Born and raised in the Philippines in a family of home cooks, Kleng's passion for food began at home. After moving abroad, missing the flavors of Filipino cuisine inspired Kleng to pursue cooking and baking professionally. Kleng started as a home baker before expanding into catering and opening a food stall in 2016, where she became known for her empanadas and soft, pillowy ensaymada. In 2021, she entered a professional kitchen, marking a major step in her culinary career. Since then, she has worked as a baker, pastry chef, head chef, and general manager, gaining experience across multiple areas of hospitality. Kleng has worked with several Filipino restaurants in London and Brighton, helping introduce Filipino cuisine to a wider audience. Through her work, she has showcased flavors such as ube, calamansi, adobo, inasal, and kare-kare, contributing to the growing popularity of Filipino food in the UK. Among her proudest achievements is launching London's first Filipino brunch concept, helping to present modern Filipino cuisine in a fresh and exciting way. Kleng currently serves as General Manager at Bintang, the oldest Filipino restaurant in London, part of the Maginhawa Group led by Omar Shah.

LAP-FAI LEE, British Chinese cult favourite cook, mentor, and the creative force behind the viral instagram account @oishinboy. Known for his deeply personal cooking that folds together his Cantonese heritage with a modern British outlook, Lap-fai crafts dishes that are playful, unexpected, and rooted in soulful technique. Lap-fai has spent over a decade as a specialist BBQ teacher, crossing worlds from glossy Cantonese duck and char siu to deep, smoky American pork ribs and peppery beef. He’s as comfortable pleating delicate dim sum as he is breaking down whole pigs for the pit. His skill has seen him collaborate with Michelin-starred chefs, develop menus for restaurants all over the UK and Europe. Lap-fai is a Meatopia veteran with his outfit Fire + Rice and will be sure to bring the most deliciously smoky Asian bbq dishes and techniques to Meatopia Glasgow this year.

Established in 2019 and based in South Wales - Bab Haus is run by Leyli & Soraya Homayoonfar and Rebecca Goad, our food is an eclectic mix of modern Mexican / Middle Eastern and American BBQ, a fusion of Leyli and Soraya’s Persian background and Bec's experience living on the West Coast of America, mostly flavours and cooking techniques which centre around fire. Our food is constantly evolving but the one thing that remains is the aspect of cooking over fire which is key to the flavour of our dishes. Our food sites; BAB HAUS MEX in Goodsheds, Barry, Newport Market and Ffos Caerffili with a focus on Mexican and Texas BBQ both with hints of Middle Eastern flavours and cooking techniques.

Luke Larsson is the Head Chef and Co-Owner of Khao Bird, a restaurant that speaks to his personal experience of Northern Thai food and affinity for the boldness and layering of Thai flavours in that region. He first ventured to South East Asia in 2017 at the age of 23, traversing from Krabi to Udon Thani and honing the majority of his culinary skills in Bangkok, after a series of catering apprenticeships in the UK. Taking to the woks at Bo.Ian, Larsson was confronted by a bustling kitchen of 28 chefs where he learned basic kitchen skills and traditional Thai culinary fare, picking herbs, pounding pastes and expanding his repertoire of Thai flavours. Seeking out subsequent stages, Luke went on to cut his teeth at Samuay & Sons and 100 Mahaseth. Captivated by the social aspect of dining in Thailand, Luke returned to the UK where he began a series of successful pop-ups with Mike Palmer in Brighton under the name ‘Lucky Khao’. Capitalising on the very best produce he had access to from East Sussex and introducing regional Thai cooking to Brighton and Hove as the area’s debut Northern Thai restaurant before moving to London in 2024 and launching ‘Khao Bird’.

