Etiquette on the menu for chefs

A London restaurant has hired an etiquette consultant to teach its kitchen staff some manners.

The Cuckoo Club has drafted in a former school housemistress to draw up a special code of conduct for its chefs. Rachel Holland's renowned programme - which has been likened to that of a Fifties finishing school - is hoped to whip the restaurant's staff into shape by teaching them politeness .

It follows a poll by the West End restaurant that found that 70 per cent of its customers thought aggression in restaurant kitchens was "unnecessary". Miss Holland, who previously taught at Millfield, has a "happy chef" code of conduct. It aims to ban swearing and other offensive behaviour from the kitchen.

A spokesman for the Cuckoo Club said the restaurant did not have a problem with its staff but had been "basted with the same brush" as other restaurants.