Marc Campos turned against his father's wishes as a teenager and became a professional golfer, despite having been trained in classical cooking since he was 11. x

It was a decision that shattered his relationship with his dad, Pierre, and the pair did not speak for seven years.

After travelling the world, a knee injury in a car accident put an end to Marc’s professional career, so he returned to Thanet and opened a restaurant, its moniker combining both his name and his dad’s.

Reporter Millie Bowles went to his Ramsagte venue to find out how life has changed for Marc, since he swapped sprawling golf greens for the kitchen …

It’s a horribly cold day for early August at the town’s harbour, and the wind makes opening my car door a struggle as I’m battered by rain.

Carefully, I walk down the steps to Westcliff Arcade, a collection of restaurants built in brick arches overlooking the ships.

It’s like a ghost town on this particular day – not surprising, considering the yellow weather warning for wind.

Eventually, I make it to Marc-Pierre’s Kitchen and am greeted by owner Marc Campos himself, who starts off by reassuring me that it isn’t always like this.

“This summer has not been good for business, we usually have tables stretching out across the terrace.”

He had to batten down the hatches and send all his staff home, as all the lunch bookings and most of the later customers had called and cancelled.

I gratefully take refuge inside and am immediately offered a drink and a slice of his wife Anastasiya’s cheesecake.

As I walk into the restaurant, the first thing I notice is the kitchen pass, which looks out at customers and the lovely sea view.

The walls are exposed brick, and in such a small space, products such as mason jars of pulses and bottles of red wine double up as decoration.

We sit down, and Marc begins by telling me about one of his most regular customers, who can’t seem to get enough of the restaurant’s cuisine, which proudly consists of Kentish produce, fresh fish and seafood.

“We have one guy who gets two trams, two trains and a bus from Wimbledon every Thursday to have his lunch here.

“Every week of the year, and then he goes home.”

Marc was destined for culinary stardom, as his father Pierre was a renowned chef in Thanet, running the Flight Deck restaurant in Pegwell Bay and opening Pierre’s in Cliftonville in 1976.

However, Marc veered off the life course his dad had set out for him as a teen.

The 57-year-old recalls: “I was being trained to be the ultimate hospitality person.

“I was being sent away to Paris or London every summer for lessons.

“I had some great times. I was actually sent to Venice to do mixology.

“But I was a teenager, and I also happened to be very good at sports.

“I basically had a choice and one of the things I wasn’t going to do was work in hospitality – not at 17.”

So, when Pierre came to him once he had finished his A-levels and revealed he had secured him place at the London School of Economics, Marc made his decision.

“He wanted me to have some business accruement.

“I said: ‘Dad, you have my life mapped out, don’t you?’

“Then for the next couple of weeks, I was just plotting my way out of it.

“Not to spite my father, but his plans had gone too far and it was my life.

“And I got my wish – my dad didn’t speak to me for seven years – literally.”

The next 40 years of his life were spent touring the world as a pro golfer.

Based near an airport in Germany, Marc flew out to “wherever he could tee up”, playing for the Italian national team at the World Championships and winning the Swiss Open along the way.

He also won the Mauritius Open and was sponsored by BMW for a while, but his “Italian temperament” – inherited from his dad – made his career “inconsistent”.

“While I was very good I wasn’t very consistent. I blow very hot or cold.”

When he called home and his father picked up, Pierre would say “Cynthia - it’s your son”, and hand the receiver over to Marc’s mum.

“I found out years later that he always asked how I was and what I was up to.”

A car crash in Valencia in 2006 ended the athlete’s professional career, but he went into coaching the Swiss national team, firstly the men and then the women.

Today, he still coaches three Swiss ladies, who fly to him or meet him in Florida or their own country.

But Marc found coaching “a bit frustrating” having been a player himself, and looked for other options.

His sister-in-law already owned the restaurant neighbouring his, and on visits back to England Marc always noticed the unit and its harbour view.

He says: “It was dark and dingy and never open, or it was really quiet when it was.

“No joke, I kept enquiring and asked my family to keep an eye on it.

“As soon as they told me this was available at the right price, that’s when I came home.”

Opening in October 2019, just months before the pandemic, Marc’s venture has not only had the British weather standing in its way.

“We opened, and no sooner did we open we got shut down,” he says with a half-hearted laugh.

After a moment’s reflection, he continues: “The first lockdown was knitted communities together.

“We met neighbours we didn't even know we had and the weather was beautiful, so it was very nice.”

After reopening, the government scheme Eat Out to Help Out gave the juvenile business the boost it needed, as customers started coming more regularly, aided by the fact you could not travel abroad.

“What happened next was the painful one,” he sighs.

“This one went on and on and people forget we were locked down from November 5 till May 18 – half a year.

“That was bleak. None of us knew when we were going to open again.”

Marc does no cooking at home, so was nervous getting back into his whites.

At the end of lockdown, the chef began to get creative in the kitchen, coming to work by himself to experiment.

“I bought things like ice machines, smokers and dehydrators, coming in here by myself and thinking up new recipes and ideas.”

Now, the cost-of-living crisis is his latest challenge.

Many restaurants – including several across Kent – have already fallen victim, and others have had to change the way they operate.

In March, owners of acclaimed restaurants such as Rocksalt and The Hyde and Fox told KentOnline they have been forced to "adapt" to the harsh economic climate.

But Marc believes his passion for Kent produce has helped the business get through the tough times affecting the industry.

“You do notice it because people are spending less.

“Because we only use local food, we haven't been hit tremendously by price increases.

“We cut out the transport costs that way.

“Also, everything we do is done by us. We don’t have a freezer except for ice cream – and even that’s made in-house.”

Marc points to a plaque, mounted on the top of the metal kitchen pass, and with a sense of pride in his voice says: “I never thought we would win that.”

It is the silver prize in the Taste of Kent awards casual dining category, of which renowned The Pig at Bridge Place won gold.

Marc’s restaurant was also recognised with a Taste Gold accolade from Visit England.

Now, his sights are set on the big city.

“Lots of people who come here are from London and say we have to open there, so we are definitely thinking about that.

“But I will never vanquish this place.”

After I polish off the remainder of the delicious cheesecake’s caramel sauce from my plate, we begin to say our goodbyes.

I make a promise to Marc to come back soon for dinner – once the weather is a bit more pleasant.