News & insights / Case studies / 10.07.24

Celebrate Provenance: Kitchen Table

AT KITCHEN TABLE IN FITZROVIA, LONDON, PROVENANCE IS A FUNDAMENTAL PART OF OPERATIONS AND OF THE RESTAURANT’S IDENTITY. WE CAUGHT UP WITH WIFE-AND-HUSBAND CO-OWNERS SANDIA CHANG (SERVICE AND BEVERAGE DIRECTOR) AND JAMES KNAPPETT (HEAD CHEF) IN A FASCINATING CONVERSATION ABOUT WHY STORYTELLING ABOUT FOOD IS SO IMPORTANT AND HOW DISHES AT KITCHEN TABLE ARE DRIVEN BY THE SEASONS.

“Kitchen Table is quite unique, because everything we do here is to celebrate local produce,” says co-owner and Service and Beverage Director Sandia Chang, opening the conversation around provenance at this London restaurant. “As a chef, I find provenance super inspiring,” adds co-owner and Head Chef James Knappett. “It's how I write the menus every day and how I create the dishes. There's a much stronger connection when you've been to see where a food is grown and you've talked to the person who grew it.”

Their menus are led by what’s available. “We can always stick with what's the best and what's the freshest at that moment,” says Sandia. This approach means at least part of the menu evolves every day, whether that's a whole dish or elements of five dishes. “We might have an incredible spring lamb on this week, but what’s served with it might change because the green asparagus has finished but the summer peas have just started,” James explains. “Last week, we were using grey mullet, caught far out at sea. That wasn't available this week, so we moved to deep sea mussels. The dish completely changes because of those different ingredients.”

“We use whatever the fisherman lands on the boat, rather than demanding sea bass because that’s what we’ve put on the menu,” Sandia adds. “It’s all about working with what producers have to give to us.” She notes that this helps to support the producers, too, and provide peace of mind. “It’s hard for farmers to grow something and then find that nobody wants it.”

A deeper connection

James explains how provenance gives his team a deeper connection to their dishes. “You know, once rhubarb just came into the kitchen and even though you knew it was British, you wouldn’t know where it was from. You might find out it was Yorkshire rhubarb. Okay, that's fine – but when you've actually been to see rhubarb, met the grower, walked through the farm, you get a fuller picture in your head. The next time the rhubarb comes in and you’ve got it in your hands, it's another level of connection. You want to do the best you can with that rhubarb and share it with your guests.” This also allows the Kitchen Table team to source the best quality products. “You can have rhubarb that tastes of nothing, and you can have rhubarb that is world-class. And with everything that we use, we're looking for that world-class flavour.”

Sourcing high-quality sustainable seafood can be tricky, and James counts himself very lucky to have long-standing relationships with fishermen using small day boats. “Sometimes before I even wake up at seven in the morning, they've sent me this list of stunning fish.” This list will include not only the price but where it’s from, whether it's farmed or wild and how it was caught.

Direct sourcing also means a greater level of control. “We get this really mind-blowing Chalk Stream freshwater trout. The supplier knows exactly what I want and he knows the levels of quality we expect. There's no middleman in that.” James cites another example, Fen Farm Dairy. “I've been to that dairy. I've seen the cows. I've seen the passion of the cheesemakers, I've made the cheese with them. Every time I use those cheeses, these people are on my mind: I know exactly how much work that they've put into their products. They really care what the milk tastes like – and that means we're halfway there.”

Putting provenance on the drinks list

This approach extends to their drinks offering, too. “We try to source drinks from Britain as much as possible. All of our cocktails are seasonal and often based on ingredients that we can forage ourselves throughout the year.” At the time of our interview, gorse flowers are in season. “That’s one of those ingredients that you see everywhere in England, but nobody really knows what exactly to do with it,” says Sandia. “We’ve been using it to make a really delicious cocktail.”

When it comes to the wine list, not everything on offer is British, but the focus is on the story. “We want to know that they're the ones growing the grapes and using those to make their own wines,” Sandia tells us. “My passion is grower Champagnes, because those are the people who are actually in the vineyards, caressing the grapes and then bringing them – often literally – into their homes and making wines. They're with the product from beginning to end. There's passion behind what you’re drinking.”

It's also about knowing the person. “You might buy from a big brand because you recognise the name, but do you know their children’s names or how many dogs they have? We've got wines on our list that come from vines growing around the kids’ trampoline in the backyard, you know – they’re going to treat those vines as good as they treat anything in their family.”

“Kitchen Table is 12 years old now and we've never not thought like that,” says James. “This isn't new for us. We've always gone above and beyond to find the best ingredients.”

