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How's Pusser's Nosh nowadays? In Chatham Band circa '70/71 we held a daily competition, judged once a month for the best example of a chip from the galley that resembled anything but a chip. Preferred colour was black but the occasional reddish green one cropped up. We were nicknamed the mushroom band as we actually lived in two attics, seperated by a long, dark adjoining loftspace. This was filled with all sorts of "trophies" eg parking cones, Duty CPO's caps, Guardroom Keys, you know all the everyday essentials of a Chatham reprobate. I do believe the prize for "Chip of the month" was pick of the haul from the loftspace. Anyway, the food was superb and plentiful as Pembroke was a chef training centre at that time..I was lucky to sample Pompey food at the reunion this year and it was fabulous.. C'mon guys, what do you young serving lads think of it now?? BE BRAVE!!!! :D

admin · Posted: Mon Oct 31, 2005 8:40 pm Post subject:

Rab,
I was in Chatham Band when we moved from Pembroke upto London.
The food in Pembroke was brilliant and the 9 o'clockers were always looked forward to. They used to put the Chef's final exam food out in the main galley so it was always a good idea to be at the front of the queue on exam day (Mick Stone always knew their routine somehow!).

At Northolt we were amazed at the Coffee Machines (we were used to saff jars) and the Cook it yourself steak and egg bar! Breakfast was brilliant as it was all freshly cooked. There was also a coffee bar at the end of the 'Dining room' with a coffee machine and newspapers.

The food now is great. I was duty Thursday night and ate in the mess so know it was every day food and it was almost as good as I get at home (have to put that in case the Mrs reads this). Let's face it; you can't beat a pusser's breakfast! The food on mess dos is superb, ask DanA, he was at the last Chevrons Dinner. Now that the civvy companies are doing the catering in a lot of places the reports are mixed from establishment to establishment.

At the end of the day, the chefs' course is still the hardest course in the Armed Forces... nobody has every passed it

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Pusser · Posted: Mon Nov 07, 2005 12:33 pm Post subject:

Say what you like about Navy Chefs. 1977 firefighting Glasgow. Staff Band shoved in some Infant School Annex - really small heads and very low hand basins - with four engines each with two crews. The Station Sgt Major was a five mile sniper (will deal with him on another day) and for the first couple of weeks we had two Army cooks. Quite apart from the clash of cultures the food was.................... 'nuff said. They should have been put out of our misery.

The day a Killick Chef and his AB Chef turned up it all changed. Instantly. They shut the 'galley,' scrubbed it out, disappeared, came back with a shed load of kit and a stack of food. By lunch time they had set up a row of tables in the main corridor and a canteen/hot plate system. The small galley (cupboard) had two small domestic electric cookers and, from this space, they dished up stews, curries, pies and all the stuff to go with them, two or more desserts, fresh fruit, cheese - the lot. Tea, coffee and soup was running 24/7 and all they asked for was one body from each watch to help out. They got him!

After long shouts they were stood by to make sure everyone got a hot meal and even turned up at fire griounds in the dead of night with a 'borrowed' Rover, hot drinks, soup and sandwiches.

Christmas Dinner was excellent.

Since then, and after a stint as the VBI at Pembroke, I have held a healthy regard for Navy Chefs. They always did much better than the 'sowjars' and Light Blue Blunders.

Pusser!

Hornblower · Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2005 9:36 pm Post subject:

Best food ever? HMS Fearless when the whole of the galley was populated by Chinese cooks. (Can't remember the 'cruise' too well, I vaguely remember it might have been in the Med. 74 or 75ish)

Worst food ever? Easy. Anything 'cooked' by Royal Marine 'chefs'.

I had disgusting meals at Lympstone (not that I was ever posted there) and Poole, but undoubtedly the worst place I've ever eaten was at Deal. (No Keith, not YOUR place!) OMIGOD

can you remember the sh*te they served up?

My most lasting memory of that awful galley was getting there for breakfast and having to fight past the unmixed 'Millac' in the milk urn with a ladle to get to the 'milk' to put on your wheaties. The resulting liquid was almost unpalatable - but even that was preferable to attempting to eat a cooked breakfast. On the rare days that they put real milk out, there were actually fights breaking out to get at it before anyone else. I seem to remember that Saturday and Sunday mornings were favourite for that.

Eventually, after discovering that the only things worth eating were the baked beans, I took to hollowing out a bap - filled it with beans, plugging the end back up with bread from the inside of the roll and getting out as soon as humanly possible.

I too spent quite a lot of time at HMS Pembroke and can honestly say that the food was brill. Remember 9 o'clockers? Mmmmmmmmmm

MrJpig · Posted: Fri Nov 18, 2005 6:48 am Post subject:

Have to agree with you there Stuey.

Didn`t they used to call Marine chefs 'Fitters and Turners?'

(fit things into tins and turn it into SH*TE)

Army Colonel inspecting a troop of Marines approached first in the rank and following Q & A session takes place:

Colonel "What do you do in the Marines?
Marine "I`m a chef Sir"
Colonel " Oh a cook eh?"
Marine " No sir a Chef"
Colonel " How long have you been a cook?"
Marine " Six years sir".

(moves onto second marine in rank)

Colonel " What do you do in the Marines?"
Marine 2 "I`m a cook Sir"
Colonel " And how long have you been a cook?"
Marine "OOOOOOOOOOOOH ...about... FORTY FIVE SECONDS"
:smt027
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bootybandy · Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2005 12:57 am Post subject:

Big Al Sessions went to complain about some meal or other at an Army Barracks. Upon his arrival at the servery, Al posed the question to the grubby individual in Chefs Whites, "excuse me Chef" to which the Pongo replied, "I'm not a Chef"! to which Al retorted, " I rest my case" and left......Booty :O)
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MrJpig · Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2006 2:02 pm Post subject:

Just got a dit from a fellow bobby who is ex Army Air Corps.

He was on a course with a Bootneck who complained that the beans were cold. Percy Cook disagreed. Booty promptly pushes Cooks head into large tray of beans and while holding him there asks "What do you think Hot? Cold?
Duty officer arrives to find out the problem.........NO COMPLAINT!!
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admin · Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2006 2:13 pm Post subject:

Never trust a skinny chef!!
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