Intrigued to learn more, MARION SAUVEBOIS meets a couple who have traded their suits for a life in the restaurant trade

DITCHING the sweet comforts of the nine-to-five grind for the vagaries of the restaurant business is not for the faint of heart.

The small matter of food aside, anyone diving into catering will be bombarded by an onslaught of mind-boggling ‘housekeeping’ problems: how to make real Italian coffee? What sort of wine glasses to choose? How about table and chairs? Not to mention the biggest head-scratcher of all for The Coterie’s conscientious owners Gaye Green and Lee Buchanan, “How to serve butter?”

“That was the most difficult decision we had to make,” says Gaye, of West Swindon, with a giggle. “Do you put in on a plate? Do you make it in little florets? We decided to serve it in little pots in the end.

“You start questioning all these things. How do you lay a table? What music to play? And we had no idea how to froth milk – we actually took a course to learn. It’s all terrifying.”

A former business analyst, Lee’s love affair with food began at the office, in a manner of speaking. Thanks to extended business trips to France, Belgium and Spain and some serious “wining and dining” courtesy of swish clients, he got to sample Europe’s culinary wonders at the continent’s most exclusive restaurants.

Loath to keep his gourmet discoveries to himself, he soon attempted to recreate the experience for his friends at home in Swindon.

“That’s where my interest in food came from,” says The Coterie’s chef. “I would be taken out to dinner a lot and I wanted to share that with my friends at home, try to cook it for them.”

A keen fundraiser, the 42-year-old decided to offer his services for dinner parties in exchange for donations.

“I was always bothering people for sponsorship and, to raise funds to climb Kilimanjaro, I offered to cook for them in 2007. When I finished the fundraising, people asked me to come back and cook for them. I thought: ‘Maybe I’m all right at cooking’.”

In the intervening years he met Gaye, a fellow RWE npower employee at Windmill Hill Business Park. Romance bloomed two years ago.

His charitable sideline would have remained a hobby-horse were it not for a rather disappointing jaunt to a local eatery and blessed push out of the corporate world.

“What really started it was going out to the restaurant with friends in Swindon last year. The food was only all right but it cost us the best part of £100. I thought: ‘Maybe we could make a go of it and do it better?’ At the time npower were offering redundancy and I took it.”

But Gaye, 43, an IT service manager, was not immediately convinced.

“I didn’t immediately buy in,” she laughs. “I always wanted to do something other than work in an office but I didn’t know what,” she said.

“I had toyed with redundancy but turned it down for years. But Lee was offered redundancy and the time seemed right for me too so we did it. I thought: ‘What have we got to lose?’ Well the answer is money. But it was a great opportunity. Lee was going to do the cooking and I would still work with people front of house. My job is chatting to people, making sure they’re happy. It really suits my personality.”

Torn between different locations, the pair settled on a deceptively minute restaurant with period features and exposed beams off Cirencester’s main thoroughfare.

Their vision for The Coterie was simple – to serve fresh unassuming fare packed with flavours. There would be no laying claim to fine dining this or high end that.

“We wanted to be a cosy and intimate restaurant,” says Gaye. “It’s not pretentious.”

Lee adds: “It’s British food with French and Spanish influences. We are not trying to win accolades or to reinvent food. What we want is to make food from scratch with local ingredients.”

Putting together a varied menu catering to foodies of all descriptions – from Pescatarians and vegetarians to carnivores, not to forget the gluten and dairy free contingents – was a tricky balancing act. Thankfully Lee was able to test his creations on his band of grateful guinea pigs – his friends.

Dishes on offer now range from Iberian-inspired ham croquettes to lamb rack and sole in butter served on a bed of shrimp and mashed potato.

The finishing touches taken care of, the couple faced the most daunting task of all: opening.

“We kept putting the opening off,” admits Gaye. “We were terrified.”

Lee agrees: “I was worried I wasn’t going to be able to keep up or serve someone uncooked food.”

The anxiety-fuelled days leading up to the launch in January are now but a long forgotten nightmare.

Nine months on, The Coterie is the best rated restaurant in Cirencester and ninth in the Cotswolds on TripAdvisor.

“We couldn’t have wished for anything to go better,” says Lee with obvious relief. “Though we would love to say it was by design.”

Owning her own restaurant has had undeniable perks for Gaye, namely an in-house chef at her disposal at home and at work.

“I don’t get a day off,” moans Lee playfully. “I cook at home and at work.”

Gaye smiles: “Why have a dog and wag your own tail?”

The Coterie is at 50 Cricklade Street, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, GL7 1JN.

To make a booking, or find out about the restaurant’s Christmas menu go to www.thecoterie.co.uk or call 01285 658971.