Belgium-born Túbo Logier will replace current guest chef Anna Tobias at Hackney-based natural wine shop, bar and restaurant, P. Franco, later this month.
With a culinary history including sous chef at both The Clove Club in Shoreditch and Italian restaurant Luca in Clerkenwell, Logier grew up in Belgium, training at In de Wulf and later Chambre Séparée in West Flanders under the direction of Kobe Desramaults.
Before arriving in London, Logier travelled and cooked in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, with these experiences influencing his cooking techniques.
The 23-year-old chef said: “I think it would be hard to identify my cooking as one style or cuisine, I’m using food more to explore my Asian roots and tying it together with being brought up with European food in a fun, interesting and creative way, using all the techniques I’ve been influenced by in the kitchens I’ve worked.”
With the menu yet to be unveiled, it is rumoured that P. Franco will return to the fine-dining styles of the chefs who preceded Anna Tobias.
Consistently opposed to pretty plates of food, during her residency Tobias promoted a unique approach to straightforward cooking, frequently using the hashtags #beigefood and #brownfood to accompany images of her dishes on social media.
Logier has suggested that guests can expect combinations such as smoked aubergine, oyster, and beef fat; Boudin and squid sauce; and potato, crab, and beer.
The handover took place at P. Franco on 31 March, with Logier having the opportunity to cook in collaboration with Tobias and become accustomed to working in the small kitchen which is situated within the main space.
Logier follows a number of chefs to take the helm at P. Franco. Tobias replaced chef George Tomlin in September 2018 and prior to Tomlin, guest chefs have included Pepe Belvedere, Giuseppe Lacorazza, Tim Spedding, and Will Gleave.
Belvedere and Gleave now run the kitchen at P. Franco’s sister restaurant, Bright, which opened near London Fields last May. Together with Phil Bracey, co-owner and wine aficionado across the group, Gleave opened the restaurateurs‘ third site Peg, on Morning Lane in Hackney, in February.
Túbo Logier will be at P. Franco from 11 April.
