Our story
Mike Sutton, private chef in Essex
Hi, I’m Mike Sutton — chef, host, and the person behind Tipsy Squirrel Events. With over 20 years in hospitality, training under Gennaro Contaldo and Jamie Oliver, and nearly a decade running my own restaurant, food has always been at the centre of everything I do.
Tipsy Squirrel Events was born after I sold the restaurant. The name? That’s my wife — I’ve always called her Squirrel. She’s the heart of this business as much as I am, and naming it after her felt like the most natural thing in the world.
My mission is simple: to bring the kind of cooking and care you’d expect from a top restaurant directly to you — in your home, your garden, your venue — wherever you want to make memories. Every menu is written from scratch, every event treated as if it were my own.
How I got here
2011–2015: The Taste Experience Catering. I founded and ran a catering company across London and the South East: weddings, private and corporate events, and for five years hog roast and BBQ catering at festivals of up to around 35,000 people.
2015–2024: Barrington Grill. I joined as consultant manager in 2015, took the restaurant on in 2017 and grew it to a team of around 30 before selling it in November 2024.
Since August 2024: Tipsy Squirrel Events. Private dining, weddings and events from my base in Rayleigh, cooked by me. I've cooked 250 events through yHangry alone, rated 4.97 from 144 reviews (October 2026).
Tipsy Squirrel Events Ltd, company number 14694733.
- 20 years
- in professional kitchens and hospitality
- Nearly a decade
- running his own restaurant
- Gennaro Contaldo & Jamie Oliver
- trained under — and it still shows on the plate
- Rayleigh
- home base — cooking across Essex, London, the South East and East Anglia