Meet the Cork chef who has cooked for Prince, Shakira, Celine Dion and even Putin

It’s not every chef who gets to cook for princes and presidents.

But seasoned chef Jack Faltyn, who is re-opening Roastie Grill in Midleton, has done just that on numerous occasions.

I spoke to Jack before the soft re-opening of Roastie Grill, as he was busy baking white chocolate and coconut cheesecake for his enthusiastic customers to savour.

The restaurant announced its closure before Christmas, but to the relief of its many patrons, it has now reopened under new ownership.

It’s been some journey for Jack, who, as a young boy, learned to cook from his granny.

His culinary journey has included cooking for pop stars Prince, Shakira, and Celine Dion - and even Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I have come a long way since my granny showed me how to make her home-made duck dish and her special pasta,” says Jack, who is from near Wroclaw in Poland.

“I always seemed to have a natural flair for cooking ever since I was a small boy.”

When Jack became a man, loving cooking and creating dishes, he happily made up his mind that his career was going to be in the hospitality business cooking in the kitchens around the world.

One man wasn’t that happy about his son’s future decision.

“My dad said that cooking was not for a man!” says Jack laughing.

But he went with his gut.

“I went in my own direction, and I got a place in college when I was 17 to study gastronomy,” says Jack, who has two brothers and three sisters.

“My first job was in a hotel in Poland where I was a kitchen assistant preparing potatoes and salad. I had to scrub the pots and pans as well!”

Jack scrubbed up well.

“My employers were very pleased with me,” he says Jack. “They told me that I was very quick and very efficient.”

The world was his oyster.

“In Poland, you must serve time in the army,” says Jack. “I catered for the soldiers and the officers at three locations in the former Yugoslavia. Some of the soldiers were peacekeepers with Nato.

“I cooked for 800 to 1,000 people every day, morning, and evening. It was a 24-hour job. I got up at 3am to prepare the food that I cooked on site for the men’s meals.”

Jack worked his way up in the catering industry, and he got to see the world.

“After working in a five-star hotel doing functions and banqueting, I joined a cruise ship on the Princess cruise ship line,” he says.

“I got to travel for six months, seeing the world, in places like Miami and Mexico. On the ship, there would be theme nights, and I cooked a variety of dishes, including Thai food, out on the open deck for the guests.” 

Jack, on the ocean wave, honed his culinary skills.

“I remember leading a team of 20 chefs out on deck for a baked Alaska show when we presented the dessert lit up with fire. It was good fun. The passengers loved it.”

Jack got a taste for travel.

“I worked in an Italian restaurant in Glasgow for two years,” he says.

“I loved the buzz of the city and the traditional music in the pubs.

“Glaswegians are very friendly, like Cork people. The Scottish people told me I was a diamond!”

It was Jack’s friend that lured him to the Emerald Isle.

“I worked in Clare Island, Tipperary, Roscrea, the Carlton Kinsale and Hayfield Manor, Cork,” he says.

He also explored the gourmet capital of Ireland. “I loved Kinsale in the summer,” says Jack. “I loved its beauty. I spent two happy years there. It is so beautiful.”

He was then lured to work in the City of Love.

“The five-star hotel that I worked in in Paris was amazing,” says Jack. “It was a Michelin Star hotel, and I was head chef there.”

Now he had reached the pinnacle of his career, he wanted a taste of home, and moved to his homeland to work.

“The restaurant in Poland was very famous,” says Jack.

The people he cooked for were very famous too.

“I cooked for Prince, Shakira and Celine Dion. At the time Shakira was dating a member of the Euro soccer team. The couple were very appreciative of my cooking.”

The KGB weren’t so sure that Jack’s culinary skills would cut the mustard.

“I cooked in a separate kitchen for President Putin,” says Jack. “I was very nervous.

“The special agents tasted the food before it was served to Mr Putin. Then they watched the President while he ate.”

Jack, behind the scenes, kept watch too.

“Mr Putin seemed to enjoy my cooking,” he says. “All went well, and I was asked to cook for him on another occasion. He came back!”

When Jack visited his brother in Ireland, he got back his grá for Ireland, and for Cork in particular.

“I visited Andrzey when he was working in Hayfield Manor,” says Jack. “I did a stint for a while at the hotel too.

“We discussed a start-up business, and I advised Andrzey and his partner on looking at opening a coffee and deli shop in Midleton.

“Today, they own Toasties around the corner from me.”

Now, Jack, proud owner of Roasties Grill in the East Cork town, has opened for business.

“I am so excited,” he says. “The people here in Midleton were so disappointed when the original Roasties closed before Christmas.

“Meeting local people on the street, they were all so sorry the restaurant had to close down. The flooding didn’t help matters.

“But now here we are, four of us, ready to open our doors. I can’t wait.”

The white chocolate and coconut cheesecake is ready.

“You must try it,” says Jack. “Take a piece home with you.”

Jack is a people person, and he is somebody who shops local.

“I know everybody in Supervalu. They ask me every day, when are you opening?” he said.

He knows the butcher and the baker.

“I deal with Jimmy of Crowleys butchers and O’Farrells butchers across the road,” says Jack. “And occasionally I use a local baker, but I do most of the cooking and the baking myself.”

Jack, who has worked in 25 hotels and seven restaurants to date, is top in his field.

“I love the cooking and the baking,” he says. “I much prefer to cook than being in an office working. Meeting the people is so nice. Cooking for them is so nice.”

Being appreciated is so nice too.

“You must come back again for the coffee,” says Jack.

I don’t need to be asked twice. After all, Jack has cooked for the great and the good.