Dyled Prif Gogydd Man City i'w diwtoriaid yng Ngholeg Menai

Chwaraeodd Dylan a'i dîm ran allweddol mewn digwyddiad hanesyddol yn ddiweddar, wrth iddyn nhw sicrhau bod digon o'r bwyd cywir ym moliau tîm Man City yn yr ymgyrch lwyddiannus i ennill Cynghrair y Pencampwyr, Yr Uwch Gynghrair a chwpan yr FA.

Ond mae'n dal i gofio'r hyn ddysgodd o ar ddechrau ei daith arlwyo fel myfyriwr yng ngholeg Menai ac mae'n dweud bod ei gyn-diwtoriaid yn 'hyfforddwyr bywyd' iddo.

Yn ddiweddar daeth Dylan o Borthmadog yn ôl i gampws Llangefni i roi anerchiad yn Noson Wobrwyo Myfyrwyr Bellach y coleg.

Roedd yn fyfyriwr yn y coleg rhwng 2004 a 2007 a chwblhaodd NVQ Lefel 1,2 a 3 mewn Coginio a Pharatoi Bwyd yn ogystal ag NVQ Lefel 1 a 2 mewn Gweini Bwyd.

Aeth Dylan ymlaen i weithio ym mwyty gwesty'r Chester Grosvenor, yna i'r Lanesborough Hotel yn Llundain ac yna i gwmni arlwyo allanol sydd â chleientiaid enwog megis Iron Maiden.

Yn 2018, penodwyd Dylan yn brif gogydd 'Tunnel Club' Manchester City - tŷ bwyta sydd ger mynedfa'r chwaraewyr i Stadiwm Eithad a ble mae cefnogwyr yn cael cyfle i gael cipolwg ar Pep Guardiola a'i dîm yn cyrraedd ar ddiwrnodau gemau.

⁠Flwyddyn yn ddiweddarach cafodd ei benodi yn Brif Gogydd holl wasanaethau Lletygarwch y stadiwm - swydd bwysig iawn sy'n golygu ei fod yn gyfrifol am yr holl arlwyo ar gyfer rheolwyr, chwaraewyr a'r staff hyfforddi yn ogystal â'r cefnogwyr.

Dylan Owens has risen to the top as Manchester City’s head chef of hospitality - and said he couldn’t have done it without Coleg Menai.

Dylan and his culinary team played their part in sporting history recently, helping fuel Man City towards a Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup treble.

But he has never forgotten the lessons he learned when he started his catering journey as a student at Coleg Menai - and says his former tutors are like “life coaches”.

Dylan, from Porthmadog, recently returned to the Llangefni campus to give a speech at the college’s annual Further Education Achievers Awards ceremony.

He was at the college from 2004 to 2007, completing the NVQ Level 1,2 & 3 in Food Preparation & Cookery, as well as NVQ Level 1 & 2 in Food Service.

Dylan went on to work at the Chester Grosvenor’s Michelin Star restaurant, the Lanesborough Hotel in London and also for an outside catering company whose clients included rock legends Iron Maiden.

In 2018, he was appointed head chef at Manchester City’s ‘Tunnel Club’ - a restaurant just inside the players’ entrance at the Etihad Stadium where supporters get to see manager Pep Guardiola and his team arrive on matchdays.

Just a year later, Dylan was promoted to head chef of hospitality for the stadium - a high-pressure job in which he oversees the catering for the managers, players and coaching staff as well as matchgoing fans.

Dylan Owens has risen to the top as Manchester City’s head chef of hospitality - and said he couldn’t have done it without Coleg Menai.

Dylan and his culinary team played their part in sporting history recently, helping fuel Man City towards a Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup treble.

But he has never forgotten the lessons he learned when he started his catering journey as a student at Coleg Menai - and says his former tutors are like “life coaches”.

Dylan, from Porthmadog, recently returned to the Llangefni campus to give a speech at the college’s annual Further Education Achievers Awards ceremony.

