Chef to the royals and Michelle Obama joins Stanley House

The award-winning Stanley House Hotel and Spa has appointed Barry Farley as head of banqueting.

Barry, who is 37 and lives in Preston, joins Stanley House from The Arena and Convention Centre, Liverpool. His career highlights include managing the catering for major events such as the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the golf Open at St Andrews and the London Olympics.

He has served dishes to an impressive guest list including; the Queen, Princess Ann, Michelle Obama and Mayor of London, Boris Johnson.

Barry was also head chef at Aintree racecourse and led the banqueting for the world-famous Grand National, helping to manage 100 chefs and serving 4,500 meals every day over the three day event.

Originally from Netherton in Merseyside, Barry’s expertise span over 20 years. His love for food started while helping out his granddad in the kitchen before attending Hugh Baird College to study catering. With a background in both restaurants and outdoor mass catering, Barry is now keen to bring his international experience to Stanley House.

He commented: “From the moment you arrive at Stanley House you can understand why it has become a premier destination.

“From experience, I have learnt that no matter how many guests you are serving, dishes should aim to wow and I’m looking forward to injecting some creative dishes at Stanley House.

“I’ve been made to feel really welcome and discovered that working at a hotel allows you to become part of a family.”

On his first day in the new role, Barry was tasked with catering for a charity event. Road works near to the hotel caused a sudden power cut and staff wondered how they would serve the 180 guests. The new head chef swung in to action getting the team to prep what they could before they ran out of daylight, while he designed a contingency catering plan.

Luckily the power returned but general manager, Philip Wharton praised the professionalism of his new chef. He said: “Barry’s first day couldn’t have been any more pressurised but it is clear that he is a natural leader who has already earned respect from his team. “His appointment and wealth of experience can only build on the success of our wedding and corporate events, encouraging more people to experience our resort-standard dining and facilities.”