Jamie Layall, Cameron Sohel and Nicko Lachica have a few things in common: they’re all 22 years old, they each have 6 years of working in the hospitality sector, all three are passionate about food – and they are partners in their new venture, a restaurant at Number 8 Cocktail Bar in Meanwood.
Jamie’s background has seen him work front of house, kitchen and bar in a variety of venues in Leeds (Sukhothai) and Manchester (The Ivy), gathering a first in economics at Manchester University along the way. “Huge thanks to Pat from Sukhothai Chapel Allerton – couldn’t have had a better first job to learn and understand service and how to run a restaurant.”
Cameron started out as a kitchen porter at The Ivy, Leeds, and after short stints at various other restaurants, progressed through the ranks, working his way to sous chef at the Mustard Pot. Anyone who knows anything about work in commercial kitchens will know that Cameron’s walked the hard miles.
Nicko’s learning experience earned him a reputation as the best griller Nandos has ever seen. He went on to join Cameron in the kitchen at the Mustard Pot, where he was sous chef before the latest venture.
It’s no wonder that their influence comes from all types of food and that their aim is customers’ pleasure and comfort. Their cultural mix and heritage lend themselves to wide-ranging tastes and the adventure of developing skills and experience – England, India, the Philippines, Cyprus and Scotland make for a powerful mix!
Around six months ago, the notion of having their own business led to considering different ideas – private dining, food stalls, event catering………….with the first choice being pop ups, decided upon as the best place to start. The longer term view was evolution, not revolution, into a well-rounded business able to serve food in different settings. All agreed that these should be unpretentious, informal and relaxed, without sacrificing the quality and presentation of the food itself. So – Dijon Boys was born in April 2022, launched as a pop up at Boot & Rally Bar in Meanwood.
“This is one of our favourite bars in our area and after floating the idea of doing a food pop up at the bar, the owner Will and GM Jacob invited us down for a chat – this provided us with an opportunity to let them try some of our food. After a successful meeting, we put together a menu, figured out the logistics and began our promotions to ensure that our first event was a huge success. We invited our good friends who have their own dj brand called Optic to play at the event to create a vibrant atmosphere.”
The partners established their roles: Cameron is Executive Chef, Nicko is Head Chef and Social Media Manager, whilst Jamie is FOH and Business/Operations Manager.
Their kind of food
“Small, sharing plates of food. We are inspired by cuisines and flavours from all over the world and don’t limit our menu to one specific cuisine but rather a format of eating. Our food very much lends itself to an interactive eating style – where a group of friends/family can order a bunch of dishes and share, talk and enjoy the food together. We prioritise using seasonal, local and fresh produce – we are very lucky to be from Yorkshire and be growing our business here as there are so many fantastic producers (fruit, veg, meat and dairy).”
How the pop ups developed
“When we started there was a lot or thinking and working out to understand and organise everything we need to serve such a high quantity of individuals – however as time has gone on we have become more efficient in our operations. Our food has also evolved to include more seasonal produce and better quality food. We have always aimed to keep prices as low as possible and that will continue to be a key feature of our operations moving forward.”
“We began Private dining events located at Number 8 cocktail bar under the brand of Herencia (meaning integrity/legacy) as Nicko’s family had a restaurant in the Philippines with the same name). This was a huge but exciting challenge for us to serve full 3 and 4 course meals to a large number of customers – we have recently hosted a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory themed menu with dishes inspired and named after scenes and features of the film and will be looking to do more Herencia events at different venues across leeds.”
“In July, we served food from the Watermark in town and No.8 – a tapas style menu with bar snacks, hot and cold dishes and desserts. We served as late as 1am at the weekend and we believe were the only place serving this type of food at such a late hour.”
“We’ve also served tapas at Boot & Rally, Yakitori and beer/wine pairing at Bottle Shop Chapel Allerton, Barbecue at Black Sheep’s Beer Festival, Sunday Roast at No.8 and Herencia Private Dining at Seven Arts Chapel Allerton.”
What next?
Otley Social – North Bar pop up on 26/27/28 August, a Bank Holiday weekend to round off a busy summer for Dijon Boys.
They told us they always dreamed of having their own kitchen and a permanent location, so it’s exciting for them to watch their dream come true. They have a base from which to cook and to serve, somewhere for customers to find them and try out their food. They’re still planning on doing pop ups moving forward and made special mention of James Ince at Number 8 Cocktail Bar for giving them the opportunity to be able to showcase their style and their skills.
Jamie, Cameron and Nicko clearly have great respect for James, who had as it happened wanted to include a restaurant on his premises: “James is such a nice guy and believes in our project and we are thrilled to be able to grow our business with him on board.”
When does it open?
23rd September 2022
What to expect
Modern British fusion, tasty sharing plates of food at an affordable price, seasonal English produce, an unpretentious atmosphere, quality handmade cocktails, a selection of wine to pair with the food, and lager and craft beers, all including excellent service and coffee through the day.
Anything else?
Dark wood, blue wall paper mirrors, framed artwork and indoor plants. A lovely atmosphere for both lunch and evening dining. Huge, sliding, open windows on the ground floor to bring the outside indoors. Music to match the vibe of the evening, sometimes with live DJ. (There’s a record shop upstairs with all genres of music – new, old and older.)
And the longer view?
“We aim to continue to grow, taking on more staff and running the restaurant at number 8 whilst having residencies at other bars and the occasional pop up/private dining event as well – we are very excited to be running our own restaurant. However, we have been able to understand the benefits and of running pop ups and truly enjoy meeting new people and the challenge of serving food in a new place.
We are huge fans of natural wine and we have aspirations to open a natural wine/cocktail and tapas bar in the future.
Social media content such as funny videos, vlogs, instructional videos and much much more.
We are also aiming to set up a wedding and event catering team dedicated to this type of events.”
As this writer quietly withdraws, it’s to reflect on the enthusiasm, energy and creativity resulting in the realisation of a dream for these three adventurers – although from their plans and longer vision, it seems there’s so much more to come. Meanwhile, it’s time to catch my breath, sink into the sofa and send Jamie, Cameron and Nicko Leeds Living’s best wishes for the future.
Instagram: @dijonboys
Photography provided by Dijon Boys.