He was at the college from 2004 to 2007, completing the NVQ Level 1,2 & 3 in Food Preparation & Cookery, as well as NVQ Level 1 & 2 in Food Service.

Dylan went on to work at the Chester Grosvenor’s Michelin Star restaurant, the Lanesborough Hotel in London and also for an outside catering company whose clients included rock legends Iron Maiden.

In 2018, he was appointed head chef at Manchester City’s ‘Tunnel Club’ - a restaurant just inside the players’ entrance at the Etihad Stadium where supporters get to see manager Pep Guardiola and his team arrive on matchdays.

Just a year later, Dylan was promoted to head chef of hospitality for the stadium - a high-pressure job in which he oversees the catering for the managers, players and coaching staff as well as matchgoing fans.

Mae Dylan yn goruchwylio 122 o gogyddion a 160 o borthorion cegin mewn 13 bwyty a 18 cegin.

"Mae'n lle heriol iawn i weithio," meddai. "Ar ddiwrnod gêm rydym yn coginio ar gyfer y wasg, a phryd bwyd ar gyfer y chwaraewyr, y staff hyfforddi a'r tîm wrth gefn ar ôl y gêm.

Mae Pep Guardiola'n enwog am baratoi yn drylwyr iawn wrth iddo anelu at uchelfannau'r gamp a rhan bwysig o swydd Dylan ydy sicrhau bod chwaraewyr City yn bwyta'r bwyd cywir.”

"Mae prif gogydd y chwaraewyr yn teithio gyda nhw a dw i'n cydweithio gydag o," meddai.

"Mae rhai chwaraewyr yn hyfforddi'n galed ar ôl gêm, eraill yn hyfforddi'n ysgafnach, rhaid ystyried hyn i gyd.

Mae'n swydd anodd ond mae'n llawn gwobrau - dydy swydd anodd ddim yn beth drwg bob amser. Does gen i ddim syniad o'r hyn sy'n fy wynebu o ddydd i ddydd, mae'n newid o hyd ac mae'n amhosib i mi ddiflasu yn y swydd hon."

Mae Dylan wedi dod yn gefnogwr City drwy'i waith a dywedodd: "Dw i bendant yn cefnogi Pep Guardiola. Fedra i ddim pwysleisio digon pa mor bwysig ydy rhywun fel Pep.

Yn ystod y pandemig roeddwn i'n cwrdd ag o ar waelod y twnnel ger ei ystafell newid ac yn mynd â bwyd i'r chwaraewyr. ⁠Mae'n gwybod beth mae o eisiau ac yn gwybod beth ydy anghenion y chwaraewyr. Mae'n hanu o Gatalonia ac mae bwyd yn chwarae rhan bwysig yn eu diwylliant."

Ar ddiwrnodau gêm mae Dylan yn gyfrifol am drefnu gwledd sy'n addas ar gyfer chwaeth bwyd amrywiol sêr rhyngwladol City.

Dywedodd: "Mae gofyn i chi edrych ar ddiwylliant y chwaraewyr, o le maen nhw'n dod, ac mae'n rhaid i'r wledd fodloni pawb a phopeth. Felly mi allech chi gynnig burritos a chigoedd wedi'u cochi, mae'n bryd amrywiol a chynhwysol er mwyn sicrhau bod pawb yn hapus, ond rhaid i safon y bwyd fod yn uchel iawn.”

Mae'n dweud bod llawer iawn o'i amser yn mynd ar ddod o hyd i'r cynhwysion gorau, ac ychwanegodd: "Dyna sy'n bwysig i mi. Daw Saffron er enghraifft o Afghanistan ac Iran. Pan fyddwch chi'n ei brynu yn y DU, mae tua 12 mis oed. Ond 'dan ni wedi dod o hyd i gyflenwr lleol sy'n ei dyfu yn Frodsham.

