Mexican-born Adriana grew up in Mexico City and often visited her grandparents in a small village called San Felipe Ixtacuixtla where food is an integral part of day-to-day life - fresh produce such as corn, tomatoes and avocados are staples of the region. Brought into this world of food from a young age - Adriana was inspired to enter the industry by her Grandma who owned a street food business selling Antojitos Mexicanos. Her first role in cookery came at the age of 17 as an apprentice at Nicos in Mexico City. Here, she honed her skills on the bakery section before moving on to her first full-time paid job at Pujol - currently ranked at #13 in The World’s 50 Best Restaurants - at just 19. She also worked alongside Ferran Adria as Chef de Partie at El Bulli in 2011 and later with Eduardo Garcia at Lalo!. These restaurants are famed for their ongoing revolutionary approach to Mexican cooking, which Adriana cites as key in shaping her approach to food. Adriana moved to the UK and her debut restaurant Cavita opened in May 2022 to a host of outstanding reviews. Her first cookbook ‘Cocina Mexicana: Fresh, vibrant recipes for authentic Mexican food’ was released in 2023.

Agata is a chef known for her vibrant, produce-led cooking—where vegetables take center stage, adding color, texture, and depth to every dish. Inspired by her Polish roots and shaped by her travels, she blends comforting, homestyle flavors with refined techniques, often using fermentation to enhance complexity and balance. A Le Cordon Bleu graduate, Agata has cooked at acclaimed restaurants including NOPI (London), Disfrutar*** (Barcelona), KOL* (London), and Gresca (Barcelona). For her, every plate is a personal story—rooted in memory, nature, and creativity—told through bold flavors and seasonal ingredients. Giorgio is a chef celebrated for his mastery of open-fire grilling and his ability to showcase proteins with delicious, vibrant flavors inspired by home Italian cuisine. His cooking blends refined techniques with a deep respect for tradition, creating dishes full of depth and soul. His culinary journey began in rustic Italian village kitchens and was profoundly shaped and elevated by experiences at Osteria Francescana*** and Noma—two of the world’s most revered restaurants. These diverse influences fuel Giorgio’s belief that cooking is about joy, connection, and togetherness, where genuine flavor plays a key role. Their shared love for diverse flavors—shaped by childhood memories and global experiences—brought them together to create Solan, a vibrant fusion of Italian and Polish home cooking. Agata’s fresh, vegetable-focused style blends perfectly with Giorgio’s expertise in proteins and rich culinary techniques. Based in London, they mainly host pop-ups across Europe, sharing their passion for home-cooked food, tradition, and bringing people together through memorable meals.

Whole Beast is a live fire, nose to tail concept that has ‘A Plan’ for every animal that comes into the building and by doing cool shit with the parts of the animal most aren’t as fussed with. The Aged Cheeseburger won National Burger Awards Champion of Champions and being awarded Best Burger in London by TimeOut THAT burger has become its own beast.

"Ana Ortiz is a chef and co-founder of Fire Made which she runs from Somerset with her husband Tom Bray; the pair design and produce fire cookery equipment for chefs, restaurants, and consumers worldwide, as well as running experience days and training in all things asado. Ana is a talented chef specialising in Ecuadorean cuisine and fire cookery; her menus authentically draw from her culture and heritage, bringing her exciting and vibrant way of cooking to the UK and beyond. She and Tom have a kitchen studio at Westcombe Dairy in Somerset and she can be found popping up there but also at restaurants and food festivals both in the UK and globally.

Andrew Clarke is an award-winning chef, restaurateur, and live-fire veteran with nearly 30 years in the hospitality industry. He is the founder and director of Acme Fire Cult — the East London restaurant widely praised for reinventing what live-fire cooking can be. At Acme, everything is cooked over flame in an open-air kitchen, but this is no ordinary barbecue joint. The menu is bold, vegetable-led, and rooted in zero-waste principles, with fermentation, preservation, and creative use of by-products playing a central role. Dishes draw on Clarke’s global influences — from India and the Silk Road to Spain and Mexico — reflecting the rich flavours of the spice trade. Andrew’s background includes time as chef-director at Brunswick House and St Leonards, and in 2016 he co-founded Pilot Light, a mental health campaign for the hospitality industry. In 2019, he received the Innovation Award from the Craft Guild of Chefs and was named one of London’s most influential people on the Evening Standard’s Progress 1000 list. A creative force both in and out of the kitchen, Andrew is also a musician, DJ, and shamanic practitioner, holding ceremonial spaces and retreats around the world.

Andy Frantzeskos, Head Chef of ROVI by Ottolenghi. Born in Melbourne, Australia and living in London since 2019. Working for the Ottolengh group at restaurants Nopi and Rovi. With Greek heritage and a passion for seasonally driven cooking, Andy draws inspiration from his Mediterranean roots.

Anna Higham is the head baker and owner of Quince Bakery. Quince Bakery opened Feb 2024 and focuses on British and Irish baking traditions with a real passion for seasonal baking. Having spent the last 10 years leading some of the best seasonal focused pastry departments in London (The River Cafe, Lyles, Flor) Anna now loves creating a weekly changing menu using the best suppliers that the UK has to offer.

Arthur has worked at some of London best grill focussed restaurants, including Brat, Planque and Mangal II, having recently returned from cooking adventures in New York and Mexico, he can be found helping to produce delicious plates of food at The Prince Arthur (fitting?) in Dalston.

ASHLEY BENNETT has been part of the Ka Pao Glasgow team since opening in Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens Garage in 2020. Ashley helped guide the restaurant toward its first Bib Gourmand before being promoted to Head Chef and securing inclusion in the guide every year since. Ashley is passionate about the food of Southeast Asia, gaining knowledge and experience under Sandy Browning (Ka Pao), and through her time spent with Hanuman Aspler at his school in Chiang Mai. Ashley says, “I’ve always loved cooking, even as a kid I’d be in the kitchen trying to help out, or just experimenting with flavours. I only really moved into kitchens properly when I was about 21 or 22, which in chef terms felt a bit “late.” But once I made that switch, it just clicked – I knew it was where I was supposed to be.” Ashley’s son, Shaun, now has a part time position in her kitchen while studying at Glasgow’s Royal Conservatoire.