Bruno Loubet

Just opened, Grain Store is the Bordeaux-born chef’s second London restaurant – a follow-up to his Zetter Hotel hotspot. Alicia Miller gets the lowdown on his culinary travels, from Barbados to Blighty, via Australia

Eating with my grandmother was always an event.

She would direct the table, gathering us around wonderful foods – barbecued rabbit with mustard and tarragon, côte de boeuf with shallots, ceps from the woods. I think it’s because of those memories of foraging that I would be a farmer if I wasn’t a chef. I don’t visit Bordeaux as often as I’d like to, but when I do, one place I eat is just outside the city at Les Sources de Caudalie (sources-caudalie.com). In Lyon, my wife and I visit Le Canut et Les Gones (her cousin’s restaurant) – it’s buzzy and the interior is quirky (lecanutetlesgones.com). La Bonâme de Bruno is also good – the chef used to work for me (http://restaurant-labonamedebruno.com).

In Australia, they have no boundaries

when it comes to food – people there have come from all over the world, so it is natural to have a mix. You’ll find Asian flavours, Arab influences, all thrown together with local produce such as finger limes – which have the texture of caviar and a taste between mandarin and lime – or lilli pilli berries, which pair well with game.

Brunch is big in Australia.

The Gunshop Café (http://thegunshopcafe.com) is the best in Brisbane but Berardo’s Bistro on the Beach in Noosa (berardos.com.au) is great too – I love sitting there on a Sunday and hearing the waves crash against the shore.

I have a favourite restaurant for every occasion.

When it’s a celebration, we’ll go to Brett Graham’s spot, The Ledbury (http://theledbury.com) but a lot of the time I like simple places, like Brawn (brawn.co) and Homeslice (homeslicepizza.co.uk), or pubs like The Bladebone Inn (thebladeboneinn.com) in Berkshire. I like the Fox and Grapes in Wimbledon (http://foxandgrapeswimbledon.co.uk) – I bring my dog, who naps under the table.

Brett Graham and I play tricks on each other.

I think it started when I planted an enormous tomato in my garden and told him I had grown it. Later I trained my dog to find truffles and planted one in the woods to ‘discover’ in front of Brett on a walk. In turn he planted bananas and pineapples in his garden and pretended that he had grown them!

I never drunk much rum until I went to Barbados.

Our guide took us to this wonderful little rum place in a quiet corner of the island. There were just locals sitting around – it was amazing! Rum there is so smooth and goes well with the spice in the food. Next time, I’II also go back to eat at Fisherpond Plantation House.

Cuba is stuck in the 1950s,

which is why I’m interested in going. It would be great to see what the real local food is all about. Though I also wouldn’t mind visiting D.O.M. in São Paulo (domrestaurante.com.br) or Mexico’s Pujol (http://pujol.com.mx) – both are using unusual ingredients to create a cuisine not seen before.

I’ll never forget eating the best kebab

in the world many years ago in Turkey. It never tastes as good in London. It just goes to show how important the setting is – I was relaxed, with family, and the only pressure was deciding how long to spend on the beach that day... http://grainstore.com