been served in the UK for over 100 years in many of London’s most prestigious establishments.
Despite her aversion to vegetables, Partridge grew up in a food-loving family. Her stepdad was a chef, and her mother was a catering manager which meant she was exposed to some really great cooking from an early age. She recalls coming home to the smell of six-hour, slow-cooked lamb shanks bubbling away in the oven, and fondly cites her mum’s Bolognese as the best she’s ever eaten. She’s quick to explain that while she loved these things, she was picky – sometimes painfully so – and it later became a bit of a running joke in her family that she would go on to become a chef.
‘I’d say to my mum, I'm not eating more than 20 peas, and she'd count them out on the plate. I'd sit there and eat one, and gag every time.’
It was while completing a work experience placement at The Reform Club in Pall Mall where she discovered her love for working in a professional kitchen, not necessarily because of the cooking element – that was to come later – but she felt an instant affinity for the people who worked there.
‘I think I fell in love with the people before I fell in love with the food. I loved the energy that a kitchen held, and I loved the fact that there were so many misfits in the kitchen that don’t really fit in ordinary life. Then when you put them together, they make this magical thing happen.’
April's appreciation for food flourished over time, not least because she felt embarrassed by her fussiness in a kitchen full of professional chefs. Refusing to try something because she was afraid she wouldn't like it was no longer an option. ‘The more time I spent in the kitchen, the more things I tried, the more things I learned. It was like this domino effect of falling in love with food and the industry.’
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Spurred on by her school and stepdad, she landed a role at The Ivy in Covent Garden after winning the London heat of the Rotary Young Chef competition, where she worked under the expert tutelage of Gary Lee. April has had many mentors in her life – many great ones, in fact – but Lee was the first person to nurture her talent, and she describes him as being like a second dad to her. ‘He understood the best way to get the maximum potential out of me and believed in me so much. I think that he will always be one of my biggest mentors and someone I hold so close to my heart because he made me fall in love with food.’
She spent five years at The Ivy learning the ropes, soaking up as much knowledge as she could and ultimately learning how to be part of a well-oiled machine, but in 2014 she met another career-changing figure who nudged her to fly to pastures new. Partridge entered the Young Chef of the Year competition where she was up against Luke Selby - now the executive chef at Le Manoir – and was completely awestruck by his talent.
‘I didn’t want people to say wow she's a good female cook. I wanted people to say wow she's a fantastic chef.’
‘I remember watching him cook and he smashed us. He was so talented. Watching him cook changed my direction completely because I was like, I want to be as good as that guy. I handed my notice in the next day.’ While the young chef didn’t necessarily have her sights set on Michelin, she knew she wanted to be one of the best, she says. ‘I didn’t want people to say wow she's a good female cook. I wanted people to say wow she's a fantastic chef.’
Hungry to learn and with a renewed sense of purpose, she saved up all her money and went on to complete various stages at the UK’s top restaurants including The Clove Club, Paul Ainsworth at No. 6, The Hand and Flowers and The Ledbury, which opened her eyes to a level of cooking she'd never experienced before.
‘I remember coming here and thinking these guys are like the SAS of cooking. But I also remember thinking if I come here right now, I'm gonna be eaten up alive because I wasn't good enough. I was 100% not ready for the level that they were cooking - it frightened me.’
Fear has the power to make or break a budding young chef in those early days, but Partridge used it to her advantage by launching herself into years of intense training. She went back to The Clove Club to refine her skills in a high-level Michelin kitchen, and later spent some time in New York at Michelin restaurant Blue Hill at Stone Barns working under Dan Barber.
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When she finally returned to the UK, there was only one place she had her heart set on. 'The next step had to be big; every step had to be bigger and harder and faster. There was only one restaurant that scared me and that was The Ledbury.’
That was in 2018, and she’s still here today, albeit with a short break due to the pandemic. It was incredibly tough at first, she admits, but there was never a moment of doubt in her mind that this was where she was meant to be. 'I love this restaurant like it's my own, with all my heart.'
