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Joyce Molyneux, Noted British Chef, Is Dead at 91 Joyce Molyneux, Noted British Chef, Is Dead at 91
(about 5 hours later)
Joyce Molyneux, an innovative chef whose unpretentious restaurant in Dartmouth, England, the Carved Angel, received a star from the Michelin Guide in 1978, making her one of the first women whose kitchen received that distinction, died on Oct. 27. She was 91.Joyce Molyneux, an innovative chef whose unpretentious restaurant in Dartmouth, England, the Carved Angel, received a star from the Michelin Guide in 1978, making her one of the first women whose kitchen received that distinction, died on Oct. 27. She was 91.
The Dartmouth Food Festival, where she was an honorary festival patron, posted news of her death on Facebook. The post did not say where she died.The Dartmouth Food Festival, where she was an honorary festival patron, posted news of her death on Facebook. The post did not say where she died.
Ms. Molyneux opened the Carved Angel (named for an elaborate sculpture mounted on one of its walls) in 1974 after working at restaurants in Stratford-upon-Avon and Bath. Dartmouth is on England’s southwestern coast, and the restaurant was on the River Dart, just above where it meets the ocean.Ms. Molyneux opened the Carved Angel (named for an elaborate sculpture mounted on one of its walls) in 1974 after working at restaurants in Stratford-upon-Avon and Bath. Dartmouth is on England’s southwestern coast, and the restaurant was on the River Dart, just above where it meets the ocean.
Ms. Molyneux would use salmon that local fishermen brought to the door, rabbits and pheasants from local hunters, cheese from area farms and herbs that she sometimes grew herself, serving diners in an open layout where they could watch the food being prepared. Ms. Molyneux would use salmon that local fishermen brought to the door, rabbits and pheasants from local hunters, cheese from area farms and herbs that she sometimes grew herself. She served diners in an open layout where they could watch the food being prepared.
“Looking back, I see now how revolutionary the restaurant was,” Sophie Grigson, who collaborated with Ms. Molyneux on a popular cookbook, “The Carved Angel Cookery Book,” in 1990, said by email. “She was a champion of local growers and fishermen way before it became the fashionable thing to do. The open plan kitchen reflected her comfortable determination to produce beautiful food without fuss or ostentation. No artifice, no temper tantrums.” “Looking back, I see now how revolutionary the restaurant was,” Sophie Grigson, who collaborated with Ms. Molyneux on a popular 1990 cookbook, “The Carved Angel Cookery Book,” said by email. “She was a champion of local growers and fishermen way before it became the fashionable thing to do. The open plan kitchen reflected her comfortable determination to produce beautiful food without fuss or ostentation. No artifice, no temper tantrums.”
The restaurant quickly began garnering favorable notices from newspapers and dining guides, leading to the coveted Michelin star, which signified that it was “an especially good restaurant in its class.” For a woman to be running a restaurant and serving as head chef was unusual at the time in the male-dominated food industry, and Ms. Grigson said both the Carved Angel’s diners and its staff felt the difference. The restaurant began garnering favorable notices from newspapers and dining guides, leading to the coveted Michelin star, which signified that it was “an especially good restaurant in its class.” For a woman to be running a restaurant and serving as head chef was unusual in the male-dominated food industry of that time, and Ms. Grigson said both the Carved Angel’s diners and its staff felt the difference.
“She did away with the traditional male hierarchy of the professional kitchen,” Ms. Grigson said, “replacing it with a conscientious female sensibility: teamwork, honesty, the desire to turn the best raw ingredients into dishes that would bring pleasure to others.”“She did away with the traditional male hierarchy of the professional kitchen,” Ms. Grigson said, “replacing it with a conscientious female sensibility: teamwork, honesty, the desire to turn the best raw ingredients into dishes that would bring pleasure to others.”
Ms. Molyneux retired in 2000, and the restaurant, now known simply as the Angel, has been through several owners since. But her example lives on in a younger generation of chefs, especially female ones, including the current head chef at Angel, Elly Wentworth.Ms. Molyneux retired in 2000, and the restaurant, now known simply as the Angel, has been through several owners since. But her example lives on in a younger generation of chefs, especially female ones, including the current head chef at Angel, Elly Wentworth.
“Joyce was a legend,” Ms. Wentworth said by email, “a truly inspirational woman and one of the best female chefs in the country.”“Joyce was a legend,” Ms. Wentworth said by email, “a truly inspirational woman and one of the best female chefs in the country.”
“It’s an honor to be cooking in the same building,” she added, “and Joyce’s legacy remains; everyone, particularly women in the hospitality industry, can achieve their goals through hard work and determination.”“It’s an honor to be cooking in the same building,” she added, “and Joyce’s legacy remains; everyone, particularly women in the hospitality industry, can achieve their goals through hard work and determination.”
