London’s top chefs including Jason Atherton, Vivek Singh, Atul Kochhar, Anna Haugh and more joined forces last night to raise vital funds for charity

On Monday 6th November, eight of London’s top chefs joined forces to host a one-off gala dinner – ‘A Winter Chefs’ Dinner’ – raising an impressive £85,000 for industry charity, Hospitality Action.

Held at Nobu Hotel London Portman Square, the charity’s chef patrons, Jason Atherton, Vivek Singh and Atul Kochhar joined four of the prime movers on the London restaurant scene: Tom Booton (Dorchester), Adam Handling (Frog), Anna Haugh (Myrtle) and Ben Murphy (Launceston Place); along with one of the world’s pre-eminent pastry chefs, Claire Clark MBE, for a night to remember.

A four-course gastronomic feast was served by the all-star London chef brigade, alongside a prize draw and live auction, to raise vital funds to support those in the hospitality industry who are facing crisis and challenging times from physical illness or mental health issues to financial difficulty, family problems and addiction.

Hospitality Action CEO, Mark Lewis, comments: “Last night some of the best culinary talent in the UK gifted us their time and expertise to create a show-stopping menu at London’s Nobu Hotel. Thanks to the generosity of the 400 guests who attended £85,000 was raised to support Hospitality Action’s work. As the cold months approach, more hospitality families will struggle to make ends meet, and the funds raised will go a long way towards alleviating hardship”. 

To fundraise further, the online Hospitality Action Winter Auction is now live with bidding commencing on 20th November: https://app.galabid.com/wola2023/items

To find out more about Hospitality Action and upcoming events visit:

www.hospitalityaction.org.uk/events

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Chef Biographies

Jason Atherton, Chef Patron & CEO, The Social Company

Having worked alongside chefs including Pierre Koffmann, Marco Pierre White and Gordon Ramsay, Jason launched Michelin starred Pollen Street Social in 2011. The Social Company has grown since then, with a large and growing portfolio of restaurants worldwide. Jason is a Patron of Hospitality Action.

Tom Booton, Executive Chef, The Grill by Tom Booton at The Dorchester

Tom’s career began at Le Talbooth, Dedham when he was just 15. Since Tom has spent time working in Michelinstarred kitchens in London, as well as New York, Copenhagen and Iceland. In 2019, Tom won an Acorn Award and joined The Dorchester as head chef. In 2021, he won Chef to Watch, and this year has relaunched The Grill by Tom Botton as Executive Chef.

Claire Clark MBE, Chef Patron and Co-Owner, Pretty Sweet

One of the world’s best pastry chefs, Claire learnt her craft under legendary pâtissiers Ernst Bachmann and John Huber, before working in some of London’s most prestigious restaurants, including The Ritz and Claridge’s. Claire set up the Claire Clark Academy at Milton Keynes College and acts as a consultant to many of the UK’s leading chefs.

Adam Handling, Chef Patron, Frog by Adam Handling

Michelin-starred Chef Adam Handling started out at Gleneagles before he went on to become Fairmont’s youngest ever Head Chef. Adam has a number of awards including Scottish Chef of the Year, British Culinary Federation’s Chef of the Year, Chef of the Year in the Food & Travel Awards and Restaurateur of the Year in the GQ Awards. Adam Handling Restaurant Group comprises of four establishments: Frog by Adam Handling and Eve Bar, both in Covent Garden, The Loch & the Tyne in Old Windsor and Ugly Butterfly in St. Ives, Cornwall.

Anna Haugh, Executive Head Chef and Owner, Myrtle Restaurant

From Dublin, Anna has been cooking for over 20 years, working in some of the world’s best kitchens, including The Square, Pied a Terre and Paris’ Hotel Lotti.

She opened Myrtle restaurant in Chelsea in 2019, serving food that celebrates her Irish heritage, classic French training and modern European influences.

Atul Kochhar, Chef Patron, Kanishka by Atul Kochhar

Born in Jamshedpur in East India, Atul moved to the UK in 1994, quickly gaining acclaim in the industry. Atul’s food is a melting pot of traditional techniques, combining the best spices and ingredients from India with the very best British ingredients. Atul has a growing restaurant portfolio, with Kanishka in Mayfair and sites in Marlow including Sindhu and Vaasu, along with Hawkyns at The Crown Inn in Amersham. 

Ben Murphy, Chef Patron, Launceston Place

One of London’s most exciting award-winning young chefs, Ben started his career at Koffman’s at The Berkeley. He’s spent time in France, at three Michel-starred Les Prés d’Eugénie and three starred Le Bristol in Paris. Ben joined Launceston Place, recently awarded No. 56 in the Top 100 Best Restaurant in the UK at the Estrella Damn National Restaurant Awards, as Head Chef in January 2017 and was made Chef Patron of Launceston Place in May 2021.

Vivek Singh, Executive Chef & CEO, The Cinnamon Collection

While growing up in India and with food central to everyday life, Vivek soon fell in love with the sights, sounds and celebration of food, happily embracing the mix of cultures and cuisines. He is now the Executive Chef and CEO of four restaurants in London, including The Cinnamon Club Westminster, Cinnamon Kitchen City and Battersea and Cinnamon Bazaar in Covent Garden, where he marries Indian spices and flavours with Western techniques and ingredients.

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Media enquiries, please contact:

Roche Communications – Kara Giglio, E: kara@rochecom.com Tel: 020 7436 1111 https://www.rochecom.com

Hospitality Action – Sophie Kent, E: skent@hospitalityaction.org.uk Tel: 020 3004 5505 www.hospitalityaction.org.uk

 

How we help

Behind their smiles and slick service hospitality workers can fall upon hard times just like anybody else. Ours is a stressful industry, with long hours, high pressure environments and physically demanding work. Since 1837 we’ve been here for chefs, waiters, housekeepers and managers. We’ve been here for concierges, receptionists and kitchen porters. And we’ve been here for every sommelier, bartender, catering assistant and cook throughout the UK.

We were one of the first UK charities to mount an emergency response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. As the pandemic unfolded our response continually evolved to lessen the financial and mental health impact on the most vulnerable people in the industry. We kept pace with the stop-start nature of re-opening as each wave triggered business closures and increasingly unpredictable employment patterns. And we continue to develop our services in response to the mounting cost of living crisis which has already impacted those with the lowest household incomes.

By developing new grant streams and award-winning fundraising products we have distributed more than £3.5m in grants to over 10,000 hospitality households. Whatever you do in hospitality #wevegotyou.

For more information about Hospitality Action visit www.hospitalityaction.org.uk