Honey & Co: The Food Sessions – Details, episodes & analysis

A little Christmas treat from us to you! Something to get your teeth stuck into while you're wrapping your presents, stuffing your turkey or out for a walk.

You may know that we're OG Yotam Ottolenghi superfans, having both worked at Ottolenghi before we set up our own place, so we've been dying to get him on the podcast since we started. If you don't know the Ottolenghi brand, then you've probably been living under a rock for the last 20 years: they have amazing delis and restaurants in London, era defining cookbook, a weekly recipe column in the Saturday Guardian and regularly contribute to the New York Times.

Today we're joined by Yotam Ottolenghi, Noor Murad and Verena Lochmuller from the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen, another exciting part of the Ottolenghi empire! The Ottolenghi Test Kitchen was founded by Yotam and is headed by Noor Murad alongside a collaborative team of chefs, writers, doers and thinkers. Together they cook, taste, converse and put into writing all the recipes they truly hope will make it onto your tables. We talked about how OTK came into being, what it's like to work in such a collaborative, creative environment, and of course we drooled over their latest cookbook, Extra Good Things.

Pick up a copy of OTK Extra Good Things and OTK Shelf Love for Christmas! Available where all good books are sold.

With thanks to our guests Yotam Ottolenghi, Noor Murad and Verena Lochmuller.

Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast if you've not already, and check out our back catalogue if you're new to the podcast, there are lots of juicy morsels to enjoy.

With thanks to everyone who helps make this podcast happen:

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Audio Engineers: John Scott

Theme Tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Comms: Louisa Cornford

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Honey & Co is 10 years old! We couldn't think of a better way to kick off our birthday celebrations than a special episode of Honey & Co: The Food Sessions. Coming atcha.

Join us, Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich, at home as we rustle up a classic Honey & Co dish, talk about how the restaurant was born, catch up with our team, guests and friends about their memories of the last 10 years. You will laugh, you will cry, you will be amazed! We loved reminiscing and it was so special to read and listen to all the memories submitted by our customers from over the years.

Thank you to everyone who sent us a voice message or a dm, an email or a story. We're so sorry we couldn't feature them all, we read every single one, we love them, it's been very special for us to read them and to help us remember and enjoy what we've done over the last 10 years.

News! While some of you may know that we will be closing Honey & Co on Warren Street at the end of April, we are so happy to announce today that we will be moving to Lamb's Conduit Street this Spring. We're not closing, just moving!

Follow the new location build @HoneyAndCoBloomsbury on instagram.

If you want early access to bookings you will need to be on our mailing list – sign up to our mailing list.

With thanks to our guests Mirko D'Angelo, Rachael Gibbon, David Loyd and Lara Hamilton.

Thanks to Laura Bartram-Pope, Hannah Geller, Briana Lebold and Sunny Kang for their audio messages, and to everyone who sent us a voice message, a dm or an email.

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Audio Engineers: Paul Brogden & John Scott

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Comms: Louisa Cornford

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back with the fifth and final episode in our series about our new book CHASING SMOKE, and this week we'll be sharing travel stories and recipes from our incredible trip to Jordan.

In this episode we recreate a cheesy sweet knafe we cooked over the fire in Jordan; we catch up with Ramzi Hanafieh our amazing guide who took us on adventures around Jordan from the green Aljoun hills to Petra; and we talk to our friend and photographer Patricia Niven who accompanied us on all our trips about her favourite experiences along the way.

We were blown away by everything we saw, everything we ate, and everyone we met in Jordan. We enjoyed mind-blowing landscapes from the hills to the valleys, beautiful tomato galayet bandora cooked over fire on the roadside by Ramzi, and we were so lucky to be welcomed to enjoy a mansaf feast with our new friend Saif. We definitely saved the best episode until last for you... Enjoy! 

