At FXC’s latest monthly social, employees donned plastic aprons and committed culinary sacrilege in the name of team building, reports Joe Baker.

There are several things I expected to do as part of my role at FXC, but I’ll admit, taking part in a Hell’s Kitchen-style culinary deathmatch wasn’t one of them. 

Yet last month, I found myself alongside 25 other FXC-ers in Kings Cross, steeling myself for a Mystery Box Challenge run by the wonderful human beings at Jenius Social. Think Ready Steady Cook, but with more data analysts and less actual cooking talent.

The game was thus: five teams would compete in a food-related quiz, with the winners able to claim their ingredients first. Each team would then have 90 minutes to cook one starter and one main, with enough plates to feed both the team and a panel of cooking experts. 

But who would emerge victorious? Who among us would be FXC’s next Ramsay, Smith or Hollywood? Who would cut the mustard, and who would end up getting trapped inside an airfryer? 

There was only one way to find out…

Out of the frying pan…

After our hosts distributed a set of terrifyingly sharp knives around the room, it was time to kick off. The starter gong sounded and the atmosphere shifted in an instant as employees started barging around a boiling hot kitchen scooping up utensils, chopping, frying, grating and julienning. 

This wasn’t a social any more. This. Was. WAR.

I should point out at this point that ever since a passable batch of Old El Paso fajitas back in ‘08, cooking hasn’t really been a strong suit of mine, so I was a little nervous about the challenge. 

Thankfully, I was teamed up with Technical Product Manager Anastasia and social organiser Tracy, who are both clearly head chefs in another universe. Anastasia swiftly whipped up a strategy for both courses, complete with job roles, timelines and KPIs. Thank goodness for data scientists. 

Having planned our dishes – pork strips marinaded in soy sauce for the starter and a Thai green chickpea curry for the main – we got to work, chopping vegetables, marrying flavours and exploring spice combinations in a delicate dance of culinary craftsmanship. 

Massive kudos should be given to our hosts and judging panel, who circled the room handling barked questions with the deft confidence of a team that had endured many a team-building exercise through the years. 

The judges’ verdict

After a frantic last-minute frenzy to plate up, it was time to present our dishes to the judges one at a time. Competing against the mighty Yum Yums (my team) were four challengers whose names belied varying confidence levels: Managing Expectations, the Michelins, Burnt by Design and last but certainly not least, Team Onion.

First up were Managing Expectations, led by Head of Content Lucy, who presented her team’s dishes with the succinct aplomb one can expect from someone who writes things all day. 

Managing’s starter was a succulent selection of prawn skewers, marinated in a mix of spices, while for the main course the team opted for a spicy chicken and vegetable stew with rice. 

After that, the other teams stepped forward to present a dazzling array of dishes. 

Team Onion had knocked up an Asian-inspired stuffed mushroom alongside paprika-spiced chicken fillets and a creamy mustard mash. Burnt By Design concocted an elegantly presented salmon dish (though by appearance it may have trodden a little close to their team name). Meanwhile, the Michelins presented a kedgeree with rice, mackerel and carrots, topped with a decadent-looking egg. Bravo!

Finally, it was the Yum Yums’ turn to step up to the plate. As we presented our lovingly adorned crockery heaving with questionably chopped vegetables and lonely looking pork strips, we felt the eyes of the congregrated assembly of chefs, the CEO and God upon us. 

The judge’s verdict? After surveying the food, the panel concluded that they were blown away by the variety on display – both in terms of ingredients used and the extent to which certain items had been cooked. Nevertheless, there could only be one winner, and that was of course…

The Yum Yums!

This was a victory that we can all agree was thoroughly deserved – and, frankly, the only reason I agreed to write this blog.

FXC’s socials are a recipe for success

Here are just some of the things I’ve learned at FXC’s company socials so far: 

So what did I learn this time? Aside from the fact that chickpeas aren’t actually that bad, I found that teaming up with my colleagues outside of a work environment can actually be great fun.

Having a shared goal encouraged everyone to break out of the confines of their work bubbles and develop bonds with people who they wouldn’t usually speak to during the day.

Judging from the end result, FXC has some way to go when it comes to cooking – but, you’d struggle to find a better group of people to completely destroy a kitchen with.

Another month down, another successful social. Roll on the next one!

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