:: How has lockdown affected you professionally?
COVID-19 has massively affected what I do. One side-effect is that there just haven't been the same opportunities for me after winning Great British Menu.
We closed the restaurant nine weeks ago. Three weeks ago, we began delivering a five-course tasting menu to people's homes. It costs £50 a head and is the same product. People have expectations, so it can't be an ordinary takeaway.
This week we've produced a Linseed cracker with wild leeks, and Lobster Royale, where you cook a stock from the shells, then add cream and eggs. Lamb is the meat course, using a lamb breast, braised and served with polenta and vegetables like spring beans, while dessert is a buttermilk panacotta.
The menu is mine. Although the routine has changed, I am working the same hours. We've delivered 100 five-course tasting menus this week.
:: How has lockdown affected you personally?
I miss eating out. Normally, I'd think nothing of hopping on a plane for a meal. Pre-lockdown, I went to Le Champignon Sauvage in Nottingham which is Michelin starred. I like to go alone and work out what they're doing – it's different when you take somebody else.
Like the rest of the Deane's team, I was initially furloughed, and it felt very uncertain. But you finally catch up on things at home and I have been helping out on my grandfather Ian Greene's farm. I talk to friends on the phone a lot and also phone my mother Glynis nearly every day.
:: How do you think dining habits will change post-lockdown?
People have now got used to cooking at home and may stick with it. I think about 20 per cent of restaurants will close. We should be OK, as we provide a quality product and are different from other restaurants. People come to EIPIC and Deane's restaurants to maybe celebrate a special occasion.
For the reopening, I'd like to do a massive indoor barbecue with a lot of Irish sharing steaks and prawns – and we'd drink Champagne, not beer. My favourites are Cristal and Blanc de blancs.
:: Are there any positives in this?
We have time for reflection. I have realised that first and foremost family is important. I'm one of four boys, although we lost my brother Paul a few years back. Andrew is a mechanical engineer and David is a purchasing officer. I also have a 10-month-old niece, Harper, and there's another baby on the way. I am very close to my parents.
Regarding Dominic Cummings, I completely get what he did, but I am not a prominent person who has to be above the law.
:: What keeps you going?
I go to the gym about four times a week and run, otherwise I might put on weight. Maybe 15 miles a week in the country round Dundrum or by the sea around Newcastle. It's the best thing for your mental wellbeing. I'm also a big country music fan.
My perfect comfort eating snack uses the cold potatoes we always have in the fridge. I add in an egg, season, and roll out the mixture like a potato farl. I fry two eggs on top. For fat, I use lard if I have it – or the dirtiest oil I can find.
:: See Michaeldeane.co.uk for info on how to order the EIPIC five course taster menu at home
