Award-winning chef in Newcastle Restaurant Week collaboration with Meat:Stack burger company

An award-winning chef is returning to his roots at a popular burger business with a special collaboration for NE1 Newcastle Restaurant Week.

Lawrence Norman – sous chef at the Michelin-starred Hjem in Northumberland – was crowned North East Chef of the Year last year, but one of the first kitchens he worked in was at gourmet burger venue Meat:Stack in Newcastle, when it first launched a permanent base in the city, in Grainger Market.

Before the company expanded to the Bigg Market and Leeds, Lawrence was a kitchen manager and chef at the business, helping to establish Meat:Stack as the go-to spot for the city’s best burgers.

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Alongside his culinary creations for Hjem, Lawrence has now launched SOKU, a new Asian-inspired dining concept, hosting events across the region with his partner, Alana Whenary.

The pair have teamed up with Meat:Stack for this month’s NE1 Newcastle Restaurant Week – which runs from January 13 to 19 – with a collaboration menu blending bold, vibrant Asian flavours with classic burger indulgence.

Alana said the idea for SOKU originated during a travel experience the couple had last summer.

She said: “Our travels through Asia served as a significant inspiration for our vision. Since we launched our first events in December, we’ve been thrilled to see an incredible response, with all four initial events selling out within hours. We are genuinely excited for Restaurant Week, as it plays a vital role in Newcastle’s hospitality scene and generates substantial income for local businesses. We are proud to contribute to this.

“Looking ahead, we have two sold-out events for Deep North scheduled for January and February, and we’re planning to host more throughout the year in and around the North East. Each event typically accommodates between 30 to 70 guests per night, allowing us to create a warm and intimate dining experience.”

The new link-up for this year’s Restaurant Week comes after the company successfully joined forces last year with with MasterChef quarter-finalist Kyle Greenwood.

Allan Hyslop, one of the Meat: Stack founders and directors, said the menu promises to be a game-changer, featuring Vietnamese pork, khao soi curry sauce, fish sauce glaze and miso-infused milkshakes.

He said: “Get ready for an unforgettable fusion experience during NE1 Restaurant Week.

“We are absolutely delighted to welcome Lawrence back into the Meat:Stack kitchens to help curate this exciting menu. It has been a pleasure for us to follow his career since he left us a few years back and we are super excited with what he has come up with for a Meat:Stack X SOKU menu. Also, I cannot wait to be able to get down to one of the SOKU events in the near future!”