In Good Company: Ravneet Gill
Words of wisdom from one of our favourite pastry chefs.
This week, for the second instalment of our live In Good Company conversations, we had the pleasure of chatting to pastry chef-entrepreneur extraordinaire, Ravneet Gill. If you’ve ever met Rav in person, you’ll be familiar with her awe-inspiring confidence, and her ability to thrive while having her fingers in many pies (pun intended).
Originally trained as a pastry chef, Rav worked her way up the ranks in some of London’s most beloved bakeries and restaurants. It was during her time at Llewellyn’s that a chance encounter with a customer led to a deal for her first cookbook, The Pastry Chef’s Guide. Then came an Instagram DM inviting her to audition as a judge for Junior Bake Off, of which she’s just finished filming her fifth season. Between writing, baking and appearing on screen, Rav also dedicates her time to advocating for positive work environments in the hospitality industry through Countertalk, a platform she founded in 2018.
In a conversation chaired by Lily, Rav shared her thoughts on the world of restaurant recruitment, the publishing market, working very hard and being comfortable in awkward silences.
Rav’s a force to be reckoned with, and she has some super exciting things in the pipeline… here, we’ve shared some of her pearls of wisdom - some paraphrased, some direct quotes - for your reading pleasure.
Say no to E-numbers – you shouldn’t be putting E-numbers in your desserts, it’s not acceptable. Don’t put things that come in weird packets in your food, just to make it shinier. Strip it back, focus on flavour and seasonality.
Always test your recipes – I have a running notes of ideas for book and recipes, both sweet and savoury, and then will take the notes and make them, from my mind first. I always test my recipes for my books, but most food people don’t, they just write them, which I think is silly. My chocolate cake recipe from Sugar, I Love You was tested 45 times.
Flip things around when presenting – as soon as you realise you want to be the person you’re watching, you can be more comfortable. You’re able to be confident and do your thing. You have to flip it, go backwards, and look at how you want to be watched.
Silence isn’t awkward – people are quiet because they’re listening to you. See quietness as a sign of “I’ve got this space”, I’m going to put all of this information into the sponge that’s in their brain, and I’m going to fill it up as much as I can, so that they walk away with a good impression. It’s okay to sit in the silence, be comfortable with it, it’s always longer in your head than it is in reality.
Working hard is cool – you have to be willing to work hard to get where you want. There will be a difference in what you’re able to achieve if you put the time in. I enjoy working all the time, and the rewards are better for me.
Educate yourself first – if you’re going to do something yourself, educate yourself in the systems of it first, otherwise it’s very easy to be led astray. Knowing the background stuff gives you longevity and you don’t give away your power, because there are lots of people ready to screw you over.
No one is ever nailing everything – no one is ever doing it all, really well. It’s okay to let things drop, you can’t juggle everything all of the time, so you have to let certain things go.
Thank you Rav <3
More from us soon,
Gemma Bell & Company