Luke Vandore-Mackay is an award-winning chef and outdoor cooking specialist with over 20 years of experience in the culinary world. His journey has taken him from operating the Borough Market Demo Kitchen and teaching at The London Barbecue School to founding successful London ventures including Brompton Food Market and The Hour Glass in Kensington. In 2019, Luke and his wife Sara traded city life for three acres of Devon woodland, establishing High Grange Devon—an innovative outdoor cooking school and fine dining experience that has redefined what's possible with live fire cooking. Drawing inspiration from the seasons, the landscape, and the rich bounty of East Devon's artisan producers, Luke's approach celebrates the primal connection between fire, food, and community. His mastery has earned High Grange Devon recognition as Best Fine Dining Restaurant from Food Drink Devon—the only barbecue venue in the county to achieve this distinction—alongside Gold awards from both Food Drink Devon and Taste of the West. As an ICSA Centre of Excellence and ranked among the top five barbecue schools in the South West, Luke's woodland kitchen has become a destination for those seeking to learn the art of cooking over flame while experiencing restaurant-quality cuisine in nature.

Mai Van Do is the Head Chef at Belly, where he brings over a decade of culinary experience and a passion for ingredient-driven cooking. With a professional background rooted in French and European cuisine, Mai has developed his craft in a number of Michelin-starred restaurants, refining a style that combines technical precision with creativity and respect for exceptional produce. Since joining Belly, Mai has embraced Filipino cuisine, drawing on its rich traditions while incorporating his own distinctive approach. His cooking is centred around grilling and fire-driven techniques, using carefully sourced seasonal ingredients to create dishes that are bold, balanced, and full of character. Inspired by travel, experimentation, and the discovery of new ingredients, he continually explores innovative ways to enhance flavour through smoke, flame, and texture. Under Mai’s leadership, Belly received a Michelin recommendation within just three months of his arrival, a recognition that reflects both his culinary vision and commitment to excellence. His approach combines classical training with contemporary influences, resulting in a dining experience that is both thoughtful and memorable. Through every dish, Mai aims to showcase the quality of the ingredients and the power of simple, expertly executed cooking.

Man Hon Luk is a London-based pitmaster and founder redefining barbecue through a cross-cultural lens. Born in Hong Kong and raised in the UK, his approach to food blends Asian flavours with the traditions of American barbecue. His journey into barbecue began in 2022 during a trip to the United States, where he trained at Interstellar BBQ in Austin, Texas. There, he developed a deep understanding of low-and-slow cooking, fire management, and the discipline behind great barbecue. Back in London, Luk launched a barbecue venture that combines classic American smoking techniques with Asian-inspired flavours, carving out a distinctive identity within the city’s evolving food scene. His cooking is defined by bold flavours, precision, and a commitment to quality ingredients. As he continues to build his reputation, Luk is set to open his first restaurant in Hackney Wick in 2026, marking the next step in bringing his unique vision of barbecue to London.

Marie Mitchell is a British-Caribbean cultural practitioner who works with words, and food, adopting a considered approach to discuss social and political themes in spaces of nourishment. Community is at the heart of her work, she curate events, pop-ups and spaces to nurture through body and mind. With food, she develops dishes by focusing on the now - often using seasonality as her springboard, while weaving history, geography and contemporary ingredients into her menus. Caribbean hospitality, ingenuity and heart is the foundation of her, and her work, and this is always where she draws back to. Her debut cookbook, Kin: Caribbean Recipes for the Modern Kitchen was published with Particular Books (Penguin Press) in the UK in June 2024, to much acclaim, winning the Debut Cookery Award at the Fortnum and Mason awards 2025, named best new voice by Waitrose, and second in the top cookery titles of 2024 by Observer Food Monthly. She published Kin, with WW Norton in March 2025 in North America, and was named one of Eaters best new books for Spring. She’s a regular guest chef on Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, written for Vittles, The Guardian, The Observer, Ocado, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and featured in Eater, Harper’s Bazaar, Time Out, Saveur Magazine, Vancouver Sun, and on Ali Rosen’s Potluck in the US.

Dublin born chef, Mark O’ Brien has spent the last ten years working his way through some of the best restaurants in London. Stints at Barbecoa, The Dairy, and Birch (Zebra Riding Club) have all given him a grounding in modern cooking, whole animal butchery and live fire. Last year he opened his own American Style Barbecue restaurant "Snake Oil Barbecue" in Margate and was one of the Final three contestants on this year on Series 18 of Masterchef: The Professionals.