New year, new direction for top chef Tom

In an era when prices seem to be rising all of the time, one of the capital's best-known names is bucking the trend at his restaurant, as Kathryn Williams reports

- Kathryn Williams

HIS name is synonymous with fine dining at its best in Cardiff but Thomas Simmons is ringing the changes this new year and switching up his titular restaurant's offering - by making it cheaper.

First opened just weeks before the pandemic, the Pembrokeshire chef brought his London-crafted kitchen sensibilities and love of Welsh produce and creativity to the heart of Pontcanna, switching the long-lasting Cameo club into a high-end brasserie which has brought in food fans from near and far.

But this year, the chef says he realised the restaurant needed a change. It's not a decision taken lightly but it's a necessary move from the venue's expected fare of serious fine dining with serious skill.

That skill won't go to waste but the decision behind the switch-up to a more everyday accessible menu comes from a sensible need to survive and an honest realisation people don't have the spare cash to spend at “destination” restaurants.

“We've slowly become quieter as I think most people have,” said Tom.

“And the knee-jerk reaction to being quieter for a lot of people is to put their prices up because they need to make as much money off less people.

“We tried that and it’s just backing yourself into a corner. We know there are people that go out for food in the week - we know that because I walk past restaurants.

“So we just thought: ‘How can we tap into that?’ It’s almost the definition of insanity, isn’t it, doing the same thing and expecting a different result?

“People’s eating habits have changed. People's priorities have changed. Everything has changed.

“And I've got a group of really talented chefs and when we go out for food I just want something that really tastes great. No fuss - just great ingredients, cooked really well, and you don’t need to charge through the roof for it.”