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Order a copy of Chasing Smoke

Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Follow Patsy @PatriciaNiven and see more of her beautiful work at www.patricianiven.com  

Follow Ramzi Hanafieh @Ramzi_Hanafieh and @Saif.Khlaifat85 and adventure with them when you visit Jordan @JOnavigators  

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For knafe recipe:

For the sugar syrup:

400g  granulated sugar 

230ml water 

a squeeze of lemon juice 

2tsp orange blossom water 

For the crust:

375g kadaif dough, air-dried till crisp 

100ml sugar syrup 

45ml oz water 100g / melted ghee 

For the filling:

250g fresh mozzarella 

250g hard mozzarella (the stuff you can grate) 

To cook and serve: 

30g melted ghee to brush the pan 

ground pistachios 

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With thanks to:

Our guests this week: Patsy @PatriciaNiven and @Ramzi_Hanafieh 

As well as @Saif.Khlaifat85 who welcomed us into his family home to cook mansaf 

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Audio Engineer: Paul Brogden

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Communications: Louisa Cornford 

A special thank you to Polly Russell for donating her garden

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back with the fourth episode in our series about our new book CHASING SMOKE, and this week we'll be sharing travel stories and recipes from our trip to Israel back in 2019 when travel was carefree. 

In this episode we talk about our childhood memories of bonfires and barbecues growing up in Israel; we cook a whole aubergine on the fire with chilli garlic dressing, tahini and a charred egg yolk; we talk to our friend and photographer Patricia Niven who accompanied us on all our trips; and we catch up with Oshrat Yakutiel, our friend and Tel Aviv cafe owner, who joined us with her family on one of our cookbook shoot days in Israel.

There's burnt potatoes in bonfires, fire pits, sun stroke, giant steaks and tips on how to avoid exploding aubergines... Enjoy! 

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Order a copy of Chasing Smoke

Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Follow Patsy @PatriciaNiven and see more of her beautiful work at www.patricianiven.com  

Follow Oshrat @Osh_Posh and visit @Cafe_Yael 

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For the whole burnt aubergine:

2 aubergines


50g / 1¾ oz tahini paste


50ml / 1¾ fl oz ice-cold water

2 egg yolks from beautiful eggs

For the lemon, chilli and garlic dressing:

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

3 large garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

juice of 1-2 lemons

1 tsp table salt


1 tsp ground cumin


1 tsp caster sugar

2 tbsp olive oil

1 bunch of parsley, leaves picked and chopped

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With thanks to:

Our guests this week: Patsy @PatriciaNiven and Oshrat @Osh_Posh

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Audio Engineer: Paul Brogden

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Communications: Louisa Cornford 

A special thank you to Polly Russell for donating her garden 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back with the third episode in our series about our new book CHASING SMOKE, and this week we'll be sharing travel stories and recipes from our trip to Gaziantep in Southern Turkey in search of the perfect kebab. 

In this episode we cook our version of Adana kebab, a recipe that is very famous in Turkey and that every restaurant has their own version of; we talk to our friend and photographer Patricia Niven who accompanied us on all our trips; and we catch up with Erdem Hösükoğlu who so kindly showed us around Gaziantep in 2019 and got us into all the best kitchens!

We talk about Sarit's control-freak-ness when it comes to boarding passes; the pride, passion and amazing produce we came across in Gaziantep; and we road test our new ziir knife that we picked up on the trip and have been too scared to use since. Enjoy.

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Order a copy of Chasing Smoke

Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Follow Patsy @PatriciaNiven and see more of her beautiful work at www.patricianiven.com  

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For the Adana Kebab recipe:

700 g / 1 lb 9 oz lamb shoulder meat (or 20% fat lamb mince)

1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced

1 red chilli, halved, deseeded and sliced

2 onions, peeled and roughly diced

5 garlic cloves, peeled

1 large bunch of parsley, leaves picked

2 tsp table salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp sweet paprika

½ tsp ground allspice (pimento)

vegetable oil for shaping

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With thanks to:

Our guests this week: Patsy @PatriciaNiven and @ErdemHosukuglu

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Additional Production: Claire Crofton

Audio Engineer: Paul Brogden

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Communications: Louisa Cornford 

A special thank you to Polly Russell for donating her garden 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back with the second episode in our series about our new book CHASING SMOKE.

