Israeli chef Yotam Ottolenghi, the man behind the iconic restaurant chain, is celebrating 20 years of working in London with a new range of commemorative memorabilia.
Ottolenghi, the restaurant, famous for eclectic menu with a fusion of Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and North African ingredients, will celebrate 20 years this April and to celebrate, the team are launching a new collection.
According to the company, the items are "paying homage to the last two decades and toasting to the next, the anniversary collection will celebrate the joy, vibrancy and flavour of the Ottolenghi brand."
Marking the celebrations, Yotam said: “We never planned to get to this particular point. The delis, the restaurants, the books – who would have thought! The way was paved by our staff and by our customers and guests. I am so grateful to all of them and looking forward to more engagement with them in the future.”
The chef has familiarised tahini, pomegranates, sumac, lavash, and yogurt flavoured in endless ways to the Western palate. Indeed, many have credited Ottolenghi's influence with the reason why "your dining table looks ever more like a multicultural picnic, with supermarkets shelving sumac and molasses".
Staying true to its reputation, The Ottolenghi 20 Celebratory Tin will act as a colourful keepsake, and all sites and window displays will be brightly decorated "so that each deli and restaurant can partake in the celebration."
From black lime truffles made with smooth dark chocolate, to white chocolate clusters with an eclectic mix of coconut, macadamia nuts and ginger biscuits, each item will represent a reworked version of a classic recipe, highlighting all of the flavours synonymous with Ottolenghi.
The centrepiece will be the Ottolenghi Battenberg, a strawberry and sumac sponge, and pistachio and cardamom sponge, sandwiched beneath a thin layer of marzipan and pistachio paste.
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A nod to Ottolenghi favourites past and present, the Ottolenghi Celebration Hamper will bring together an assortment of beloved and new bakery items and nibbles
A nod to Ottolenghi favourites past and present, the £180 Ottolenghi Celebration Hamper will bring together an assortment of beloved and new bakery items and nibbles with a bottle of Signature Huguenot-Tassin Blanc de Noir Extra Brut.
Across the Ottolenghi delis, new celebratory dishes and cakes will be available for diners to
eat in and takeaway until May 3; Marinated courgette, grated tomato, labneh and sumac pine nuts, Herby asparagus, potato, black garlic, and dukkah and Apple-miso cauliflower will join a one-off Lemon mascarpone and labneh cake.
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Yotam Ottolenghi and his team celebrate their 20th Anniversary (Courtesy)
Born to Jewish parents in Jerusalem, after doing his military service in the IDF, Yotam Ottolenghi was tapped for the “genius programme” at Tel Aviv university an interdisciplinary course of study that allowed students to mix and match all subjects at the university.
He moved to London in 1998 and trained at the Cordon Bleu before working as a pastry chef at a restaurant in Knightsbridge and Kensington Place. After, he transferred to the Baker and Spice shop in Chelsea, where he became head pastry chef.
Ottolenghi opened the first of his five café-delis in 2002, and now has shops in Notting Hill, Kensington, Islington and Belgravia.
In London Ottolenghi has four self-named delis - run with his business partner and co-author Sami Tamimi; who also grew up in Jerusalem - as well as the upscale restaurant Nopi (an acronym for "North of Piccadilly").
The chef also writes regularly for The Guardian, has filmed television shows and published over ten cookery books, involving the formerly hard-to-find ingredients.
