Slow Food UK’s Chef Alliance celebrate growth with special lunch

The Slow Food Chef Alliance, including Richard Corrigan (Corrigan’s Mayfair, Bentley’s Oyster Bar), Tom Aikens (Tom’s Kitchen)  and Xavier Boyer (L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon) met on Monday 10th November for a special lunch to mark the year’s growth and discuss plans for 2015.

The lunch, hosted at Sartoria restaurant on Savile Row in London, also included well-known chefs like  and Jeremy Lee (Quo Vadis), TV Chef Valentine Warner, Francesco Mazzei (L’Anima), Paula McIntyre (Chef and Caterer), Tom Hunt (Poco), Gareth Johns (Wynnstay Hotel), and Peter Weeden (Newman Street Tavern).

Richard Corrigan, who is Chef Spokesperson for the Alliance, which is part of the UK's Slow Food movement, said: “It was good to see so many members participating in the Chef Alliance lunch: chefs nowadays have huge media exposure and, with it, a great responsibility to endorse movements such as Slow Food, who champion good, sustainable and local products.”

The chefs enjoyed a menu prepared by Sartoria’s head chef Lukas Pfaff, which showcased Slow Food Ark of Taste products such as medlar fruits, Northdown clawnuts and Cromer crab. Dessert was created from sponsor Lavazza’s special KAFA coffee blend.

Topics discussed at the lunch included the Slow Cheese campaign, following recent consumer and media debate around raw milk, and the Slow Fish campaign. Sartoria’s head chef Lukas Pfiaff is currently raising funds for the campaign via a special Slow Fish sharing dish using wild and local sustainably-caught fish, available at the restaurant throughout the November.

Also on the agenda was the Slow Meat campaign, due to kick off in the UK in 2015. The project is intended to encourage the eating of less but better quality meat, while also driving awareness of increased animal welfare through small-scale production.

Lukas said: “Since joining Slow Food UK’s Chef Alliance back in 2013, I’m really proud to be part of such an important global movement, both delighted and honoured to host the Chef’s Alliance lunch at Sartoria.”

He added – “It was great to see so many British based chefs actively supporting this vital cause to promote good quality and sustainably produced food.’’

For more information on how to partner with Slow Food UK , get in touch via chefalliance@slowfood.org.uk