For the next few weeks we'll be sharing travel stories with you around the Levant, cooking recipes from our trip and catching up with some of the friends we made in each of the countries that we visited.

This week we're chatting about our many trips to Greece and specifically our travels to Thessaloniki in 2019. Greece is a very special country to us and Thessaloniki is such an amazing town, not so much a tourist destination, but it should be! In this episode we cook octopus on the grill with a beautiful paprika aioli; we talk to our friend and photographer Patricia Niven who accompanied us on all our trips; and we catch up with our own Gena Deliyannis who used to work with us at Honey & Smoke and was instrumental in planning our trip – she is now living back in her homeland so we catch up on what's hot in Greece right now.

We talk about our hunt for the perfect gyros, our misinterpretation of the meaning of antikristo lamb, our visit to a women's cooperative in the hills, and all the ways you can cook an octopus. Enjoy.

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Order a copy of Chasing Smoke

Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Follow Patsy @PatriciaNiven and see more of her beautiful work at www.patricianiven.com  

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For the Octopus Recipe

1 large octopus (defrosted)

For the braising liquor

1 plum tomato, quartered

1 red onion, quartered

1 tsp whole cumin seeds

1 tsp whole black peppercorns

4 garlic cloves, halved

1 chilli, halved lengthways

2 bay leaves

a few sprigs of sage

4 tbsp red wine (or use white, if there’s some open, or 2 tbsp brandy)

For the marinade

1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced

8 sage leaves, roughly chopped

1 tsp smoked paprika

a sprinkle of chilli flakes

3 tbsp olive oil

For the paprika aioli 1 egg yolk

1 small clove of garlic, minced

½ tsp smoked paprika

½ tsp sweet paprika

a pinch of salt, plus more to taste

2 tsp rice vinegar (or light white wine vinegar)

100–120 ml / 3½ –4¼  fl oz vegetable oil

juice of ½ lemon

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With thanks to

Our guests this week: Patsy @PatriciaNiven and Gena Deliyannis  

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Additional Production: Claire Crofton

Audio Engineer: Paul Brogden

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Communications: Louisa Cornford 

A special thank you to Polly Russell for donating her garden 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back with a new series of Honey & Co: The Food Sessions all about our new cookbook CHASING SMOKE. 

Where there's smoke, there's fire. Where there's fire there's delicious food to share, and friendships and memories to make.

CHASING SMOKE is a record of our travels around the Levant, chasing and cooking over fire on grills, beaches and bonfires. For the next five weeks we'll be sharing travel stories with you, cooking recipes from our trip and catching up with some of the friends we made in each of the five countries that we visited: Egypt, Greece, Turkey, Israel and Jordan. 

First up is Egypt where we travelled to Cairo and Alexandria. In this episode we make sweet potatoes baked in embers, a dish we tried for the first time on the Corniche waterside in Alexandria, which we add our own almond tahini twist to; we talk to our friend and photographer Patricia Niven who accompanied us on all our trips to take beautiful photos; and we catch up with Laila Hassaballa of Bellies En Route who took us on the most incredible food tour in Cairo. 

There's charcoal in buckets, cars in carpets and... the dynamite falafel sandwich. Enjoy.

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Order a copy of Chasing Smoke

Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Follow Patsy @PatriciaNiven and see more of her beautiful work at www.patricianiven.com  

Follow Laila @belliesenroute and find out more about their tours at https://belliesenroute.com  Get 40% off their e-cookbook Table to Table with code: heyhoney 

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Ingredients for sweet potato recipe

4 sweet potatoes

100g whole raw almonds, skins on

100g boiling water

1 small clove of garlic, peeled

4 tbsp light vegetable oil 

1 tbsp sherry vinegar (or use red wine vinegar) 

80ml cold water 

flaky sea salt (plus more to taste)

date molasses (optional)

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With thanks to

Our guests this week: Patsy @PatriciaNiven and Laila Hassaballa of @belliesenroute

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Additional Production: Richard Ward

Audio Engineer: Paul Brogden

Theme tune: Daniel Winshall 

Head of Communications: Louisa Cornford 

A special thank you to Polly Russell for donating her garden 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Honey & Co: The Food Sessions with Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich

It's been a year. And what a year. We're back with a revival of the podcast, starting with a MIX TAPE for you. If you're of a certain age you'll know all about mix tapes, an expression of love in compilation form. So from us to you, this is our mix tape for you, featuring our best, tastiest, crispiest, sweetest bits so far from all our previous episodes. 