Of course, she owes a great deal to executive chef Brett Graham who she explains is the most influential person to impact her 15-year career. 'Brett's been there for me, not just with my career but in my life as well, and so I hold him super close to my heart.'
'He's like this encyclopedia of chefing gold, but he wants to share it with everyone. He has this thing where he can take a rough diamond and make them into one of the best cooks.'
April has been going above and beyond her day job since the start of her career and has accrued a string of accolades over the years, with highlights being named Best Young Chef in the Observer Food Monthly Awards in 2014, competing in the Young Chef of the Year awards in the same year, coming third in the National Chef of the Year Awards twice and winning an Acorn Award in 2023. Taking part in so many competitions, and doing well in them, shows prowess, resilience and guts, but these are not the feelings she describes when we ask her why she keeps putting herself through her paces. She talks about suffering from imposter syndrome most of the time, and that while competing was a way for her to prove herself in a ruthless industry, every non-win felt like a knockback. Coming third felt like losing.
‘I tried so hard and I wasn't good enough. You take it as a personal hit. You take it that you're a failure and you feel like you're letting people down because they're all rooting for you.’
It’s one of the reasons why winning the Roux Scholarship in 2023 was such a momentous victory. April was at one of the least confident points in her career and could barely face putting her name in the hat because she wasn’t sure if she could take the hit again, but friends and family convinced her to sign up. This time round was different though. She said no to all press, didn’t over practice her dishes, and went out for dinner and a movie the night before the final 'like a normal human'. On the day, she cooked with her heart, impressing the judges with a dish of daikon-wrapped monkfish with a shiitake pithivier and ginger sauce.
Describing her win now, she refuses to claim all the glory for herself, describing her family as instrumental players in her success. ‘I'm looking at them [her family] and I'm thinking wow we did it. The three of us. This is our moment.’
The future looks exceptionally bright for April, from her ongoing career at The Ledbury to a brief mention of wanting to one day be a TV chef (she says she'd like to be the female version of Jamie Oliver!). For now, she’s still enjoying her win from last year, a moment we're sure she'll never forget.
April's perfect match for AYALA's Le Blanc de Blancs A/18
The dish: Daikon-wrapped monkfish with a ginger and Champagne sauce
The Champagne: AYALA Le Blanc de Blancs A/18
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April explains: 'This is a take on the dish I did for the final of the Roux Scholarship. The Champagne, which is lovely and crisp, pairs really well with the monkfish because it’s not too overpowering. Then the mousse has lovely citrusy notes and there’s a really subtle hint of ginger.'
April's quick bites
Who or what have been your biggest influences?
The biggest influence on my career has been Brett Graham at The Ledbury.
Which female chefs have inspired you in your career?
The female chefs that have inspired my career have been the ones that I’ve worked with personally. Cass Morris, Julia Leitner, Erin Jackson Yates are absolute powerhouses in the industry and ones to watch.
If you could give someone just starting out some words of wisdom, what would they be?
My words of wisdom to any young chef coming into the industry would be to dream big and work hard. Anything that’s worth achieving, you’ve got to work hard for in life, but it will be worth it in the end. The hard times and the knockbacks are the ones that will make you really strong so don’t let them define you.
Describe your cooking style in three words?
Delicious, humble and seasonal.
What is your favourite thing to cook at home?
I don’t have an oven at home, I only have an air fryer so I’m a bit limited! I love making fresh, Ottolenghi-style salads.
Do you have a guilty food pleasure?
I love prawn cocktail Pringles.
If you weren’t a chef, what would you be doing?
I would either be a full-time cat mum or a firewoman.
What was the last great thing you ate?
Brett’s Jersey beef – it's on the menu right now. The marbling on this beef is unbelievable and the flavour is world-class.
Explore more of our chef interviews in partnership with AYALA, including Adriana Cavita, Roberta Hall-McCarron and Sabrina Gidda.