The Montagu Arms, Beaulieu, Hants

Winning the Roux Scholarship truly is a life changing experience, the opportunities that are presented to you as a result enable you to go forward in your career rapidly, and dramatically change the way in which you are perceived in the industry.

The peak of this is the opportunity to develop your skills in another country as part of your 'stage'. Without the scholarship, working in a 3* restaurant in France would have been almost impossible for me; it was a time that taught me a lot about myself and inspired me further in my career.

However, becoming a Roux Scholar is not just about the title, the prizes that you win or only about the intense 'scholarship year' that you undertake. It is also about the long term association that you will have with the organisation, the phenomenal resource that the Scholarship has become and the opportunity it gives you to learn and enjoy yourself at the same time.

For me, winning has shaped me both personally and professionally and will continue to do so for many years to come.

The Montagu Arms is a beautiful, 17th Century country house hotel set in Beaulieu, Hampshire. We have 23 bedrooms and two restaurants, Monty's and The Terrace. The Terrace can seat up to 60 guests and holds two rosettes, Monty's is an informal brasserie serving anything from sandwiches to British classics in the wood panelled bar. My role here is head chef and I have been set the targets of building the kitchen team and bringing the food forward in terms of quality and consistency. We have an abundance of fantastic suppliers here, I am able to source my fish direct from the boats at Lymington, free range meats from  local organic farmers and wild game from the New Forest. This allows us to serve excellent British produce simply and allow it to shine

The Montagu Arms was awarded a Michelin star in January 2009, just months after Matthew's arrival in the kitchen.

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