Chef Liz Cottam defies industry challenges with new experiential menus at HOME!

As the hospitality industry braces itself for another challenging year, one of Yorkshires most prolific restaurants continues to innovate. HOME, which has built a loyal following since TV chef and restaurateur Elizabeth Cottam opened back in 2017 are fighting back. The award-winning restaurant is doing more of what they are known for – creativity. With the economy placing new pressures on restaurants and many well-known names closing across the country, the chef has decided to resist the temptation to follow many of the nation’s top restaurants to discount, dumb down and ultimately change what they stand for to survive. Cottam has made the choice to celebrate the joy of dining out, by launching not just one, but two new menus at HOME. These tasting menus are filled with unique and flavourful dishes that are both playful and creative. Dining at HOME is always an extraordinary experience, and their new dishes are designed to push the team’s creativity even further than before, helping diners to escape from the world for a few hours and indulge in delicious food, good company, and a theatrical dining experience.

HOME’s forthcoming ‘Stuck in the Past’ tasting menu is a celebration of dishes close to Cottam’s heart, with modern twists on some of her all-time favourite classic flavour combinations. Designed to deliver comforting and familiar flavours, each plate on the winter menu will also feature surprising interpretations of classic combinations, delivering them on the plate in creative and surprising ways. It’s the perfect menu for the cold winter months.

Highlights include Porcini and Black Trompette ‘Baked Alaska’ with black garlic and sherry and the Glazed Pork Belly with macadamia and ginger pork sauce.

 

One dish Cottam is especially fond of is the Crab and Kaffir Kyiv. This fragrant creation pays homage to her mums discovery of garlic, when she dined on her first Chicken Kiev in her first trip to London back in the 1980’s

The second menu is something of a mystery, named Smoke & Mirrors, the menu is designed to play with diner’s senses. This highly interactive menu is also a lot of fun, exploring how sight, smell and taste serve to affect the dining experience.

Also new for 2024 is a non-alcoholic drink pairing option. Cottam has worked closely with her team to concoct an interesting collection of juice, aromas, waters, infusions, ferments and more, each designed to perfectly match the dishes and entertain guests.

Speaking on the new multi-sensory menus, Cottam said:

“Stuck in the Past” is a menu that celebrates the dishes that hold a special place in my heart. Each plate is a modern twist on a classic flavour combination that I absolutely adore.

Some of these dishes have been a part of my life for a long time, going back decades, while others are more recent discoveries. But they all have one thing in common – they evoke a sense of comfort and familiarity, reminding me of the first time I tasted them.

2023 was the most challenging of all the recent years so far. I have no idea what 2024 will hold for us, trading conditions out there are hugely unpredictable right now, but what I can and will control is what we create inside my restaurant’.