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Dylan McGrath was born in the Rotunda hospital in Dublin on the 4th August 1977 and moved to Carlow soon afterwards. When Dylan was seven the family moved to the Falls Road in Belfast, which, at the height of the Troubles, was a big adjustment for the family.
When Dylan was 17 he left home and went to Portrush Catering College but only lasted a couple of months. He admits that he had a wild streak and was not interested in discipline, and it was a desire for freedom rather than a love of food that led him there. He then went to Belfast Institute to try another catering course, but wasn’t inspired by what he was learning there either. Although he had a natural talent for food he was uninterested in learning about keeping a store cupboard and health and safety basics.
Within three weeks of starting his first job in Jury's Inn, Belfast, Dylan was given the job of Head Chef. He realized that if he could achieve this while only 18, that the sky was the limit. He then left Jury’s to work in Roscoff, Northern Ireland’s only Michelin starred restaurant. He traded his big salary as Head Chef at Jury’s for the experience of working at the higher level on half the salary. This was his first experience of working with driven committed chefs who were truly passionate about food.
After a year at Roscoff Dylan moved to the UK to work at John Burton Race's two-star Michelin restaurant, L'Octolan, in Reading . He spent three years at the restaurant in total, and it was there he gained the discipline and military precision needed for cooking at that level.
In July of 2002 Dylan returned home to Dublin to work with an old friend, Aidan Byrne, at the Michelin-starred Commons Restaurant, where he stayed until the following March before moving back to London to work with Tom Aiken in his new restaurant in Chelsea.
Working with Tom Aiken was hard but hugely influential and Tom recognized Dylan's ability and drive and pushed him to his limit. At that time Dylan was still only 26 and he was working at a restaurant that had been rated the eighth best in the world. The hours were punishing and the schedule grueling but he eventually became the Head Chef and worked side by side with Tom.
Dylan returned home to take up his own Head Chef position in Mint restaurant in Ranelagh. The restaurant was hailed as one of the most exciting places to eat in the country and Dylan earmarked as a chef to watch. It received many accolades, among them; a Michelin star, Food and Wine best chef and best wine list, hotel and a catering gold award for excellence. It was the only restaurant, besides Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud, to receive 2 stars in Georgina Campbell’s guide. The restaurant closed in 2009 due to the economic downturn and the fact that they were a small restaurant serving less than 40 covers.
In August 2010, Dylan announced the opening of his new restaurant "Rustic Stone”. For several months Dylan and his team worked to create an original concept that maintained his own distinctive innovative style and creativity, but at a price that was affordable and accessible to everyone. “At Rustic Stone our philosophy is simple, we source the best seasonal ingredients available, apply simple techniques to extract the best flavour and at the same time we give the customer the information they require to add nutrition and structure to their diet”, he said. Rustic Stone is a new casual dining, contemporary restaurant which delivers on the flavours Dylan is so passionate about but without the formality he previously would have been associated with.
Nick Munier was born on 4th August 1967 in Kent to parents Elaine and Jean. He has one older brother, Pascal.
Nick helped his parents in their guesthouse from a young age, which gave him a good background in service. After leaving school at 16 with a basic qualification of GCSE’s, Nick followed catering school with a stint in Germany.
When Nick returned from Germany he secured a job with the Roux brothers in London. He was only 18 and was working in one of the most famous restaurants in the UK. In total he stayed for two years, learning and honing his craft.
In 1991 he joined the K Club as Restaurant manager, in the hotels Michelin starred restaurant, spending a year there before receiving a call to come for interview as an assistant restaurant manager in Marco Pierre White’s 2-Michelin star restaurant The Hyde Park in London.
Nick spent almost a decade working with Marco on and off, with time spent managing many of his restaurants, including The Hyde Park, The Oak Room, The Criterion Brasserie, and The Belvedere, Holland Park.
A call from chef Conrad Gallagher, who had just opened a restaurant called Peacock Alley, led to a return to Dublin. Nick only lasted two weeks, as Conrad had forgotten to tell him that he actually had an existing restaurant manager. However one good thing came out of this short spell in Dublin-Nick met his future wife Denise McBrien from Clondalkin.
In 2002 Nick moved back to Ireland to work as manager for one year in Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud. The Clarence Hotel, Dublin appointed Nick as their Food and Beverage manager in 2003-2006.
Nick Spent 2006 & 2007 working in a consultancy capacity for the start up of many new projects in Ireland, including “The Village at Lyons” for Tony Ryan, “Bon Appetit” in Malahide, “Ivans” in Howth, “The Exchange Restaurant” at the Westgrove hotel in Clane, Co. Kildare and “One Pery Square” in Limerick.
In 2007 Marco Pierre White asked Nick if he would be interested in being a maitre d on camera on his new TV show Hell’s Kitchen. Nick agreed, thinking he would barely be featured on camera. However once the series went to air and achieved six million viewers Nick was soon getting recognised out and about on the street.
When Hell’s Kitchen finished, Nick returned to Dublin and took a job at l‘Ecrivain, although he left after a short period.
Nick had been toying with the idea of opening the restaurant for around two years, and in July 2009 that dream finally came true when Nick, along with his business partner Stephen Gibson (who he worked with at l’Ecrivain) opened their restaurant “Pichet” on Trinity St. Pichet was an instant success. Within 6 weeks they were breaking even. Within 6 months of opening Pichet was awarded a Bib Gourmand by the esteemed Michelin Guide. It continues to do very well and has secured a loyal clientele.
Nick’s second great passion is abstract art and has been painting in this form for the last 10 years. He has held 3 solo and 2 group exhibitions in Ireland and 2 group exhibitions in England.
Nick and Denise married in 2003 and had their reception in the The Clarence hotel. They have three sons, Conan (14), Luc (6), and Alex (3). During rare time off from work, Nick likes to take the kids to McDonalds and the cinema. They live in Ballinteer in South Dublin.
