Gary Barlow visits Oakham eatery
Take That star Gary Barlow dined at a popular Oakham restaurant last week shortly before performing at his sold out show in Leicester.
Pictures of his visit to the Fish Tank Sushi on Thursday, April 26 were posted on the restaurant’s Facebook page along with the following message: “Lovely catch up with our friend, Mr Barlow, who joined us for a bit of dinner last night before his sell out show in Leicester. Always a pleasure.”
The restaurant in Church Street is owned by husband and wife team Romy and Sam Letteri.
They met while working in tour kitchens across the world for stars such as Elton John, Rhianna, Olly Murs, Bastille and Take That.
Gary, who found worldwide fame as a member of Take That, is a long term friend of theirs.
Romy said Gary was extremely busy and they appreciated him taking time out of his busy schedule to visit them.
The couple, who have two daughters, said they “couldn’t be happier” living and working in Rutland full time after opening the restaurant in September last year.
They praised the area’s community spirit, beauty and the fact that it is home to an “abundance of incredible food and local eateries available”.
“We are truly spoilt,” they said.
Sharing a passion for sushi, it was while on a trip to Stockholm that Sam and Romy realised it was the one food missing “back home”.
After many years of making sushi, Sam enrolled in several courses which enabled him to study all aspects of Japanese cooking including traditional, modern, and pan Asian styles.
“The more you learn, the more fascinating the art of sushi becomes,” he said.
“Everyday, I find myself learning, acquiring new techniques, and forever discovering ways to improve.”
On completing his training, Sam, felt confident he could fill Rutland’s only missing culinary niche.
Having lived and worked across Asia for many years, he knew exactly what dishes he wanted to bring to life and feature on the menu.
“We wanted to bring our favourite food to Rutland, a new dimension to the Asian eating experience,” he said.
“Indian and Chinese is great but there’s so much more this fantastically diverse continent has to offer.”
