Last night’s dinner was delicious: A fresh fattoush salad, crunchy mini falafels, chargrilled red peppers with toasted almonds, fresh baby spinach swirled into creamy yogurt and spiced with cumin, minty labneh sauce… The list could go on. I indulged in a full Persian Mezze banquet, beautifully served and prepared by the master chef of The Hampstead Kitchen, all while sitting in the middle of London’s newest design store, West Elm.
Saima Khan gave up her career in banking to start doing what she loves: making beautiful, scrumptious food. So, based out of her kitchen in Hampstead, London, she began her own catering company offering great homemade food, served with style. When a friend told me about this event (after raving in great detail about The Hampstead Kitchen’s incredible food), I knew I had to try it out for myself. And I was not disappointed! Saima is one talented entrepreneur who, not only cooks up a delightful meal, but also shares her excitement for it with her guests. The best part was knowing that we were helping The Hampstead Kitchen support a local charity, as all proceeds from the night went to The Food Chain; an organization who is fighting the good fight against HIV.
Because it was hosted by home decor store West Elm, we of course got to do a bit of decorating ourselves. We played around with table settings, picking out pieces to create our own, and went just a little over the top with the plate stacking (layering?). I loved their ikat-printed bowls!
[Photo credit: all photos are mine unless otherwise stated.]