Tom Kerridge has revealed that classic ingredients are "already" disappearing from restaurant menus as food prices continue to rise.
The TV chef, who hosts BBC Two's new show The Hidden World of Hospitality with Tom Kerridge, said that ingredients like sea bass and lamb are becoming harder to find when going out for a meal.
"A lot of people will see sea bass is on a menu in one place and not in another," the 49-year-old says. "It will be things like the top-end products that are now too expensive to have on."
"Even things like lamb. Our Butcher’s Tap has taken lamb chops off the menu at the moment because they’re too expensive," he adds. "I wouldn't compromise buying cheaper quality lamb chops because it doesn't fit in the standard of what we're trying to achieve.
"There's lots of things that will be across the board. Some restaurants will just find a cheaper version of it. Restaurants will make their own decision."
He added that it is the result of food inflation.
"There are a lot of products that will start changing, not appearing as much on menus," he said. "It will only be a few selective places that will be able to absorb the cost or you're happy to pay because it is that one-off special occasion. Food inflation is a very serious issue.”
BBC Two's upcoming series sees the Great British Menu star go behind the scenes of businesses across the UK to look into the industry's biggest challenges.
From long hours and diner reviews, to threat of closure and the mission for a Michelin Star, Tom explores all of the issues that affect those working in hospitality at the moment.
The TV star also admitted that he put so much pressure on himself early in his career that he developed a "massive" alcohol problem.
"It was a release for some of the pressure that I had put on myself as a professional," he said, adding that he "wouldn't be here" if he hadn't given up drink.
"I recognised this behaviour was massively unhealthy,” he says, revealing that he's now 10 years sober. “Since I’ve stopped drinking, we’ve opened The Coach [in Marlow], won a Michelin Star there, we’ve opened a butchers, and we’ve run a festival."
Tom is best known for competing on the Great British Menu in 2010 before eventually becoming a judge on the series in 2022.
He has since hosted a number of food programmes, from Tom Kerridge's Best Ever Dishes, Tom Kerridge's Lose Weight for Good, Saving Britain's Pubs with Tom Kerridge and Tom Kerridge's Sunday Lunch.
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