Who's Who at Kerrouet House

Poul Jensen has over 28 years in the restaurant business. He trained in one of the best French restaurants in Denmark (Gammel Aalbyhoj - Relais Gourmand - Tradition et Qualitie). He gained invaluable experience at some of the world's most esteemed restaurants including Longueville Manor (Jersey Channel Islands); Mietta's Restaurant of Melbourne (Australia) and the world renowned liner the QE2. In London Poul worked for Noble Rot (Mayfair) and The Walbrook Club (City of London) with Albert Roux.

Poul has also run his own restaurant in Denmark (Ebeltoft) for 8 years and gained widespread recognition for his cuisine. Poul has also worked in the wine industry with some of the best wine houses of France.

Niall O'Reilly has over 20 years in the entertainment and leisure industry. Niall worked for 14 years at the National Theatre (London) where he was responsible for security, safety and Licensing. Niall, a graduate of Economics, grew up along with a large family on a dairy farm in County Cavan, Ireland where he learned how to cook under the direction of his mother and grandmother. The farm was virtually self sufficient and nothing was wasted. Niall loves gardening and developing unusual hedgerow recipes. Rose hip jam and crab apple jelly are currently all the rage at Kerrouet House following a summer craze in making classic elderflower cordials!

Dorothy Crowscare has been looking after the gardens at Kerrouet House for the past three years. Her main role is to ensure that there are adequate supplies of organic herbs and vegetables available for the kitchen. She can always be found working in the garden and never happier than when surrounded by her flowers.

Onde Dragtoit has overseen works at Kerrouet House for the past four years. His main duties are to ensure the rising sun is properly greeted  each morning and that guests arrive with a smile on their faces! He is normally found facing east on the highest point of the property!

Ange Tomber looks after the dining room, library and winter lounge. Her main roles  are to ensure harmony and balance within the school. As someone who once excelled in catering excellence she is there to advise and remind guests that we all progress in life, sometimes up and sometimes down but the important thing is to always try your best, enjoy what you are doing and learn from experience.

Kerrouet House

Kerrouet House - was built in the 16th century as the home of the tax collector for the nearby Manor of Plessy and two other manor houses in the area. As a "royal" longere it fell into neglect during the French Revolution and was abandoned for many years. In recent times it had been home to a professor of Mathematics (Sorbonne) but unfortunately fell into a near derelict state in the 1990's. The house was discovered by Niall seven years ago on a holiday visit to Brittany. Despite the jungle of brambles, nettles and ivy surrounding the house, Niall immediately fell in love with the monastic stone entrances, grand fireplaces and royal chimney. Over the past few years Niall & Poul have worked hard to restore the property and now use the premises as both a beautiful home and a cooking school.

Kerrouet Village

The village of Kerrouet lies in the heart of The Mene - the beautiful rolling hills of Brittany which are so famous for walking and cycling holidays. Kerrouet is located 1 hour from Rennes with links to Eurostar in Paris and Charles de Gaulle Airport. Dinard Airport is a 40 minute drive with Ryanair links to London, East Midlands and Bristol. St Malo port and the wonderful seaside resorts of Val Andre are only an hour away.
Cancalle also nearby is world famous not only for it's oysters but also for Maisons de Bricourt - the 3 star Michelin restaurant run by Olivier Roellinger.

Cooking Courses

Five day courses run from Monday to Friday with introductory dinners on the Sunday evenings. The courses commence at 10am and run till after dinner (10pm) with a break following lunch (2pm - 6pm).