Ms. Molyneux was born on April 17, 1931, in Handsworth, just outside Birmingham, England, to Maurice and Irene (Wolfenden) Molyneux. In 1939 she was evacuated to a more rural part of the country, where she lived with a woman and her four daughters and was impressed by their weekly ritual of baking bread and biscuits. Ms. Molyneux was born on April 17, 1931, in Handsworth, just outside Birmingham, England, to Maurice and Irene (Wolfenden) Molyneux. In 1939, at the dawn of World War II, she was evacuated to a more rural part of the country, where she lived with a woman and her four daughters. There, she became impressed by their weekly ritual of baking bread and biscuits.
Two years after World War II ended in 1945, she lived for a while with a friend’s family in the Alsace-Lorraine region of France. After the war ended in 1945, she lived for a while with a friend’s family in the Alsace-Lorraine region of France.
“Times had been hard there too,” she told the British newspaper The Independent in 1990, “but the way they used their imagination to make the most of vegetables was wonderful: a piece of salt pork from the larder fried in the pan first, then the vegetables added with a little water. It was very simple, but it was cooking with skill and imagination.”“Times had been hard there too,” she told the British newspaper The Independent in 1990, “but the way they used their imagination to make the most of vegetables was wonderful: a piece of salt pork from the larder fried in the pan first, then the vegetables added with a little water. It was very simple, but it was cooking with skill and imagination.”
She attended a domestic science college, then secured at job at a restaurant in Stratford-upon-Avon, where she stayed for a decade before joining the staff of George Perry-Smith’s restaurant, the Hole in the Wall, in Bath, which was quickly gaining a national reputation for no-nonsense excellence. She absorbed many of Mr. Perry-Smith’s ideas. She attended a domestic science college, then secured at job at a restaurant in Stratford-upon-Avon, where she stayed for a decade before joining the staff of George Perry-Smith’s restaurant, the Hole in the Wall, in Bath, which was gaining a national reputation for no-nonsense excellence. She absorbed many of Mr. Perry-Smith’s ideas.
“There was a feeling of abundance,” she told The Independent, describing the Hole in the Wall. “The food was enticing, there were no unnecessary frills. Everything was done on a generous scale.”“There was a feeling of abundance,” she told The Independent, describing the Hole in the Wall. “The food was enticing, there were no unnecessary frills. Everything was done on a generous scale.”
Mr. Perry-Smith became a silent partner in the Carved Angel. His stepson, Tom Jaine, was an active partner, a role later filled by Meriel Boydon, Mr. Perry-Smith’s niece.Mr. Perry-Smith became a silent partner in the Carved Angel. His stepson, Tom Jaine, was an active partner, a role later filled by Meriel Boydon, Mr. Perry-Smith’s niece.
At the Carved Angel, Ms. Molyneux created a laid-back atmosphere that turned regular customers into friends; some would bring recipes that would then turn up on the menu.At the Carved Angel, Ms. Molyneux created a laid-back atmosphere that turned regular customers into friends; some would bring recipes that would then turn up on the menu.
“I want to make customers feel comfortable, relaxed and welcome,” she told The Herald Express of Devon, England, in 1990. “Neither the staff nor I are here to show off or score points.”“I want to make customers feel comfortable, relaxed and welcome,” she told The Herald Express of Devon, England, in 1990. “Neither the staff nor I are here to show off or score points.”
In a 2018 interview with The Guardian, Rosemary Shrager, the well-known British chef and television personality, cited Ms. Molyneux as one of her major influences. She called Ms. Molyneux “a hugely important figure, not only for her food, but for what she represented.”In a 2018 interview with The Guardian, Rosemary Shrager, the well-known British chef and television personality, cited Ms. Molyneux as one of her major influences. She called Ms. Molyneux “a hugely important figure, not only for her food, but for what she represented.”
“Kitchens then were very chauvinistic, pompous, and often with a ‘French is best’ attitude,” she said. “Women were only supposed to cook at home or in schools. Well, Joyce took that culture by the scruff of its neck, making the kitchen her own and teaching people about how good British food could be in the process.” “Kitchens then were very chauvinistic, pompous and often with a ‘French is best’ attitude,” she said. “Women were only supposed to cook at home or in schools. Well, Joyce took that culture by the scruff of its neck, making the kitchen her own and teaching people about how good British food could be in the process.”
Ms. Molyneux is survived by a brother, Philip.Ms. Molyneux is survived by a brother, Philip.
In 1987, when she received an award from the British Academy of Gastronomes, Ms. Molyneux was appreciative. But she also noted that staying on top meant remaining vigilant every night.In 1987, when she received an award from the British Academy of Gastronomes, Ms. Molyneux was appreciative. But she also noted that staying on top meant remaining vigilant every night.
“I take the view,” she said, “that you are only as good as your last meal.”“I take the view,” she said, “that you are only as good as your last meal.”