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Petersham Nurseries has announced that Aaron Potter has been appointed as Head Chef of La Goccia, the Italian-inspired restaurant at Petersham Nurseries Covent Garden. Here, Aaron leads a team of ten chefs to produce exceptional quality, ingredient-led small plates.

At only 27 years old, Aaron has had a huge wealth of experience in fine dining, with a strong philosophy of using sustainability farmed produce that matches up perfectly with the Petersham ethos. Aaron trained on the Specialised Chefs Scholarship at Bournemouth and Poole College under his then work placement mentor, Adam Byatt.

After a stint in New York, followed by a few months at Claridges, Aaron joined the acclaimed restaurant Trinity in Clapham where he worked his way up to Senior Sous Chef under Head Chef Adam Byatt.

A kitchen based around modern European fine dining, the menus at Trinity showcase classical French cookery with flair. At the time Trinity was awarded a Michelin star in October 2016, Aaron was running the kitchen from a day-to-day basis, a huge achievement for such a young chef.

Aaron is particularly passionate about Italian food, and excited about the prospect of developing a refreshed menu for La Goccia that is truly nose-to-tail.

Moving from fine dining to a more casual setting, Aaron is relishing the opportunity to use the best seasonal produce from Haye Farm, and works closely with Harry Boglione, to choose the best ingredients each week. Aaron hopes to create a new direction for La Goccia, excited about the challenge of a new cuisine and looking forward to using the woodfired oven.

Aaron says of his appointment;

“I’m excited to become part of the Petersham Nurseries family, having dined in Richmond many times over the years, and more recently in Covent Garden. I’m looking forward to putting my own twist on Italian cicchetti and small plates, and it’s great to work behind an open counter at La Goccia where you can interact with guests. Another thing that drew me to this role is the many charitable opportunities it offers. Having supported homeless charities in my previous role, I look forward to involving myself in upcoming initiatives.”