Thomas Straker to kick-off star-studded Elystan Street collab series
Social media sensation Thomas Straker is among a group of top chefs set to take part in a collaboration series with London’s Michelin-starred Elystan Street restaurant.
The dynamic series will see culinary partnerships during this autumn and into 2025.
The events will be put on by Elystan Street co-owners Phil Howard and Rebecca Mascarenhas, with the selected chefs having a special relationship with Phil.
Each of the six-course tasting menus (all at £95pp) at the Chelsea venue will celebrate three of the guest chef’s signature dishes, alongside Phil’s own Elystan Street repertoire.
Kicking off the schedule is Thomas Straker, currently chef patron of Straker’s in Notting Hill.
He worked with Phil at Elystan Street in 2017, before he burst onto the broad social media stratosphere with a lively presence on numerous platforms, notably his ‘All Things Butter’ videos, which have seen him go on to amass 2.5million followers on both Instagram and TikTok.
He will join Phil for a dinner on September 19.
Then, on October 24, the charismatic Jackson Boxer will marry his eclectic British cooking style for a dinner with Phil, which will showcase the culinary style of his six current establishments, each of which has a distinctive personality.
And Adam Byatt, who previously worked with Phil at The Square, will complete the autumn dinner series on November 21, bringing his delicious and distinguished British dishes from his south London trio of successful restaurants – Trinity, Upstairs at Trinity, and Bistro Union.
Alexis Gauthier, the culinary genius of Michelin-starred Gauthier Soho, will kick off the new year with a plant-based focus dinner on January 16, 2025. Having adopted a vegan diet since 2016, his restaurant business has expanded to include Studio Gauthier and 123V Bakery at the NFI, and his newest launch of 123V in Mayfair.
His creative, modern French vegan focus will inspire with exceptional sourcing and imaginative dishes.
January 2025 will continue with wellness and nutritional awareness on the agenda. Emily English, the noted nutritionist, both in private practice and on social media, will join Phil on January 25 for a lunch featuring a shared menu and conversation to ‘start the new year’ with healthy eating.
Commenting on the phenomenal opportunity to collaborate with these innovative and hugely talented and influential chefs, Phil stated: “It has taken me 35 years to develop a genuine appetite to engage with ‘four hands’ dinners at one of my restaurants.
“I have done many over the years, all over the world, but the time has now come to do so in my own kitchen.
“The food world has evolved so much over this same period of time that I just cannot resist the temptation to cook with some of the country’s most inspirational chefs.
“Food has moved on, cooking has moved on, and whilst my own cooking has evolved over the years, too, I find the best food out there now more exciting than ever – both from a chef’s perspective, and an eating one, too. I have chosen chefs that I respect enormously, who cook wonderful food, who respect the planet and the animals that live on it – and whose cooking will dovetail well with mine.
“I hope these events will be as invigorating and exciting for those who attend as they will be for us in the kitchen and on the floor at Elystan Street.”
This series will continue throughout 2025, with more details of collaborations to follow.
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