Great British Menu contestant Caroline Martins is the Brazilian chef in Manchester creating fusion dishes that look like something out of a fairy tale.
From edible candles made from beef fat to desserts disguised as the archetypal poisonous toadstool known as fly agaric, appearance and reality diverge on the plate at her Ancoats’ fusion pop-up The São Paulo Project.
Now, as well as sending foodies flocking to Blossom Street Social and Exhibition MCR, she’s appearing on our TV screens this week in the North West heat of BBC Two’sGreat British Menu – representing Manchester as one of four regional contestants.
Image: The Manc Eats
This will be her second appearance on the show, following on from her 2022 debut where she faced off against fellow North West chefs Dave Critchley, Sam Lomas and Stevie Lamb.
Playful as ever, her 2022 Great British Menu dishes will paid homage to her favourite BBC shows, including Monty Python and Red Dwarf.
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When does Great British Menu North West heat air on BBC Two?
Series 18 of the professional cheffing competition airs on BBC Two from Tuesday 31 January at 8pm, and will be screened every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night for the following eight weeks.
This year, the North West heat starts on Tuesday 21 February.
Who is 2022 Great British Menu chef Caroline Martins?
Born in Barretos, Brazil, Caroline Martins spent her twenties training and then working as a physicist to fulfill her family’s ambitions, before making the switch to cheffing in a curveball career move.
Originally hailing from the “Brazilian Texas”, she always wanted to cook but in her early years felt this was not an option. Instead, she moved to nearby São Paulo to complete a science degree, a masters, and then a doctorate in Plasma Physics.
After graduating with her Ph.D., she first worked as a theoretical physicist in Cadarache, France, then took a role as a researcher at The University of Texas, Austin, but spent most of her time waiting for the day to finish so that she could go and explore her true passion: cooking.
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As she neared thirty, she took the plunge and after some encouragement from friends applied to Brazilian MasterChef – drawn in by the prize, which was to study at European culinary school Le Cordon Bleu.
She didn’t win, but her savings enabled her to travel to study at the London school anyway. Scrimping to get by, she opted to take the intensive six-month course – working six days a week, living in a flat with ten other people, sharing a bedroom and getting up at 5am to shower in order to fulfill her lifelong dream.
Caroline Martins first kitchen job after graduating from Le Cordon Bleu took her to Hotel Castel in Tyrol on the Austrian border, where she studied under Thomas Kostner. / Image: Caroline Martins
Caroline Martins CV, career and Michelin star experience
Caroline Martins’ first job after graduating from Le Cordon Bleu took her to Italy, where she spent six months at two Michelin star Trenkerstube at Hotel Castel in Tyrol, on the Austrian border.
Working for free in exchange for bed, board and (most importantly) Michelin star kitchen experience, she graduated with her diploma on the Saturday and by 7am on Monday had already started work.
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Hoping to practise her Italian, she was surprised to find everyone there spoke German and relied heavily on Google Translate to get her through.
Upon returning to London, she worked in a number of esteemed restaurants including the theatrical two-star Kitchen Table at Bubbledogs in Fitzrovia and one-star dining rooms Galvin La Chapelle and Pied à terre.
Hand-dived scallop, cassava mousseline, heart of palm and dehydrated papaya seed at The São Paulo Project. / Image: The Manc Eats
A beef fat ‘candle’ served at The São Paulo Project as part of the Bread Course, alongside caramelised onion butter and Calabrese sausage brioche rolls. / Image: The Manc Eats
The São Paulo Project in Ancoats, Manchester
Caroline is now focused on bringing haute Brazilian cuisine to the UK with her São Paulo Project, undertaking a three-month residency at Ancoats wine bar Blossom Street Social in 2022 before launching her Sao Paulo Bistro at Exhibition MCR.
Here, she’s fusing Brazilian ingredients like heart of palm and guava with local produce from independent Mancunian suppliers in an exciting fine dining-style menu.
Putting a modern twist on dishes found across the 26 states of Brazil, she’s showing diners that Brazilian gastronomy is more than just steakhouses and feijoada. She has also just announced the return of her Sao Paulo Project at Blossom Street Social, this time with a more casual twist.
