Andrew Fairlie (21 November 1963 – 22 January 2019) was a Scottish chef. Fairlie was the head chef of the eponymous

Restaurant Andrew Fairlie Restaurant Andrew Fairlie, also known as Andrew Fairlie at Gleneagles, is a restaurant serving British cuisine located within the Gleneagles Hotel near Auchterarder, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. In operation since 2001, it was run by chef Andrew ...

, an independent business within the

Gleneagles Hotel Gleneagles Hotel is a hotel near Auchterarder, Scotland. It was commissioned by the Caledonian Railway and opened in 1924. The bandleader, Henry Hall (bandleader), Henry Hall, performed at the hotel before the World War II, Second World War d ...

and Resort, in Auchterarder, Perthshire. Restaurant Andrew Fairlie is the only restaurant in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

with two

Michelin star The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The acquisition or loss of a ...

s, and 1 of only 22 in the UK.

Early life and education

Fairlie was born in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Scotland, and grew up in the city's Letham area. At age 15, he began his training in Perth under chef Keith Podmore, having become interested in food after starting a job polishing glasses at a hotel. At age 20, he was awarded the first

Roux Scholarship The Roux Scholarship is a cooking competition for up and coming chefs in the UK. Set up by the brothers Michel and Albert Roux, and now run by their sons Alain Roux and Michel Roux Jr. It was first run in 1984 with Andrew Fairlie being named the ...

, giving him the chance to train with French chef

Michel Guérard Michel Guérard (; born 27 March 1933) is a French chef, author, one of the founders of ''nouvelle cuisine'', and the inventor of ''cuisine minceur''. Early life and education Michel Guérard was born in 1933 in the Paris suburb of Vétheuil. At ...

at Les Pres d'Eugenie in

Les Landes Les Landes is an area of coastal heathland in the north-west of Jersey. It has been designated as a ''Site of Special Interest'' (SSI) since 1996. The site is the largest of its kind in Jersey at 160 ha. Site of Special Interest Les Landes ...

. Fairlie also spent time working at the

Hôtel de Crillon Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel () is a historic luxury hotel in Paris which opened in 1909 in a building dating to 1758. Located at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, the Crillon, along with the Hôtel de la Marine, is one of two identical st ...

in Paris.

Career

After returning to the UK, he held a number of positions before returning home to Scotland. At One Devonshire Gardens—where he was appointed head chef in 1994—he won his first Michelin star, the only one in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

at the time. Fairlie opened his own restaurant at the Gleneagles Hotel in 2001 and received a Michelin star within eight months. At Gleneagles he created his signature dish, a locally sourced lobster smoked over whisky barrel chips. He also began growing rare fruits and vegetables for use in his dishes. In 2005, Fairlie catered the

31st G8 summit The 31st G8 summit was held on 6–8 July 2005 at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland and hosted by Prime Minister Tony Blair. The locations of previous G8 summits to have been hosted by the UK include: London (1977, 1984, 1991); and ...

. The restaurant was awarded a second Michelin star in 2006. In 2017,

became the first Scottish establishment included in Les Grandes Tables du Monde, a guide listing the most distinguished restaurants in the world. On 6 November 2018, Fairlie announced he would step down from his Gleneagles restaurant after revealing he had a terminal brain tumour, and would leave the operation of the restaurant to his head chef and business partner effective February 2019.

Personal life

Fairlie was first diagnosed with cancer in 2005. He was first married to Ashley, with whom he had two daughters, but the marriage ended in divorce. After receiving his terminal diagnosis, he married his partner, Kate, in November 2018. He died on 22 January 2019 from a

brain tumour A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secondary ...

. Fairlie's family announced his death. His father Jim Sr. and brother Jim Jr. are both involved in politics with the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...

Highlights and awards

In 2002, ''Hotels'' magazine voted Restaurant Andrew Fairlie one of the world's top ten hotel restaurants. In the same year he became the inaugural Scottish Chef of the Year. During the

G8 Summit 2005 The 31st G8 summit was held on 6–8 July 2005 at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland and hosted by Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Tony Blair. The locations of previous G8 summits to have been hosted by the UK in ...

he cooked for

the Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

and 44 of the world's leaders. In 2006, he was AA Chef's Chef of the Year. He was named a Relais & Chateaux Grand Chef du Monde in 2011, one of just seven in the UK. In 2012 Restaurant Andrew Fairlie topped the Sunday Times Food List of the top 100 UK restaurants.

Politics

During the

Scottish independence referendum A referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom was held in Scotland on 18 September 2014. The referendum question was, "Should Scotland be an independent country?", which voters answered with "Yes" or "No". The "No" side wo ...

in 2014, Fairlie declared his support for Scottish independence. He was a member of the

Yes Scotland Yes Scotland was the organisation representing the parties, organisations, and individuals campaigning for a ''Yes'' vote in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. It was launched on 25 May 2012 and dissolved in late 2014 after Scotland voted ...

's campaign advisory board.

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

Highlights and awards

Politics

References

See also