Trust the chef is big in Japan – now Nico’s bringing it to his top restaurant

No need to choose from the menu – diners will get a stream of dishes picked by the kitchen team

Guests dining at the west end restaurant 111 by Nico will be encouraged to sit back, relax and trust the chef to provide them with a range of delicious seasonal favourites – without the option of choosing from a menu.

Each visit will see a different meal served as the TRUST menu begins with an amuse bouche, before diners tuck into courses such as pasta, lamb, asparagus or fish.the five course tasting menu ends on a sweet note with a decadent dessert.

Chef Nico Simeone said: “The first and most important element of this new dining experience is the expression of trust.

“It’s not simply saying, ‘I don’t care what you give me,’ instead, it tells our chefs that the customer trusts their judgment about the current seasonal produce available to them and what the best courses could be at that particular moment.”

The TRUST tasting menu is an immersive experience where guests choose from a list of 12 ingredients.

The concept is a popular method in dining in Japan where patrons at sushi restaurants leave the selection to the chef, as opposed to ordering à la carte.

The Japanese call it “omakase” which means ‘you trust in the chef ’. The chef will generally present a series of plates, beginning with the lightest fare and proceeding to the heaviest dishes. TRUST at 111 by Nico emulates this idea with seasonally available ingredients.

Nico said: “Our team of chefs are always finding creative, interesting ways to work with ingredients that will not only excite them but our guests too.

“In recent years the food scene has seen the rise of multiple cuisines and with TRUST we can explore these food trends and present them as part of a tasting menu to our customers.”

TRUST is priced at £25 per person – with paired wines coming in at an extra £22. The 12 ingredients listed on each menu card will change on the first of every month.

This month sees dishes such as an amuse bouche of AJO gazpacho; smoked ricotta with heritage tomatoes; Tarbet crab served with strawberries; Hebridean skate and an interesting take on a traditional cheeseboard in the Picos De Europa. A sweet alternative can be found in the intriguing textures of a Lambrusco dish.

0 Nico will provide best ingredients