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Her ultimate ambition is to open the first Brazilian fine dining restaurant in England. Currently, there is only one in the world to be found outside of Brazil, the Parisian restaurant Oka. Navigating between France and Brazil, last year it attained its first Michelin star.
Met Office gives verdict on how Storm Boelo aftermath will affect Greater Manchester this week
Emily Sergeant
Storm Boelo is finally on his way out, and now the Met Office has given its verdict on what we can expect from the rest of the week.
In the aftermath of two successive storms, Storm Austen followed by Storm Boelo – the latter of which affected Greater Manchester – the UK is now able to begin recovering from the effects of the adverse weather.
But the Met Office has warned that, although there is no named storm, strong winds and heavy rain will continue to affect parts of the UK early this week, before high pressure brings calmer conditions.
Yellow national severe weather warnings are in place for parts of Scotland and western areas of the UK today (Tuesday 27 October), including areas of the North West, as gales and spells of rain bring the potential for ongoing disruption around the region, particularly on exposed coasts and higher ground.
“The continued winds could hamper recovery efforts in some places,” forecasters also unfortunately confirmed.
⚠️ Strong winds and heavy rain continue across parts of the UK early this week with a yellow weather warning in place, before high pressure brings calmer conditions for many from Wednesday ⛅
Read our news release to find out more 👇
https://t.co/EQU4vvaA3B https://t.co/hpvTd8v7EZ
As rest of the week pans out though, conditions will begin to settle down and showers are expected to become ‘less frequent’, while winds also ease for most, although gales could continue for a time in the far north.
Thursday is expected be ‘largely dry’ with lighter winds and variable cloud, with a touch of mist and fog likely across parts of England and Wales during the morning.
From Friday and into the weekend, light rain will team up to potentially affect northwestern areas of England, but for the most part, temperatures are expected to remain close to, or slightly above, average for the time of year.
“From Wednesday, high pressure will start to build which will ease the winds and bring a quieter and largely drier end to the week for many, although some rain is still possible in the North and West,” explained Met Office Deputy Chief Forecaster, Steven Keates.
“However, with wind warnings in place, those in warnings areas, particularly in northern Scotland and western high ground, continue to be exposed to strong winds and heavy rain before the more settled weather arrives.”
Featured Image – The Manc Group
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Popular pumpkin patch attraction describes ‘catastrophic’ impact of Storm Boelo
Daisy Jackson
Bates Farm, one of the most popular pumpkin patch attractions in the North West, has shared its heartbreak after Storm Boelo forced its closure on the busiest day of the season.
The Warrington-based family farm said the financial impact has been ‘honestly catastrophic’, after they had to cancel all tickets for Sunday.
Sisters Ali and Fiona Wilshaw, who run the farm, said it was simply not safe to allow members of the public onto the farm in the storm, with ‘crazy’ gusts of wind.
They later shared a video that showed their marquee was badly damaged and many footpaths turned to deep mud.
The sisters said they were ‘heartbroken’ to have to close at such a busy time, but stressed to followers that ‘your safety and our integrity will always come first’.
On Saturday, as Storm Austen and Storm Boelo chased each other across the UK, several people shared videos of themselves getting battered by the weather at Bates Farm.
And it’s pretty clear from that why Ali and Fi decided to cancel all tickets and close for the day on Sunday.
They wrote: “We have put in so much love, energy and investment putting on this event at this scale. The cost to cancel and refund everyone today on our busiest day of the season is honestly catastrophic, but business aside, your safety and our integrity will always come first.
“To think last night we were running round Tesco trying to stock up on milk and now we are in the depths of recovering the site to go again tomorrow. All emails and enquiries are being responded to as quickly as possible and we are doing our best to open up more available slots next week.
“We are being tested like never before, but pulling together in true force. Huge shout out to the whole team and Farmer Fi the absolute queen in any crisis.
“Thank you all for your patience and especially thank you to those who have sent such kind words and support, we are so grateful to have customers like you.
“We will be back tomorrow to enjoy the remaining of this tough season, we are putting in so many provisions with wood chip paths, undercover seating and an indoor barn to make your visit as enjoyable as possible. Ali & Fi.”
Anyone who had tickets to visit Bates Farm on Sunday will be refunded, and can book in for another date.
Bates Farm has safely reopened its autumnal experience and pumpkin patch today.
Georgina Pellant -
21st February 2023 
