The Future Plate: House of African & Caribbean Cuisine & Culture

What a joy it was to be part of the London leg of the @ourhomecoming tour at @doverstreetmarketlondon Getting to work with the team is always a pleasure and a lot of fun was had. Thank you @missmorii The vibe of the evening was 🔥, the conversation between @graceladoja and @irenettya was inspiring and the trainers 👟 designed by Grace 10/10! Team Future Plate did our thing, @william_chilila brought his A-game with the canapés and @chefyemss crafted a selection of sweets that went down a storm, particularly the Guguru & Epa - Popcorn & Groundnut bonbon with the Naija flag. 🇳🇬 #wemove

As we travel on this journey of becoming a world renowned luxury event caterer, there are many milestones along the way that we don’t get to truly document and celebrate as we are constantly building and working towards our next goal. Becoming an approved caterer and making the list for @rmgvenues is one that HAD to be celebrated and what better way to do so than with a styled shoot that tells the story of us, of culture and of course cuisine. Each image tells a story woven into African & Caribbean culture, juxtaposed against the backdrop of two of the most iconic venues, (Cutty Sark and Queens House) under the RMG portfolio. We are beaming with joy to be on the much desired list of caterers and very much looking forward to collaborating with the amazing team at @rmgvenues and working with trusted partners to create some memorable moments for our clients & their guests. If you would love to host an event with visually striking architecture steeped in heritage and beautifully married with African & Caribbean cuisine & culture then we would love to hear from you. Contact details in bio. Tenki! Ideation, scenography, design and photography by Julian George @chefsignatures

I wanted to share with you a truly special experience I had last week in London. And since today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, it felt like the perfect moment to talk about it. A few years ago, The Future Plate @the_futureplate concept was created as a response to the ongoing imbalance in fine dining, where European chefs have dominated for decades. It’s a conscious effort to change that narrative to open space for talent from different cultures, histories, and experiences. To show that, like art, cuisine has no single center and is a global language of diversity. 🙏🏾 This was the place I chose to meet with friends from our Top Charity initiative. During this extraordinary dinner, inspired by African and international cuisine, I had the chance to experience the vision and sensitivity of the outstanding chef William @william_chilila , who demonstrated that among African and African-American chefs there is immense talent and creativity.

FAMBUL! The second chef family get-together at our test kitchen was a vibe! @brokedinner hosted this one for us, bringing some Antiguan flavours and vibe to the evening. @chefjasonhoward brought some of the good stuff that kept us all warm on a rainy February evening. Can’t explain what it means to see this come to life, just seeing everyone be their true self, always love, jokes and the feeling of being home with fambul. Until the next one! #wemove @william_chilila @chefsia @callaliecakes_ @r4ms___ @chef_exose @chefdanrampat @b_thatchef @titobychefyemss

New visuals for our website. Thank you @yinka_ilori @yi_objects for the items, appreciate you brother. Concept, design & photography @chefsignatures @william_chilila cooking up a storm with the suya on the Konro Grill and being a natural at modelling! hone_isdj bringing the modelling vibes to the Future Plate studio. What do you think about our intimate screening set-up? Read more about it in the ‘Test Kitchen’ section on our website. #wemovewithintention

Dinner for @akinoladaviesjr & @kingxdavies in celebration of their incredible film ‘My Father’s Shadow’. What a joy, what a privilege, what a cultural moment to be part of. Our first client event in our test kitchen at @somersethouse was to celebrate a moment for African cinema & culture. Selected as the U.K.’s official Oscar submission for best international feature at the 98th Academy Awards, it premiered in Cannes where it became Nigeria’s first title in the festival’s official selection and earned Akinola a Special Mention from the jury. For anyone that grew up in an African household in the 90’s and beyond, this is for you, there will be snapshots of your childhood on screen, a surreal feeling. For the young boys then who are now themselves fathers and navigating their personal journey through fatherhood, this hits different and will have you in tears. Above all this is for everyone, it’s a cultural exchange, telling our stories through our own lenses and what a beautiful and powerful story it is. Thank you Akinola & Wale for representing us so well. Thank you @ebeleokobi for bringing folks together as always and making it possible for us to be part of this moment. Thank you chef @william_chilila for the stunning menu steeped in Nigerian culinary heritage. Thank you @floralevolution for the most beautiful tablescaping and thank you to the rest of the Future Plate team. @rontimehin it goes without saying you captured the moments your way and what a stunning eye you have.