If you're new to the podcast this is an excellent place to start. Featuring Claudia Roden, Michael Rakowitz, Samin Nosrat, Fernando Laposse, Max Halley, Olia Hercules, Andi Oliver and our very own Bridget Fojcik. 

If you like what you hear you should definitely delve back further into previous episodes, and look out for our new series coming, which is all about our new book Chasing Smoke.

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Follow us on instagram @honeyandco

Sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about new events 

Visit our website

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With thanks to:

Miranda Hinkley our producer

Richard Ward for additional production

John Scott our sound engineer 

Hester Cant who produced some of these episodes

Louisa Cornford our comms manager

And Daniel Winshall for our new theme music

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s International Women’s Day!

To celebrate this glorious day we have one very special episode of our Who Run The World? season celebrating inspiring Women In Food.

Today’s episode features the most important and inspirational women in our lives, the women running Honey & Co! We like to say that every day is women’s day at Honey & Co and in this episode we chat to some of the women working in the kitchens, on front of house and behind the scenes to make it that way.

For one week only, our roving reporter and fearless leader Sarit Packer had a walk around Fitzrovia to chat to the team about why they love their lives in food: from the joy of leaving behind 9-5 clock watching, to the buzz of running a busy service; from the satisfaction of knowing everything about your regulars to the happiness of waking up every morning go to a job that you love... and of course the absolutely delicious food! We also talked candidly about past experiences juggling childcare and the perception that as a woman you must choose family or career, we shared experiences working in macho establishments in the past and talked about how this is changing in the industry.

We are so, so proud of the strong and happy female-led company we have created and the nurturing and progressive atmosphere that comes with this. We hope this episode will give a special insight into the world of hospitality and Honey & Co and inspire lots more women to come join us.

Hope you enjoy!

This is the last episode in our Who Run The World? Women in Food Season. Be sure to catch up on previous episodes with:

Fay Maschler

Darina Allen

Romy Gill

Lisa Markwell

Sheila Dillon

Claudia Roden

Andi Oliver

Got something to say? Share your thoughts, feelings and questions with us!

Email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter: @honeyandco 

Instagram: @honeyandco 

#HoneyAndCo #WomenInFood #WhoRunTheWorld

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Manager: Louisa Cornford

Vocals: Kristine Kruz

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the seventh episode of our Who Run The World? season celebrating women in food.

Today's guest is Fay Maschler, restaurant critic at London’s Evening Standard newspaper.

Fay won a contest for the position of Evening Standard restaurant critic in 1972. This was supposed to last for three months but she has recently celebrated 47 years in the role! Fay’s reviews are legendary and she has been known to put many a chef in their place. We talked about her experiences starting out in the hey day of journalism, the reality of eating out four times a week, when not to write a bad review, and how to deal with death threats when you do!

It was such an honour to have Fay with us for this conversation.  It was fascinating to hear about the changes she has seen over the years on the London restaurant scene, how the rise of social media has changed things, the food writers she admires the most, and what we all really, really want to know... where we should be eating right now in London. 

Hope you enjoy!

This interview is part of our series Who Run The World? Women in Food. Our final episode will air on 8th March International Women’s Day.

Got something to say? Share your thoughts, feelings and questions with us!

Email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter: @honeyandco 

Instagram: @honeyandco 

Follow Fay on Twitter: @Fay_Maschler And read her in Evening Standard

#HoneyAndCo  #WomenInFood #WhoRunTheWorld

Producer: Miranda Hinkley

Manager: Louisa Cornford

Vocals: Kristine Kruz 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.