The Spectator’s pop-up with chef Thomas Straker

One has to know how to spin plates to be a top chef. And Thomas Straker’s multitasking talents were on full display last week at a pop-up in New York hosted by The Spectator to launch his new cookbook where he not only served smash burgers and fries himself but also signed copies of his book.

Straker, for the uninitiated, is a British chef, restaurateur and entrepreneur whose star rose during lockdown when he began posting viral home-cooking videos to TikTok. Then came the butter-making videos, racking up billions of views, followed by his business All Things Butter. Early next year, Straker opens his first New York restaurant in the location of Keith McNally’s old Lucky Strike.

His debut, bestselling cookbook Food You Want To Eat has been hungrily awaited by his 5 million social media followers. One of them, Angel, a trucker from New Jersey said:

“Gordon Ramsay used to be my favorite. But now it’s Tom. The way how he cooks, he’s not in a rush. And my guy got swag, super swag. I try to reenact everything he does. To be honest it doesn’t come out the same but I try my best.”

Straker mingled with guests at Lounes Mazouz’s Ella Funt in the East Village, where watermelon margaritas flowed thanks to tequila provided by event partner LALO Tequila, and he signed books for guests, each with a personal note.

Guests at the party included writer Dana Brown, designer Fred Castleberry, artist Christopher Brooks, interior designer Amanda Brooks, musician Jackson Scott, model Nour Rizk, art director Thomas Hayo, PR boss Savannah Engel and The Spectator’s own Kate Andrews, Zack Christenson and Orson Fry.