Bowley’s at The Plough is in Trottiscliffe, a pretty village in the Kent North Down. Unusually, the restaurant is community owned by the 120 villagers who jointly invested the capital needed to rescue the 500-year-old country pub from property developers. The Yates’ family, led by Head Chef Alex Yates and his wine merchant father, David Yates, run the Michelin Guide recommended restaurant with carefully crafted a la carte and tasting menu options.

Alex, you have quite the story for such a young man. When did you realise you wanted to be a chef?

I’ve always wanted to be a chef and hospitality runs in my family. From a very young age, I would go into kitchens at Balls Brothers where my dad worked. I would watch and listen and discovered the passion and intensity of kitchens.

You spent two years at The Goring Hotel under Shay Cooper, what were the most important things you learnt?

Shay was a great mentor and inspiration, and I learnt a lot from him from how to work effectively in a stressful and testing environment while running a section and understanding the importance of striving for perfection.

Bowley’s has quite the story, being a community-owned pub, do you feel pressure to deliver for the local community?

I want to give back to the village that first created the opportunity to have what we have today, the support and encouragement from them is brilliant. Most of our ingredients are locally sourced and we work in partnership with the farmers and fishmongers closest to us to ensure animal wellbeing and to support our local economy.

We also have a strong relationship with our English winemaker, Henry at Red Hill Estate who we have created our own Bowley’s house wines with. We use the disused grapes and cut vines to make oils and chutneys from last season. We also use the vines to smoke our own fish, which means we can control all levels of flavour in the dish.

You’ve curated a considerably young team, what was the driving force behind this decision?

Our kitchen team has a current combined age of 65. I wanted to create a team that was driven and hungry to learn more, this meant investing in enthusiastic chefs who want to be the upcoming chefs in their field.

What can diners expect to see on the menu over the summer months at Bowley’s?

Our dishes follow the seasons and as spring moves into summer we are spoilt for incredible ingredients. There will be courgette flowers, heritage tomatoes, aged Sussex beef and day boat fish from Rye Harbour.

What is the best career advice you have ever received?

Have a can-do attitude and keep learning and developing. Everyday push to be better in your work through speed and precision.

Where do you see yourself in five years/ is there someone you aspire to be like?

In five years, I see myself continuing to push in the kitchen at the stove where I feel I should be. But I would love to say that we would be well known for our accolades. However, only time will tell.