Food Expert

Benoit Blin

Master of Culinary Arts and Chef Patissier at Belmond Le Manoir leads a team of 13 pastry chefs.

Benoit is chef patissier at Oxfordshire’s Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, where he has worked closely with Raymond Blanc OBE for more than 20 years.

Leading a team of 13 pastry chefs, Benoit uses his expertise to create a range of fresh breads, viennoiseries, chocolates, ice creams, pastries and plated desserts. The hotel and restaurant has held two Michelin stars for more than 30 years and is part of the prestigious Relais & Châteaux collection.

After taking up an apprenticeship at a local bakery in Normandy, Benoit’s career exploded. After a year’s National Service as a naval chef, working at the Normandy Hotel in Deauville, he landed the position of Senior Sous Chef, Pastry, at the world renowned Hotel Ritz in Paris in 1991. Here he worked and trained among many of the best chefs in France, MOFs (Meilleur Ouvrier de France).

He was team president of the UK Pastry Team in the 2011 Pastry World Cup and is now the Chairman of the UK Pastry Club which has been created to promote and develop pastry in the UK but also to find and support future British pastry teams. He achieved the title of MCA (Master of Culinary Arts) in 2005, the highest accolade in the industry, awarded only every four years to the best pastry chefs in the UK.

In 1995 Raymond Blanc persuaded him to come to the UK to work at Belmond Le Manoir. Described as ‘a twist of imaginative genius’, Raymond Blanc’s vision for Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons has always been one of world-class gastronomic flair and outstanding organic produce. The restaurant earned two Michelin stars upon opening, and has retained them every year since. The restaurant has a reputation as one of Britain’s best restaurants, and has become a must-visit dining experience for gourmands across the world.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between PEER and EXPERT options?

At Peer and Expert level, you get access to the same core content and features:

  • Video lesson tutorials led by your expert tutor
  • Downloadable lesson notes
  • Option to practise what you learn with lesson assignments
  • Group learning within an online interactive classroom of up to 20 classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes and classroom

If you choose Expert level, you get all of the above plus the following:

  • Personalised assignment feedback and coaching from your expert tutor
  • Opportunity to interact with your expert tutor through a private messaging system
  • Certificate of completion.
What is an online classroom?

Our online classroom has been developed to allow you to learn from our experts in a sociable environment alongside up to 20 other students. After each video tutorial led by your expert, you will be encouraged to practice what you have learned with optional assignments - these can be seen by the other students in your class, who are free to share their own thoughts and questions with you.

You will be encouraged to take part in an ongoing class discussion where you can discuss ideas, post images or work, and comment on each other’s assignments. It’s a great way to learn from other like-minded people who share your passion from all over the world.

This means not only do you benefit from people who are outstanding in their field, but also from a close-knit group of like-minded people whom you can learn alongside. Group learning has shown to greatly improve not just the experience of studying, but also how well you retain the knowledge, and we have built our classroom experience around this fact.

When can I start my course and how long will it take?

You can start your course any time within 12 months after receipt of your purchase confirmation email. Once you start, you’ll have lifetime access — meaning you can revisit the lesson videos and notes whenever you want.

Our courses are designed so that you can study at your own pace, some prefer to binge learn while others like to spread their studying over a longer period of time - it’s completely up to you. To give you a rough time frame, each lesson video is approximately 30-40 minutes long, and we recommend that you spend around an hour on each assignment.

How often can I speak with the Expert?

If you opt for the Expert version of your course, the time you have to interact with your tutor is limited to course length. You will have one week per lesson to chat to your tutor and to have your assignments marked, and during this period you can ask them as many questions as you would like.

To find out the length of each course, head to the product page and look at the Course outline to see how many lessons it contains. e.g. a four lesson course assumes that you will have completed the assignments within four weeks.

Your tutor interaction period will start as soon as you enter the classroom. If you find that you are struggling to complete the assignments in the allocated time or you wish to put this function on hold, just get in contact with one of the team via the support button and we will help you out.

Support and full FAQs

If you need any help with a course, be it one you’ve started already, or one you are looking to purchase, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Support email address, or view the full FAQ’s here.

You can also use the orange speech bubble on your page to start a conversation with us.

For privacy or data questions, please contact us here.

Awards & accreditiations