Mae'r pasteiod yn y stadiwm yn cael eu cyflenwi gan fusnes tad a mab, ac maen nhw'n cyflenwi yn ôl ein cais. Os daw ein caws gan ein cyflenwr yn Garstang, yna rydym yn prynu ein llaeth a'n menyn yno hefyd. Ac wrth brynu cig, rydym yn defnyddio toriadau gwahanol o gig yn y bwytai gwahanol yn y stadiwm, does dim byd yn cael ei wastraffu, mae cynaliadwyedd yn bwysig iawn.”

Mae Dylan wedi cynrychioli Cymru yn yr Olympics Arlwyo yn y gorffennol ac mae'n dal i gymryd rhan mewn cystadlaethau, ond mae amser yn brin ar hyn o bryd i wneud hynny.

"Mae'n beth da i mi gymryd rhan mewn cystadlaethau oherwydd mae'n rhoi cyfle i mi fynd yn ôl i ble roeddwn i pan ddechreuais i," meddai. "Drwy reoli mwy, mae'r cyfleodd i goginio yn llai!

Pan oeddwn i'n gogydd commis roeddwn i eisiau bod yr un sydd yn y swyddfa ond rŵan dw i yn y swyddfa, weithiau bydda i' edrych ar y cogyddion commis ac yn meddwl, dw i eisiau gwneud yr hyn maen nhw'n ei wneud.

Felly pe bawn i'n gallu teithio yn ôl mewn amser mi faswn i'n siarsio fy hun i fwynhau rhagor, mynd amdani a pheidio â bod ofn methu. Mae dysgu a gwella yn rhan annatod o'r gwaith a does dim ots os byddwch chi'n gwneud camgymeriad, dyna sut byddwch chi'n dysgu."

Mae Dylan yn dal i gofio'i wers gyntaf yng Ngholeg Menai ac mae'n dweud bod ei gyn-diwtoriaid yn ffrindiau iddo erbyn hyn ac ar ben arall y ffôn bob amser.”

Dywedodd: 'Roedd Coleg Menai yn anhygoel. Roeddwn i'n lwcus oherwydd fy mod i wastad wedi gwybod fy mod eisiau bod yn chef, dyna oedd fy ysbrydoliaeth. Ond fe helpodd Coleg Menai fi a'm llywio ar y daith i fod yr hyn roeddwn i eisiau bod.

Dw i'n cofio Roger, fy nhiwtor yn gosod dau farc ar bob pen o'r bwrdd gwyn. Mi ddwedodd o 'Dyma'r mynydd ia - faint ydw i'n gwybod amdano yn eich barn chi? Yna mi luniodd linell wrth y llinell gyntaf a dweud mai dyna oedd lefel ei wybodaeth.

Yr hyn roedd yn ei ddweud oedd - dyma eich llwybr, mae faint byddwch chi'n teithio ar ei hyd yn dibynnu arnoch chi.

Ian Drummond oedd fy mhrif diwtor, mae'n ffrind da i mi erbyn hyn, fel pob un o'r tiwtoriaid a wnaeth fy nghynorthwyo ar hyd y daith. ‘Dydw i ddim yn meddwl y byddwn i ble rydw i rwan oni bai am Goleg Menai, ac ni allaf ddiolch digon i’r coleg.

Mae Cath Skipp, Ian Drummond, Gerallt a phob un o'r tiwtoriaid wedi cael effaith arna i mewn cymaint o ffyrdd. Fe wnaethon nhw roi'r sylfaen i mi, ac fe wnaethon nhw fy helpu i adeiladu ar y sylfaen honno felly mae fy nyled yn fawr iddyn nhw. Maen nhw wedi rhoi arweiniad i mi, a dwi'n gwybod y galla i godi'r ffôn os oes gen i gwestiwn neu bryderon, hyd yn oed rwan’ Maen nhw fel hyfforddwyr bywyd i mi!"

Er mai cogydd ydy Dylan, dywedodd bod y cymhwyster Gweini Bwyd yr un mor bwysig iddo

â'r cymhwyster Paratoi Bwyd a Choginio.

