On Thursday, July 10, two of Europe’s most celebrated chefs will come together for a special evening at Pavyllon London. As part of the restaurant’s ongoing Counter Culture series, Yannick Alléno will welcome James Knappett, the creative force behind the two-Michelin-starred Kitchen Table, for a collaborative dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane.
Created to mark the hotel’s 55th anniversary, the Counter Culture series invites some of the UK’s most respected chefs to cook alongside Alléno and Pavyllon’s head chef, Benjamin Ferra Y Castell, at the restaurant’s curved kitchen counter. Previous editions have featured the likes of Raymond Blanc, Adam Handling and Chet Sharma.
For this latest installment, Alléno and Knappett will present a six-course menu that blends French technique with British ingredients, with both chefs preparing and plating dishes in front of guests from the open kitchen. Diners can choose to sit at the 30-seat counter or in the elegant main dining room, both offering a front-row seat to the action. As with all Counter Culture events, the atmosphere is intended to be informal and interactive, giving guests the chance to engage with the chefs as they work.
Chefs
Yannick Alléno holds an impressive 17 Michelin stars across his restaurants worldwide. Though best known for his work in Paris, Courchevel and Dubai, he opened Pavyllon London — his first UK outpost — in 2023. The restaurant was awarded a Michelin star just six months later. His approach is rooted in classical French gastronomy, but he is also known for pioneering modern techniques, including his signature extraction and cryo-concentration processes to amplify flavour.
After formative roles at acclaimed restaurants including The Ledbury, Noma and Per Se, James Knappett returned to London in 2012 to open Kitchen Table with his wife and sommelier, Sandia Chang. The intimate, counter-style restaurant in Fitzrovia quickly earned a loyal following for its seasonal, quietly inventive dishes and was awarded two Michelin stars for its efforts.
The one-night-only menu reflects each chef’s signature style while finding a shared rhythm in precision and seasonality. From Alléno’s side, highlights include warm potato with lovage mayonnaise, served in a kombu broth with seaweed and cucumber, and a Cornish lamb cutlet cooked over open flame. For dessert, he’ll present a salted caramel ganache paired with yellow wine ice cream, mushroom extraction and honey.
Knappett will bring his signature focus on British seafood to the table, with dishes such as scallop with caviar, cobnut, cream and smoked roe, and a lobster Goan curry with egg, peanut, coriander, mango and juniper.
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A curated wine pairing by Sandia Chang, known for her celebrated grower champagne list at Kitchen Table, will also be available.
The six-course dinner is priced at £250 per person pavyllonlondon.com