A chef who earned his Michelin star at 34 and trained under culinary legend Paul Bocuse is bringing an eight-course theatrical dining experience to a Hale cocktail bar this week.
Graham Mairs, 60, will launch his residency at The Westgate on Ashley Road on Thursday 12th February, offering 12 guests per sitting an experience he claims is unlike anything else in the North of England.
The eight-course tasting menu costs £110 per head with no service charge. Wine pairings and signature cocktails are available as optional extras.
Mairs, who was born and raised in Bramhall, describes the concept as "where art meets food, where music meets drink, meets theatre, meets storytelling, meets poetry".
"The whole of the North has never seen anything like this," he told Altrincham Today. "I don't think they're even doing it anywhere in the UK."
The intimate setting means all 12 diners arrive and eat at the same time, with Mairs orchestrating the evening personally. One course requires guests to read a children's book he wrote himself before their dish arrives.
"Bring your reading glasses," he said. "As you read the book, you'll start to understand me as a person. You'll understand what's coming to you."
Menu items include "Rebel in Disguise" for the bread course, "The Story of a Disillusional Fish That Dreamt of Champagne", and "Simply Rhubarb", a nostalgic tribute to rhubarb and custard sweets.
Mairs trained at École Lenôtre in Paris before working under three-star Michelin chefs including Paul Bocuse, Roger Vergé and Raymond Blanc. His career includes stints at Brown's Hotel and 90 Park Lane in London, and he has won 54 international gold medals in culinary competitions.
He now works as a consultant and travels internationally teaching his "C#D Theory", a formula for flavour creation based on research suggesting the human brain can only process three core flavours when sugar is involved.
The residency will run for an initial eight weeks on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings. Mairs said he plans to return with an entirely new concept later in the year.
Mairs moved back to the area in 1999 and said the residency represents a homecoming after three decades working internationally.
"I wanted to bring something completely diverse, something completely unique, something that creates emotion," he said. "This is about bringing high-class dining that's playful, personal and intimate."
Mairs added that he believed the area had been missing a high-end dining destination since the closure of Juniper, the Altrincham restaurant run by the late chef Paul Kitching.
"Don't be afraid of being who you are," he said. "Come as you are. No dress code. This isn't stuffy white tablecloths. This is a show."
