Ollie Dabbous

The chef at the helm of the wildly popular Dabbous and newly opened, laid-back Barnyard chats to Alicia Miller about growing up in Kuwait, dining in New York, and the big open skies of Wyoming...

The flatbreads in Kuwait are massive

especially when you’re just a kid. I lived there until I was about six years old, and I remember seeing them in the streets and being amazed; they were half the size of me. I don’t get to too many Middle Eastern restaurants now, but when I do it is usually Momo (momoresto.com). Though I suppose it’s a bit more Moroccan.

My understanding of food changed completely

when I went to Florence to work at my first restaurant, Trattoria Cammillo (00 39 055 212 427). I was still a kid; the quality of produce was in a totally different league from what I had seen before. I learned a different way of treating food – minimal cooking, clean flavours, not overdoing it on a dish.

I worked six days a week at Cammillo

but when it was time to go out to eat I headed for Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco (cinghialebianco.com), a simple trattoria in a former chapel where Richard III stayed during the crusades! They do a great ribollita (a vegetable soup thickened with bread).

New York is a hedonistic city

I love Saxon + Parole (saxonandparole.com). It’s not fancy, not remotely chefy. They do shellfish and steak and cocktails, and it is really bustling. A standout dish was gnudi with langoustine and Swiss chard. When I was in New York I stayed at Hôtel Americano (hotel- americano.com), which was very chilled out – it’s located in Chelsea near the High Line park.

Flour + Water in San Francisco is a great restaurant

(flourandwater.com). It’s unfussy, with a neighbourhood feel. At State Bird Provisions (statebirdsf.com) they walk around with trays of different plates and you take the ones you like the look of. Commonwealth (commonwealthsf.com) is modern and ambitious but still informal. When I ate there I had just flown in from the UK so I was shattered, and they insisted on feeding me 12 courses with wines! By the end I almost passed out.

If I’m drinking cocktails

it’s usually an aviation or an old fashioned. Dean Street Townhouse (deanstreettownhouse.com) makes good drinks, and has a nice homely atmosphere – and is also less than ten minutes’ walk from my place! When I’m eating out in London, I like Umu (umurestaurant.com) for a light lunch, or for something more formal The Square (squarerestaurant. com). Though I really do love mid-budget, not so high-profile places, such as Tayyabs (tayyabs.co.uk) in Whitechapel.

I don’t know why but Wyoming

is somewhere that really appeals to me for my next vacation. Maybe it’s the vast open spaces, the remoteness, the big sky. Above all, the tranquility!

My comfort food is waffles

served with maple syrup and yoghurt. We sometimes make a version at Dabbous that has smoked fudge and strained sour cream. It’s important that I taste everything before it leaves the kitchen, of course... dabbous.co.uk, barnyard-london.com