Telling the story to customers

“Our situation is quite special because we only do 20 guests a night and everything is very personalised,” says Sandia. “We have the luxury of having fewer guests, and that gives us the time to tell stories.” This is particularly helpful when it comes to the wine list, which is full of unusual, less recognisable options. “We want to start a conversation. We want our guests to ask us for some help with the wine list – and then we're able to gauge what they want and tell them a story, maybe about the lady who made better wines once she got divorced and took over the vineyard by herself. Stories like that are very important.”

Because the staff is so engaged, it’s easy for them to bring storytelling to every table for every course. “When we serve a dish, we're able to explain to the guests exactly what we're having, where it comes from,” says James. “You've been there at the source and you can really just tell them everything about it – this is why it's really important for us to go meet our producers. The biggest joy is serving a rhubarb dish and telling guests all about Robert's way of farming – then just letting them taste it and letting the produce speak for itself. That can be a great moment.”

“When we serve a dish, we're able to explain to the guests exactly what we're having, where it comes from. You've been there at the source and you can really just tell them everything about it – this is why it's really important for us to go meet our producers. The biggest joy is serving a rhubarb dish and telling guests all about Robert's way of farming – then just letting them taste it and letting the produce speak for itself. That can be a great moment.”

Getting the team excited

Sustainability and local sourcing with a personalised touch are embedded in Kitchen Table’s philosophy, and this includes the staff. “The people who come and work here already have that passion. Everybody is part of the same small team that’s here every day,” says Sandia. “You should see the excitement when wild garlic is in season and there’s garlic everywhere. It's all hands on deck – you’ll see front-of-house staff washing the garlic leaves alongside the chefs. It's not about teaching; it’s about living this life.”

Something James works hard to communicate is respect for the seasons. “One of the reasons I came back to the UK to cook and open my own restaurant is I'm so inspired by the four seasons. We're very lucky to have spring, summer and autumn and winter, and for different time periods we get such an abundant array of ingredients to use, and it's so special. It builds excitement: soon, we're going to have English strawberries and then raspberries, and then we'll have squash,” he says.

“There’s no point thinking about cucumbers in the middle of winter; instead, how do we come up with great dishes that use parsnip or celeriac? The world now has access to whatever it wants, whenever it wants. We can get strawberries on Christmas Day. We can get winter vegetables in the height of summer. But it's about being inspired to use a food only at the right moment when it’s in season in the UK. And that's something we really believe in.”

Foraging classes are part of the training at Kitchen Table, and the team is encouraged to stay in touch with how each season is progressing. “They know that elderflower is finishing because they’ve been out there getting it. When it's finished, we're finished with it,” says James, “We all get such a passion from seeing the first apples grown or the first walnuts on the trees. We're excited about cooking with summer ingredients right now, but we’ll blink and there's going to be apples and fresh nuts. We’ll be working on autumnal menus before we know it.”

While we’re taking about the team, Sandia also mentions the social side of sustainability, a key focus area of the Food Made Good Standard. “When people talk about sustainable food and saving the planet, I think they tend to forget that this needs to include the team in the restaurant.” At Kitchen Table, they have family meal plans where everybody is fed breakfast and lunch every day. Because hospitality is a physically demanding industry, the food is designed to be nourishing and energy-rich. “To us, our staff is probably the most important thing that sustains our restaurant,” Sandia continues. “We have a good staff room with lockers where they can hang their uniforms, a couch, somewhere they can charge their phones during services. Those little things make it worthwhile to work here and let us sustain a good team. And that's very important for us.”

Food Made Good at Kitchen Table

James and Sandia signed Kitchen Table up for the Food Made Good Standard in 2023. “We knew we wanted to be a more sustainability-conscious restaurant, but we also knew that, in order to do so, we needed guidance to do it properly and ideas on what else we could improve upon,” says Sandia. “The Food Made Good Standard has really helped the whole team be more conscious. We treat it almost like EHO guidelines, so the staff knows what standards to follow.”

While provenance has always been part of the recipe at Kitchen Table, taking the Standard has had a big impact on other areas of the business. “It’s changed the way we do everyday activities – one example is rubbish sorting,” she continues. “Now that we sort everything, we are using fewer general waste bags and more organic and recycling bags, which are cheaper. That’s saving us money. Because the staff are more aware of what they’re throwing out, we’re also less likely to waste things in the first place.”

Learn more about Kitchen Table at their website. For more inspiring stories about how restaurants celebrate provenance on their menus, sign up to our newsletter and follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn!

All photos by Marcus Cobden.