Plating up change

From prepping meals in his grandmother’s kitchen to feeding Hollywood stars on a Netflix set, Andrew Rudd’s business journey is a masterclass in resilience, creativity, and reinvention. He spoke to Fionnuala Carolan about his business Medley reaching the ten year milestone and fighting to stay ahead in a shifting market

Many will recognise Andrew Rudd from his stint as resident chef on TV3’s The Morning Show, but he has had a varied career before and after this stage of his life. Growing up as the middle child of nine children on a pig farm in Co Offaly and part of the family who established Rudd’s Bacon, he had a strong entrepreneurial streak from a young age. When he was just ten years old he started to sell hens eggs outside his gate, flog cans of coke and crisps at the local Pony Club and enjoyed tending to his vegetable garden and cooking for his family.
He recalls one of the first events he curated.  “When I was about 10 I decided to do a dinner party for my parents to celebrate their wedding anniversary. I invited all their friends and I turned the sitting room into a dining room, like a restaurant without them knowing. I asked their friends to bring a different course each. I was always good at delegating. My parents were horrified though,” he laughs.

Since those early days, he has been adept at finding good opportunities through networking and taking chances, mixed with plenty of hard graft. He has worked in the food industry for most of his career whether than was in retail or catering, and Andrew has quietly and persistently redefined what event catering means in a modern economy beset by rising food costs, soaring VAT, and an evolving definition of luxury.

His Dublin-based venue Medley is now a cornerstone in Ireland’s high-end corporate events scene. But the road to that status has been far from straightforward. “It all started about 16 or 17 years ago,” he recalls. “I was living with my grandmother and using her little kitchen as my prep space for wedding catering.” From there, he built a reputation one event at a time, eventually landing a first-floor space on Drury Street, where cookery demos and corporate gigs began to shape the brand we now know.

Becoming a private dining business

What began as simple cooking demonstrations, evolved into something much more scalable. “At the time, I was doing slots on TV3’s The Morning Show and cookery demos for Siemens. Someone asked if I’d run a corporate event, and that was the pivot point.”

That one request snowballed. Soon, Medley was not just a venue but a destination for private dinners, product launches, and incentive travel experiences. His first big corporate client was British Airways, launching their Dublin–London City route. “Willie Walsh was there and Eamonn Holmes was MC’ing. That was a real milestone.”

But it wasn’t all smooth sailing. “The space I had was only held on a gentleman’s agreement with the landlord, I had no lease. He had a CCTV camera over the door and when business picked up, so did the rent.” After pushing for investment in the building and hitting a wall, Rudd made the decision to walk away. “I moved into a temporary facility as a stopgap so I could get things going again.”

Adapting to a new normal

Fast forward to today, and Andrew no longer dons the chef’s apron. “I stopped cooking about ten years ago. I’m all front-of-house now, acting as concierge and client liaison. But the creative spark is still there.” Medley currently employs six full-time staff, including two joint head chefs, Regina Pimentel and Sandro Rodrigues, the latter having started as a kitchen porter just three years ago. Chris Meyler is the director of events and Thiago Almeida manages sales and the social media side of the business.

In January, the venue underwent a major revamp. “We replaced the flooring, changed the lighting, and ditched all the table linen to align with our sustainability goals,” he says. The new marble-topped, upcycled wood tables reflect not just aesthetic taste but also a firm commitment to reducing environmental impact, a topic that now dominates client inquiries. “Three years ago, no one was asking about our sustainability policy. Now it’s the first thing they want to know,” he reveals.

Catering’s cost crunch

While the visual overhaul was partly aesthetic, it was also strategic, designed to tackle the growing cost base faced by venues like Medley.
They changed all their lighting across the venue to make it more sustainable and cost effective. This is something within their control, unlike the cost of food. “The cost of beef alone has gotten ridiculous. Even some clients don’t want beef on menus anymore because of sustainability concerns,” Rudd says.
Energy and insurance prices have surged, too. “Even with energy prices dropping slightly, it’s not enough. You have to shop around constantly now. Every little cost adds up.” As for staffing, Andrew is fortunate to run a lean team but wages remain a concern across the sector. “It’s not just about how many people you have on payroll. Even when you’re not physically running events, you’re still busy managing inquiries, quotes, and venue logistics.”