Introducing ‘Fambul’ (the Krio word for family in Sierra Leone) it’s a monthly get together for the black chef collective to come relax, exchange ideas, discuss shared experiences, plans for the future and above all just be themselves, chop it up, crack some jokes, eat and be merry. Each time a different chef will cook the family meal inspired by dishes from their heritage, new menu they want feedback on or some homely dishes they grew up on. This year we are stepping into our purpose and together creating the community we all craved when we first met and it’s such a joy to start to see it coming into fruition. Chef @william_chilila kicked off the first Fambul on Monday and we are all looking forward to the next one already. Thanks to everyone that came and shared the moment with us. Incredible images by @kadir_gold

Last Thursday was a very special day for Future Plate, we raised a glass to 4 years of us and launched our Test Kitchen & private dining space at @somersethouse Hosted by our Founder & Director @chefsignatures alongside our special guest @ebeleokobi The menu was designed and executed by @chefjasonhoward with help from @antony_capriglione The dinner brought together gallery curators, architects, musicians, creative directors, chefs, presenter, photographer, music executives & corporate collaborators to celebrate the moment. The test kitchen is where we will host lunches, dinners and tastings, each event will be a unique culinary experience curated for brands, corporates and private clients. It’s a beautiful moment for us to be able to bring this to life, it’s a space where new dishes will be born, collaborations formed & the next generations of black chefs get to develop under the tutelage of the current vanguards. It will sit alongside our luxury catering arm and next year we are excited to bring the Future Plate Foundation to life. Thank you to everyone one that worked tirelessly to help make this happen: @conranandpartners @kef.eu @conceptcontract @floralevolution @william_chilila @myinkyjournal @teiamoss Stunning images by @kadir_gold #wemove #wemovewithintention

It was an honour to cater for some of the incredible Black British trailblazers who walked the untrodden paths, inspired our generation and beyond, showing us that we too can have the audacity to think differently and be who we want to be. Last month we worked closely with the @foreignanddevelopmentoffice to add the culinary element to their BHM celebrations ‘Standing Firm in Power & Pride’ at the Foreign Office. The likes of Tessa Sanderson, Moira Stuart, our dear friend @chichinwanoku and of course @thereelclivemyrie graced us with their wisdom and presence, hearing Clive’s story and his journey to where he is today filled us with joy to see all he has accomplished and how things have changed but also highlights just how much work is yet to be done. If you know us, you know we are steadfast in walking this path that we have chosen and when we are done we hope to have opened many doors that will make it easier for the next generation of Black chefs to take it to another level. Thank you to all that helped make this happen and most of all to team Future Plate. #wemove #wemovewithintention

A joy catering for the Lola Young activation for YouTube Music. The crowd was a vibe, production by @missmorii & team was 10/10 and chef @william_chilila brought his A-game with a bespoke menu that hit different. #wemovewithintention

This one is for the ages. Such a joy to have designed and executed a menu for the oga @yinka_ilori at the pre launch of his M.A.D collaboration with @maxbusser @m.a.d.editions The idea was to create an experience that will totally immerse the guests in Yinka’s universe, the menu was inspired by his Nigerian roots, taking cues from the M.A.D One Edition watch and the world he now inhabits. Incredible experience working with 2 giants in their respective industries and a pleasure to see it all come to life and be part of history. So happy for you Yinka, all the hours of toil is paying off and long may it continue. Keep shining bright and showing just how high we can fly. Team Future Plate you did it again, @william_chilila you took this one to a next level! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 #wemovedifferent

Game, Set and Match! The last of our Wimbledon series. ‘The New Royale’ a dinner for @hanakuma & @meta to celebrate the players who have devoted their heart and soul to the game of tennis while also welcoming in new talent to the sport. A celebration of a new, more inclusive era of tennis. One in which athletes of different backgrounds are celebrated. Future Plate was responsible for event design, food & drinks, production and event management. Love to the team, our partners and our clients. #wemovedifferent