Day of the Dead: KOL to host celebratory dinner in celebration of Mexican holiday

Mexican restaurant KOL will celebrate Día de los Muertos — Day of the Dead — by welcoming some of the country’s finest chefs next month.

Chef-patron Santiago Lastra will cook alongside Andrew Wong of the two-starred A.Wong, Jeremy Chan from Ikoyi, which also holds two stars, James Lowe from Lyle’s, and Pam Brunton, whose Scottish restaurant Inver is listed as “Exceptional” in The Good Food Guide.

The evening, on November 2, will see the chefs collaborate in the kitchen to prepare a nine-course menu that fuses “personal memories” in honour of Mexico’s famous holiday.

Details on the menu remain sparse, but dishes are expected to pay homage to Mexican dining while capturing each chefs’ individual style. Afterwards, guests will be invited downstairs, to KOL Mezcaleria, for an after party featuring live music, art, and colour.

Each year, Día de los Muertos allows families and communities to come together to remember dead loved ones. Rather than a solemn occasion, the it more carnival, less funeral, with fireworks, singing, dancing, and the exchanging of gifts.

Mock epitaphs are read to living friends and acquaintances and home altars are filled with the favourite food and drink of the departed. Such is the day’s significance that it was placed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2008.

KOL, meanwhile, remains one of London’s standout restaurants, having been praised highly by this newspaper previously. This year, Lastra’s venue was placed at number 23 on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.

Tickets are £280 per person and will be available via the KOL newsletter on Friday October 6. The ticket includes access to the KOL Mezcaleria after-party.

9 Seymour Street, W1H 7BA, kolrestaurant.com/