Pivots, partners, and Netflix

Last year, Andrew made the bold decision to buy out his long-standing business partners. “They were incredible mentors – Michael Holland from the Fitzwilliam Hotel and Peter Crowley who has an investment company. What had meant to be a five-year partnership turned into ten with Covid and all the setbacks.”
The timing couldn’t have been more critical. Just months earlier, Andrew had secured a major outside catering contract: feeding the cast and crew of Netflix’s Wednesday for nine months in Ashford, Co. Wicklow. “We started with an air fryer and ended up with a full food prep truck. I was up at 2:30am every day and on set by 3:30am. One actor could only eat through a straw due to the prosthetics they had to wear, so we had to tailor everything so they could do that.”
Despite the pressure, he managed both Medley and the Netflix gig simultaneously. “Fifty percent of the time, I’d leave Ashford at noon, come back to Medley and work until 5:30pm. Then go to bed by six, and up again to do it all over.” The project proved to be a lifesaver, helping Medley recover revenue lost during the pandemic.

Outside catering as growth engine

Film catering has opened new doors for Andrew’s business. Since Wednesday, Medley has handled commercials, Apple TV projects, and a growing slate of outside events. “We invested heavily in a food prep truck, not a regular food truck, it’s a kitchen on wheels. That’s allowed us to do everything from mountain-top lunches to coastal lobster boils.”
One key collaboration has been with Orangeworks, a company that arranges team-building experiences for visiting corporate groups. “They might rent jeeps, take guests to a waterfall or a mountain, and then we show up with BBQs and cheese boards,” Andrew explains. “It’s fully mobile luxury.” This offsite catering is now grouped under the brand Medley Events. “The venue is still strong and we’re expecting to run over 100 events here between now and December. But we’ve had to diversify. You can’t depend on venue revenue alone anymore.”

Covid’s lasting impact

As many can surely relate, Covid nearly broke the business. “We knew it was coming, so I moved down to Rosslare and stayed with a friend. We postponed events, moved deposits, negotiated with our German hedge fund landlord. We just about held on.”
Despite the business having little to no revenue, Medley paid all its suppliers and kept in constant communication with clients. “At one point we were running weddings for just eight people. Not profitable, but essential to keep the business alive and the brand trusted,” he says.
Only recently has the business finalised arrangements for rent arrears accrued during that period. “It took years to settle. That’s how long the tail of Covid really is in this industry.”

Tailored experiences in a bespoke world

Over the past few years, client expectations have shifted, Rudd says. “They want tailored experiences now. We’re seeing a big rise in family-style service, sharing platters, carved meats on boards, dropped to the table. It’s theatrical and more efficient.”
The business has also leaned into concierge-style event management with their partner Orangeworks. From Fourth of July parties with gospel choirs to American family trips featuring Galway hookers and horse-riding, Medley doesn’t shy away from any type of catering experiences.
Rudd aims for at least 10% annual growth but not at any cost. “We’ve turned down about €2.5 million in business last year due to capacity. It broke my heart, but we can’t overstretch.”
Their current venue can handle up to 250 guests across two levels, and that sweet spot serves the business well. “We’re not a restaurant. We don’t need footfall. We’re a destination. And we’re totally customisable.”
Increasingly, large corporates like Facebook, Twitter, AIB and Spotify are requesting everything from client dinners to showcase events. “No one wants free bars anymore. Everyone’s promoting responsible drinking. The bar goes quiet after 11pm. Younger people don’t drink like the generation before them. They are more concerned with health and fitness”.

Strategy and staying power

After more than a decade in business, Andrew is more strategic than ever. “I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel. We follow the client, rather than force them into a mould. We’re very aligned with what’s happening in the market so we’re willing to try new things if it might work.”
Always looking for the next opportunity, he was just back from a trip to the UK to pitch business to some London based agents.
Despite rising costs and tighter margins, he remains optimistic. “You just have to be agile. Be clever. Don’t be a busy fool.”
And in a market where resilience might be the most valuable currency of all, Andrew Rudd has more than earned his place at the table.