Niche Hospitality’s newest restaurant on Newport High Street has announced the appointment of vastly experienced Steve White as executive head chef.

Multi-award winning Steve, aged 41, from Newport, has had a long and distinguished career in cooking. The next step in his career is working in Newport’s soon-to-be opened food joint, Sixteen.

Ground breaking Niche Hospitality already has Mojo The FoodBar and Riverside Bar and Kitchen in Clarence Place in its stable. It says Sixteen will be an ‘edgy’ steak and chicken joint.

Lewis Lewis and Seng Koh, joint owners of Niche Hospitality Group, said: “We are thrilled to have been able to appoint such a skilled and experienced chef as Steve to become executive head chef of Sixteen. Steve will be able to deliver the high standard of food that we always strive to give our customers.”

Steven said: “ From a very young age I have been brought up with cooking all around me from my dad growing fruit, vegetables and herbs in his garden to my mum and grandmothers cooking Jams, chutneys and pickles, fresh bread proving in our airing cupboard to cooking toast on an open wood burning fire at my grans house.”

Steve, most recently head chef at The Ruperra Arms, Bassaleg, Newport, said: “My background has mainly been in hotels as I started my catering career 27 years ago from at the age of 14. I was in the kitchens of the Celtic Manor on work experience knowing and I knew this was the trade I wanted to be in.

“Working in all of the hotels Newport has or had in those days I felt I needed a change so I went into the public house / restaurant trade where I knew my experience would be more appreciated in the fields of pastry chef and Banqueting chef at the Celtic Manor.”

During his time at the Celtic Manor, Steve gained a number of accolades including: Welsh Culinary Champion 1995, cooked for the Queen in 2002, Welsh international culinary champion 2006 and Good Food award winner 2015, 2016 and 2017.

He said: “I got attracted to the position because I feel I could bring what I have done in previous roles to the heart of Newport. In producing high end cuisine, using my knowledge in using local ingredients from around the area and from around Wales and now using cuts of meats, steaks and chicken from all around the world.

“I’m looking forward to any challenge that gets put in front of me. I always put more than 100 per cent in to anything that I do, always giving the 5 star standard and with a restaurant like Sixteen I cannot wait to, as they say, 'dig your heels in'.

“I also cannot wait to see the future achievements and accolades during my time in what is going to be an amazing restaurant and show casing my talents within the background of my 27 years of catering.”

Sixteen is set to have a ‘soft’ opening on Saturday, September 30.