Veni, Vidi, Vimto! That sums up the career of Michelin star chef Kirk Haworth. Borrowing Julius Caeser’s famous motto, Haworth came, saw, and conquered in the culinary world. But instead of Machiavellian political cunning and ferocious legions, he has, instead, deployed superlative vegan cookery and Vimto, a soft drink popular in his hometown of Blackburn.
According to the BBC, “Kirk’s culinary style is modern, plant-based food, delivered with high-end execution and a focus on sustainability and wellbeing. His menu is inspired by innovations in the Northwest such as Vimto popular in his childhood.”
A starter called ‘Vim and vigour', inspired by the drink, helped Haworth pick up TV’s Great British Menu title. The first fully plant-based chef to do so. (Vimto was invented by another Blackburn man, John Noel Nichols, in 1908).
And now, Plates, the London establishment he runs with his sister, Keeley, has become the first fully vegan restaurant in the UK to earn a Michelin star.
All this from a man who, by his own admission, is only a recent convert to vegan cooking.
“Eight years ago, I’d never heard of vegan or ‘plant-based,’ the chef told The Vegetarian Society’s members’ magazine, The Pod. “I had a lot of intolerance tests done, and discovered I was intolerant to butter, and I was reacting to red meat. There were only about four or five animal products I could eat that weren’t reacting in my body. I had so much chronic pain, my body was so inflamed.”
Diagnosed with Lyme disease, he turned his misfortune to his advantage. As he told specialist lifestyle magazine About Time, “I started to eat a plant-based diet myself and became unbelievably intrigued with the power of fruits and vegetables. I spent a lot of time learning about and understanding their nutritional values and more, and the way they work in the body when consumed. I always wanted to create a restaurant concept that was different; something challenging that would bring a completely new way of eating to the food scene in London – and I went for it.”
For a celebrated vegan restauranteur, Haworth has some interesting quirks. He hates the ‘V-word’ – the actual word vegan – for a start. “At least seeing the word on a menu,” he told The Guardian. “Plant-based cooking is not a trend. Not for me, anyway. I’ve been doing it for eight years and it’s just in my soul now.”
Plates is small, with just 25 covers. And 76,000 people tried to book in the first few weeks. So, Haworth’s website crashed. Now, sensing they might be on to a good thing, the brother and sister team of Kirk and Keeley have opened a Plates Farm and Retreat in the south of France. “Guests are offered four-night retreats, while the farm features seven ensuite bedrooms, a pool, gym and sauna, as well as a number of dining options and wellness activities,” reports The Caterer.
And, of course, Haworth’s innovative menus – this may well be the first time in history that Vimto manages to pass muster amongst the gastronomes of France.