"Roedd yn rhan ganolog o'r hyn wnes i yn y coleg," meddai "Rhaid i chi gael dealltwriaeth o sut bydd pethau'n edrych i'r cwsmer, ac mae'r cymwysterau yn eich cynorthwyo i ddeall y darlun ehangach."

He oversees the running of 13 restaurants and 18 kitchens, with a brigade of 122 passionate chefs and 160 kitchen porters.

“It’s a challenging place to work,” he said. “On a matchday we’ll be cooking for the press and a post-match meal for the players, the coaching staff and the backroom team.”

With City manager Guardiola known for leaving no stone unturned in his pursuit of sporting perfection, an important part of Dylan’s job is making sure City’s players get the right nutrition.

“There’s a head chef for the players who travels with them, and I’ll liaise with him,” he said.

“Some players will train hard after the match and some will train easier so we have to take that into account.

“It’s a difficult job, but the rewards outweigh that - and difficult isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I don’t know what I’m going into each day, so it keeps me on my toes and means it’s impossible for me to stagnate in my job.”

Dylan has become a City fan through his job, adding: “I’m definitely a Pep Guardiola fan. I can’t emphasise enough how influential somebody like Pep is.

“During the pandemic I used to meet him at the bottom of the tunnel near his dressing room and take the food for the players. He knows what he wants and what the players need. As he’s from Catalonia, food is a big part of their culture.”

On matchdays, Dylan oversees a feast that has to cater for the varied tastes of City’s international stars.

He said: “You look at the players’ culture, where they’re from, and the spread they have has to cater for everything and everyone, so you might have burritos, cured meat - the spread is so versatile and so widespread that they’re happy, but it’s got to be the best quality.”

He says a lot of his time is devoted to sourcing the best local ingredients, adding: “That’s my everything. Saffron, for example, grows in Afghanistan and Iran. When you buy it in the UK it’s probably 12 months old. But we found a local supplier who grows it in Frodsham.

“The pies in the stadium are from a local father-and-son business, and we tell them what we need. If we get cheese from our supplier in Garstang, we’ll also get our milk and butter from there. And when we buy meat we’ll use different cuts of the meat in the different restaurants in the stadium, so nothing goes to waste and it’s all about sustainability.”

Dylan has represented Wales in the Culinary Olympics in the past, and still enters competitions when he can, although he has less time to do so these days.

“It’s good for me to do competitions because it allows me to be who I was when I first started,” he said. “The more I become a manager, the less I get to cook!

“When I was a commis chef I wanted to be the guy in charge in the office, but now I’m the guy in the office, sometimes I look at the commis chefs and think, I want to be doing what they’re doing.

“So if I could go back and tell myself one thing, it would be to enjoy it more - embrace more and don’t be afraid to fail. It’s all about learning and improving, and it doesn’t matter if you make a mistake because that’s how you learn.”

Dylan still remembers his first lesson at Coleg Menai, and says his former tutors are now friends who are always at the end of the phone.

He said: “Coleg Menai was amazing. I was lucky because I always knew I wanted to be a chef, that was my inspiration. But Coleg Menai helped me and guided me to become what I wanted to become.

“I remember Roger, my tutor, put two marks on each end of the whiteboard. He said, ‘This is the iceberg - how much of it do you think I know?’ He then put a line right next to the first line and said that was how much he knew.

“He was telling us that it’s your path, and how far you want to take it is up to you.

“Ian Drummond was my main tutor and he’s now a dear friend, and all the tutors helped me become who I am today. I don’t think I’d be where I am now if it wasn’t for Coleg Menai, and I can’t thank the college enough.

“Cath Skipp, Ian Drummond, Gerallt and all the tutors have all impacted me in so many ways. They gave me the foundation, and they helped me build on that foundation so I owe them a lot. They’ve guided me, and I know that if I have any questions or concerns even now I can pick up the phone to them. They’re like life coaches!”

Although Dylan is a chef, he said his Food Service qualification was just as important as Food Preparation & Cookery.

