Sat Bains gets closer to his Mount Everest dinner party record attempt

Today, Sat Bains and his team will reach base camp, 5,100 meters above sea level ready for acclimatisation. The two-Michelin-starred chef is set to cook a three course meal at the top of Mount Everest as he attempts to break the Guinness World Record for the highest formal dinner party on April 27 at the mountain's North Col, a sharp-edged pass more than 23,000ft above sea level. The expedition is hoping to raise £100,000 for Hospitality Action and Community Action Nepal, currently they have raised just over £22,000 and are accepting donations via JustGiving. Sat started his journey on April 11, after 10 weeks of intense training. Arriving in Lhasa he made time to visit the country's must see monasteries and palaces before making his way with the team to the Tibetan town of Shegar. Posting on his Instagram account this morning, Sat explained they will spend 48 hours at base camp before trekking to the intermediate camp and the Advanced Base Camp over the next two days. The team can expect a meal very different from their usual ration packs when they arrive at North Col. On the menu will be an intense Miso soup using the mountain snow, brought up to temperature to create a heavy and rich broth full of umami (Japanese, meaning savoury - one of the five basic tastes together with sweet, sour, bitter and salty). This will be followed by a rich beef stew done sous vide so the bag can just be popped into water and brought to temperature. And for dessert a Twix style biscuit with popping candy, a real dense chocolate bar. Speaking to The Staff Canteen in January about the expedition, Sat said: “It’s definitely going to be mind over matter and it will be a great experience to look back at and if we get the record then what an achievement. “I’m hoping it will show my restaurant team that I’m not complacent and if the boss is pushing himself then they will want to push themselves too.”