Lawrence Keogh

Christopher Stubbs, British Airways, customer experience development manager, said: "As a British airline passionate about food, we are delighted to embrace Lawrence’s food development philosophy. Working with chef Lawrence Keogh we intend to source British ingredients where we can and explore dishes and recipes that highlight seasonality to deliver a service to our customers that will be truly the best of British."

The business class-only service has been given the airline's most prestigious flight number, BA001, previously used by Concorde until its retirement in 2003

"I met Lawrence some years ago when a chance meeting came up to work alongside British Airways. We discussed how we could work together and I knew he would the right man for the job in bringing forward fresh new ideas. His easy going personality and cheery approach immediately put the team at ease and this, in turn, evolved into a great collaboration of ideas in developing our highly successful new on board experience from London to JFK. Lawrence was instrumental in diving and developing quality seasonal menus each month “on message “within our British Airways ethos. His exceptional menu planning encapsulated the essence of the British seasons and this was commended highly by customer feedback reports."

Mark Tazzioli Menu Design Manager British Airways

"I had the great pleasure of working with Lawrence on board our Stena Line ships crossing the Irish seas. Lawrence has a very easy going and helpful approach which immediately put our teams at ease. He very quickly identified a number of areas within our on-board services that needed closer focus and he was able to advise and offer solutions which created greater efficiencies and made huge reductions in waste. He also advised on training and development needs with the kitchen team and went on to assist in the design of our Business Class menus. In the time that he was with us, he proved to be a great asset to our organisation."

David Williams Executive Head Chef for Stena Line services

"I have had the pleasure of working with Lawrence on several important projects with major retailer clients of ours, namely Marks and Spencer, Tesco and Waitrose. On each occasion we needed the in-depth food knowledge, insight and passion combined with the personality that only Lawrence could provide to make the events come alive for our clients. Lawrence’s knowledge of local and sustainable food sourcing was invaluable and provided with the context of introducing us to his personal contacts in the London fine food scene. The events were tailored perfectly to meet the individual and very different needs of each customer. They were highly memorable and a great success."

Richard Walker Sales & Marketing Director, Walkers Sausage Co. (Samworth Brothers)

"Tonik have collaborated with Lawrence since 2006. His easy to work with manner and supportive attitude belie strong clear direction and a passionate and principled vision. It is always a pleasure to assist interpret his ideas and then deliver well designed costed effective restaurant environments"

Chris Harding Owner Tonik Associates

"On behalf of Corbin & King, I worked alongside Lawrence on a very special project involving the re-design and fitting of their Kitchen at The Wolseley Café & Restaurant in London. From the moment I met Lawrence, I knew that it was going to be a safe partnership between chef and designer. Lawrence was aware of the limitations and time constraints placed upon the project, but he quickly grasped how the new kitchen design should look and how the production should flow. He listened and studied our advice and, in turn, made constructive, methodical, amendments which were pivotal to the final design. This, in turn, greatly assisted me and the rest of the team in delivering a top flight kitchen to one of the busiest venues in London, serving over 1,200 A La Carte covers a day."

Gareth Sefton
Director SHW Design Ltd

"I first worked with Lawrence on board Britannia, P&O Cruises’ latest cruise ship launched in March 2015, as part of the Food Heroes initiative. P&O Cruises' Food Heroes are some of the brightest lights of the British culinary scene, each bringing their own brand of valuable expertise. James Martin is the face of The Cookery Club on Britannia, where guests get the chance to roll their sleeves up, cook and eat with their favourite chefs. Lawrence was part of The Cookery Club guest chef programme. Lawrence was fantastic to work with, a real hit with the guests and crew alike and contributed to both the guests enjoyment of the cruise and food credentials of the P&O Cruises brand."

Gerard Tempest
former Chief Commercial Officer, Carnival UK

It seems strange to say it now, but back in 2005 British food wasn’t “a thing”. Chefs were obsessed with French or Italian cuisine and Michelin stars, so when I set about creating Roast I struggled at first to find someone to control its culinary direction. But when I met Lawrence he bought into the idea straight away. He pulled together a talented team around him who shared his infectious enthusiasm for celebrating traditional dishes with the best produce we could find.
If it I hadn’t found Lawrence, Roast would have struggled to find its feet and build its foundations. But luckily I did find him and have been proud to see how his career has flourished.
Iqbal Wahhab OBE founder of Roast restaurant.