We were delighted to have been invited back to The Academy Restaurant at the Ulster University, for another “Culinary Salon”: a series of dinners hosted by some of the UK and Ireland’s most admired chefs and food writers.
In partnership with the Oxford Cultural Collective, this creative initiative, developing the future leaders of hospitality, presented a wonderful evening of mouth-watering Middle Eastern cuisine with award winning authors, podcasters and restaurateurs, husband and wife team, Sarit Packer and Itamar Srulovich, owners of the popular Honey & Co. family of restaurants and delis in London.
The Academy Restaurant website HERE
The evening started with a fresh & fizzy Limoncello Spritz, before the starter, a magnificent Mezze of Yemeni style Falafel with tahini, Dried Apricot and Pistachio Tabule fragrant with orange blossom, a smooth and smoky Baba Ganoush with pomegranate, Saffron Pear Salad with a gorgeous walnut sauce & candied walnuts, and freshly baked Pitta drizzled with fruity olive oil. This sharing feast was accompanied by a zesty Finca Fabian Verdejo.
The Main Course was a Rolled Lamb Shoulder, or we had the vegan option, a hearty Borlotti Bean Stew, topped with roasted Aubergine Steak, jewelled with pomegranate seeds and served with dressed green leaves, paired with a glass of full bodied Vina Bujanda Rioja Crianza.
Dessert was the legendary Honey & Co. Feta Cheesecake on kadaif pastry; creamy yet sharp, with delightful chunks of tangy feta whipped with cream cheese until smooth and slightly salty, on a base of tiny thin noodles baked with butter and sugar, and topped with honey syrup, roasted almonds and blueberries. Ideally matched with a Château Gravas Sauternes with hints of honey and apricot, this was a heavenly combination!
To finish, Marunchino cookies, traditional almond macaroons with a light crunch on the outside and a chewy centre, were a delightfully sweet treat to accompany our coffee.
Many thanks again to The Academy for inviting us to another wonderful evening enjoying Honey & Co.’s amazing Middle Eastern dishes, in this beautiful venue, with exceptional service and a commitment to nurture upcoming culinary talent.
Previous Culinary Salon with Conor Spacey HERE
About The Academy Restaurant
We are proud of our state-of-the-art educational centre incorporating a restaurant, culinary school, beverage school and conference and meeting facilities.
As an educational hub, Academy nurtures the talents of students who are committed to careers in hospitality, as chefs, entrepreneurs and future leaders. It showcases environmentally sustainable approaches to business and contributes to the ongoing development of Northern Ireland as a world-class food and drink destination.
Opening hours
Monday – 12.30pm to 8.30pm
Tuesday Afternoon – 12.30pm to 2.30pm
Tuesday Evening – 6.30pm to 8.30pm
Wednesday – 12.30pm to 2.30pm
Thursday Afternoon – 12.30pm to 2.30pm
Thursday Evening 6.30pm to 8.30pm
Friday – 12.30pm to 8.30pm
Saturday / Sunday – Closed
Contact us
Ulster University
York Street
Belfast
County Antrim
BT15 1ED
About Honey & Co
Since opening our first restaurant Honey & Co in 2012 we have become known for serving up delicious Middle Eastern food using the best ingredients we can get our hands on, with the warmest welcome from the friendliest team in town.
Pursuing a long-held ambition to open our own Middle Eastern-inspired restaurant, we opened Honey & Co in June 2012. We have since added a deli, Honey & Spice, a grill house, Honey & Smoke, and recently moved Honey & Co. from Fitzrovia to Bloomsbury! We have also published four cookbooks: Honey & Co Food From The Middle East, winning Sunday Times Food Book Of The Year, Honey & Co The Baking Book, Honey & Co At Home and our fourth cookbook Chasing Smoke: Cooking Over Fire Around the Levant. We host a podcast Honey & Co: the Food Sessions, inviting interesting and influential guests from the food and drink industry for a chat, as well as writing a weekly recipe column for FT Weekend Magazine.
About Sarit and Itamar
Sarit Packer
Sarit grew up in Northern Israel, where she was surrounded by a rich food culture from a young age. After deciding to pursue a career in food, Sarit moved to London to train as a chef at Butler’s Wharf Cookery School. She then became a chef at Orrery, the French restaurant situated in the heart of Marylebone, progressing through the ranks over the next two years.
Sarit moved back to Israel, taking up a role as Sous Chef at Joya, an Italian restaurant located in Herzliya, where she met husband-to-be Itamar Srulovich. Two years later Sarit and Itamar moved to London and joined the kitchens at the OXO Tower. In 2007 Sarit joined Ottolenghi, heading up the pastry teams for Islington, Kensington, Notting Hill and Belgravia before project managing the opening of NOPI, where she remained as Executive Chef before leaving to open Honey & Co in 2012.
Itamar Srulovich
Born in Jerusalem, Itamar’s earliest memories are of time spent around his grandmother’s kitchen table with his family, feasting on home-cooked Egyptian and Yemeni cuisine. Itamar moved to Tel Aviv in 1999 and joined Orna and Ella, an Israeli bistro, working his way up from kitchen porter to Chef. In 2002 Itamar moved to Joya, an Italian restaurant located in Herzliya, where he spent a year as a chef on the pasta team, and where he also met his wife-to-be Sarit Packer.
Itamar returned to Orna and Ella as Sous Chef for two years, before moving to London with Sarit and joining the kitchen at OXO Tower as Chef de Partie. In 2006 Itamar became Head Chef at Ottolenghi Notting Hill, Yotam Ottolenghi’s famous first site, moving to Ottolenghi Belgravia after two years. After another two years as Head Chef there, Itamar left to fulfil his dream of opening a restaurant
