For any seasoned MasterChef fan the critics strike fear into any contestant, even the professionals!
One of the established MasterChef critics is the always glamourous Grace Dent who has received international acclaim for her regular Guardian column as their resident restaurant critic & is revered & feared in equal measure by restaurateurs & chefs across the UK.
Grace Dent wasn’t always going to be a restaurant/food critic & her journey to journalism started in the most unusual of publications.
Grace Dent grew up in 1970’/80’s Carlisle with her Mam, Dad & younger brother David. Her younger years involved the freedom of playing outdoors until dusk with hoards of other local children. In her 2020 memoir ‘Hungry’, Grace talks fondly of time spent making “sketty” with her Dad utilising a can of Campbell’s condensed cream of tomato soup for a bolognase base, the excitement of a new ASDA supermarket in their local town & the changes this made to their eating habits.
Grace makes many references to new crazes in food, meant to help ease the burdens of busy working mums. New products such as Ice Magic – a chocolate sauce topping which hardens when poured over ice cream, Tip top cream – long life tinned cream, Ready Brek – instant porridge were all designed with time saving in mind & formed an integral part of 1970/80’s food culture.
Growing up in a working class family (reference ‘Hungry’), Grace Dent was never encouraged to consider furthering her education beyond a basic primary/secondary experience. Her access to classic literature such as those written by A.A Milne or C.S Lewis, or access to any form of foreign language exposure, was non existent.
Despite the geographic disadvantages Grace faced growing up in 1980’s Carlisle, she was always determined to succeed. Her memoir shares her dreams of always wanting to “be really glamourous”
Grace’s secondary education was provided by Caldew Secondary & like a lot of young women of her age, she faced leaving school with no real opportunities being opened up to her for further education. Her one enjoyment throughout her time at Caldew was what was then known as Home Economics, in which she excelled.
Grace’s first brush with journalism came when she had a letter posted in the then NME publication. Her subsequent journey in to Sixth Form saw Grace read English, History & Art & despite all the odds, Grace was accepted to the University of Sterling to read English Literature in 1992.
During her time at University, Grace started writing for the campus fanzine Mental Block & by 1994 Grace had already started looking further afield to broaden her journalistic horizons.
By 1996 & having already written dozens of letters to editors in London for work experience, Grace discovered a competition in the back of one of the Cosmopolitan magazines offering a prize which included meeting Marcelle D’Argy Smith, work experience at National Magazines in London & a chance to see your own work in writing.
When the letter arrived inviting her to the Groucho Club to meet D’Argy Smith, she knew this was a huge opportunity. However, lack of experience meant that at this point Grace was overlooked & it was then she made a choice to move to London full time & make it her mission to get to where she wanted to be.
Having missed out originally on the Cosmopolitan competition, Grace soon found her first journalism job in Chat Magazine being responsible for interviewing the ‘real life’ letter writers.
Grace’s journalistic journey took her to work for Eva magazine & subsequently began work experience at Marie Claire. Her life started to change when at 26 years old, she began paid work at Marie Claire as an Editorial Assistant. Although this did not involve any writing, it did expose Grace to an entirely new world of celebrity, first class travel, photo shoots & international food cultures.
By the year 2000 Grace had migrated with some of the Marie Claire writers to the Daily Mirror to write for their new woman’s magazine M. She then worked for the Independent & the Guardian & by 2011 Grace had worked her way to becoming the Evening Standard food critic.
This is where Grace’s foody journey really cemented itself. In 2013 Grace appeared in her very first episode of MasterChef the Professionals as part of the critics table & by October 2017 The Guardian Newspaper had offered her the job of restaurant critic.
Now a familiar face on television & in print, Grace Dent has forged her career through her determination & fearless belief in her abilities. Despite her memoir ‘Hungry’ often referring to her issues with “imposter syndrome” Grace Dent is a woman to be reckoned with on & off the screen, a woman who can strike fear into the hearts of restaurateurs & chefs alike, whilst maintaining her glamourous, effervescent energy in all that she achieves.
Written & cited by Katy-Jane Mason for & on behalf of Virtually Smart Ltd.
Grace Dent’s Memoir ‘Hungry’ has been used as a point of reference for this article.
