Enniskillen chef Paul Curry has landed what he says is one of the best jobs in the country.

He has been appointed head chef at Derry's famous Beech Hill Country House Hotel where President Bill Clinton and his wife Hilary have been among the many global guests to have stayed there.

28 years old Paul, whose family home is at Drumcor Hill, Cornagrade, Enniskillen, learned his catering skills at the town's Fermanagh College. He has been second in command of the Beech Hill's kitchens for the past 3 years. During that time he has won a variety of awards and cooking competitions and has made a name for himself among gourmet diners in the North West for the dishes he creates out of fresh local ingredients.

He said: "One of my responsibilities as head chef is to buy all the raw materials that my kitchen team will use. I am totally committed to buying fresh produce from the North West and from farmers, butchers, fishermen and others that I know and trust. Whenever possible I will be buying organic food because being free from chemicals it is healthier, and for the same reason it naturally tastes a lot better."

Paul will also be buying as much sustainable fish as he can. He is co-author of a book of sustainable fish recipes that was published last year by the world's biggest nature conservation organisation, WWF.

Paul will take charge of the Beech Hill hotel's busy kitchens, and a staff of 14, this Saturday, 22nd March. He says he hopes that some of his friends from Enniskillen will journey across to Derry to sample his work.

Among Paul's speciality dishes are venison cooked with beetroot or chocolate and he enjoys pan-fried fillets of mackerel.

But he says he simply enjoys any kind of cooking as long as it is making his customers happy.