“It was an integral part of what I did at college,” he said. “You’ve got to have an understanding of how it’s going to look when it goes to the customer, and by doing that you get to understand the wider picture.”

He oversees the running of 13 restaurants and 18 kitchens, with a brigade of 122 passionate chefs and 160 kitchen porters.

“It’s a challenging place to work,” he said. “On a matchday we’ll be cooking for the press and a post-match meal for the players, the coaching staff and the backroom team.”

With City manager Guardiola known for leaving no stone unturned in his pursuit of sporting perfection, an important part of Dylan’s job is making sure City’s players get the right nutrition.

“There’s a head chef for the players who travels with them, and I’ll liaise with him,” he said.

“Some players will train hard after the match and some will train easier so we have to take that into account.

“It’s a difficult job, but the rewards outweigh that - and difficult isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I don’t know what I’m going into each day, so it keeps me on my toes and means it’s impossible for me to stagnate in my job.”

Dylan has become a City fan through his job, adding: “I’m definitely a Pep Guardiola fan. I can’t emphasise enough how influential somebody like Pep is.

“During the pandemic I used to meet him at the bottom of the tunnel near his dressing room and take the food for the players. He knows what he wants and what the players need. As he’s from Catalonia, food is a big part of their culture.”

On matchdays, Dylan oversees a feast that has to cater for the varied tastes of City’s international stars.

He said: “You look at the players’ culture, where they’re from, and the spread they have has to cater for everything and everyone, so you might have burritos, cured meat - the spread is so versatile and so widespread that they’re happy, but it’s got to be the best quality.”

He says a lot of his time is devoted to sourcing the best local ingredients, adding: “That’s my everything. Saffron, for example, grows in Afghanistan and Iran. When you buy it in the UK it’s probably 12 months old. But we found a local supplier who grows it in Frodsham.

“The pies in the stadium are from a local father-and-son business, and we tell them what we need. If we get cheese from our supplier in Garstang, we’ll also get our milk and butter from there. And when we buy meat we’ll use different cuts of the meat in the different restaurants in the stadium, so nothing goes to waste and it’s all about sustainability.”

Dylan has represented Wales in the Culinary Olympics in the past, and still enters competitions when he can, although he has less time to do so these days.

“It’s good for me to do competitions because it allows me to be who I was when I first started,” he said. “The more I become a manager, the less I get to cook!

“When I was a commis chef I wanted to be the guy in charge in the office, but now I’m the guy in the office, sometimes I look at the commis chefs and think, I want to be doing what they’re doing.

“So if I could go back and tell myself one thing, it would be to enjoy it more - embrace more and don’t be afraid to fail. It’s all about learning and improving, and it doesn’t matter if you make a mistake because that’s how you learn.”

Dylan still remembers his first lesson at Coleg Menai, and says his former tutors are now friends who are always at the end of the phone.

He said: “Coleg Menai was amazing. I was lucky because I always knew I wanted to be a chef, that was my inspiration. But Coleg Menai helped me and guided me to become what I wanted to become.

“I remember Roger, my tutor, put two marks on each end of the whiteboard. He said, ‘This is the iceberg - how much of it do you think I know?’ He then put a line right next to the first line and said that was how much he knew.

“He was telling us that it’s your path, and how far you want to take it is up to you.

“Ian Drummond was my main tutor and he’s now a dear friend, and all the tutors helped me become who I am today. I don’t think I’d be where I am now if it wasn’t for Coleg Menai, and I can’t thank the college enough.

“Cath Skipp, Ian Drummond, Gerallt and all the tutors have all impacted me in so many ways. They gave me the foundation, and they helped me build on that foundation so I owe them a lot. They’ve guided me, and I know that if I have any questions or concerns even now I can pick up the phone to them. They’re like life coaches!”

Although Dylan is a chef, he said his Food Service qualification was just as important as Food Preparation & Cookery.

“It was an integral part of what I did at college,” he said. “You’ve got to have an understanding of how it’s going to look when it goes to the customer, and by doing that you get to understand the wider picture.”