In a traditional city like York in the UK, it is surprising to find that one of the most innovative restaurants is one with Asian sprinklings.
Skosh from chef-patron Neil Bentinck is all about pan-Asian flavours, small-plates and a sharing food concept. The restaurant's name comes from the Japanese word sukoshi, which means "a small amount", also a clue to what the menu looks like.
Hen’s eggs; Lindisfarne oysters; and smoked duck ham.
"The menu is predominantly what I like to eat. So that would be fresh, spicy and light, generally. The menu is driven by seasonality and the influences are often from Asia," explain Bentinck, who is Anglo-Indian. His father is from Shimla in India "so that plays a massive part in my culinary background. The menu is also inspired by my travels through Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Japan. These are all things that contribute to the style of my food. It is a bit of a melting pot of seasonings and flavours".
Much like Asia, the menu offers vibrancy and a meandering of flavours in the form of snacks and lots of small, sharing plates.
"We also offer cheeses, in a more of a composite cheese course rather than a traditional British cheese course. We use a cheese and garnish it appropriately. Desserts are a variety of smaller sweets," says the chef.
Desserts are a variety of smaller sweets.
"Our menu doesn't get a complete change. We've tried that before -- doing a block seasonal thing, but it doesn't work like that. The seasons don't… they aren't that strict. If you're going to buy from wholesalers, you're gonna question the quality, right? The best tomatoes aren't going to be ready when you want to put them on the menu. You've kind of got to wait for it if you're working with the best ingredients. So, we change this and that until the produce from our farmers comes in.
"For example, when the asparagus starts coming into season, it immediately hit the menu. That's kind of how it works. That's how the dishes change. We also have amazing produce here in Yorkshire, with the coast being so close and a lot of farms. I'm from York, I've lived here all my life. This is where I want to be. I couldn't imagine moving and opening somewhere else. This is where my family is. I know the suppliers; I've worked with them for years," says chef Bentinck.
Inside Skosh.
While there is no particular menu format, the individual nibbles, like the Skosh signature, which is a hen's egg and currently served with PX sherry and mushroom; a Lindisfarne oyster "pickleback" served with lychee and jalapeño; and smoked duck ham with pickled lime and watermelon on a little skewer, always come first.
"How it flows is up to the diners and what they order. The servers know how to split the dishes, so they'll often pair things together. The lighter ones, like a crab salad and a vegetable, they'll know to pair first. So there's a bit of flexibility with the servers. Every table is different. So depending on what is ordered, the servers know the best order and they'll often relay it back and then at the end, if you ordered a couple of proteins and a potato, they might suggest sending those together. So it's quite bespoke," explains the chef.
The open kitchen follows the order the way it is punched in by the servers.
Skosh’s Chinese youtiao.
"If a guest orders seven dishes, the server will punch them in the order that they are best eaten in and there will be kind of breaks on the check. So, you get your snacks at the first bit, then maybe two or three dishes in the second run and then two or three in the third run," says chef Bentinck.
"If you've seen the open kitchen in operation, it's quite quiet. Everyone looks at what they need to do and knows how it flows through. If the salt-aged beef rump tartare is going to run with a hot fish dish, the kitchen will always send the cold, raw dishes first. They know to do that and look out for that. The servers and chefs know what order it's meant to go in, because we've developed it years. We've made it our own. I've never worked in a kitchen that does the dishes like we do, in the order we do." The chef, who worked as head chef at the now closed Van Zeller in Harrogate, opened Skosh in 2016 and introduced the concept of small plates to York. The restaurant quickly became one of York's most popular spots and was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand and three AA Rosettes in 2024.
The bespoke menu or orders for each table requires a lot of training, especially if the servers are new to Skosh.
Char siu pork with pineapple and pickles.
"If they're experienced, they'll take it on board reasonably quickly. But we always train and there'll be two of them working the sections, to make sure it's done properly. If they don't have the experience, they'll learn the dishes first. Then they'll work on the pass, so carrying the food and learning about them… all the elements before they go on to serve a section and take an order," emphasises chef Bentinck.
"In the kitchen, apprentices start from prepping in the back and learn the sections. For the Skosh fried chicken massaman, they'll prep the chicken, they'll make the marinade, crumb, sauce, they'll make all the elements. They'll do that for every dish in that section. When they're comfortable and ready, we'll put them in the open kitchen, so they can see where things are and understand it more. They've done all the prep and then they're coming to cook, finish and plate the dish."
At any given time, Skosh has no less than five desserts on the menu.
"I love doing pastry, but don't do it as much, any more. The pastry chef and I develop the dishes together. I'll come up with ideas, he or she will throw it back to me, we do some prep and taste, it's a joint effort. I might have an idea, and I know what I want to do, but ultimately, the pastry chef has ideas and initiative, and wants to create something, as long as it's it fits in the Skosh bracket," says the chef.
Apart from having the obvious Indian influence, Skosh's menu has a lot of Thai and more recently Chinese and Vietnamese influences.
"That's my brain. If we get some mint that's really good, I think of India or maybe Vietnam. Indian food always comes naturally to me but I also love Thai food. It all depends on what route I want a dish to take."
The lamb and wild garlic sausage "Thai style" is his version of a sai oua and is one of the most popular dishes.
Venison tataki with ponzu, pear, chilli and ginger.
"There's always a bit of balance and from a diner's point of view, you get to taste lots of different things. But it all works because they've all got that lightness, freshness and spice… we even make our own salted duck eggs. It's not confused, it's complex, but accessible," says the chef.
Dishes like youtiao served with wild garlic, which he may or may not have foraged from the Yorkshire Moors, Old Winchester and jalapeño ranch, and char siu pork with spice roast pineapple, sesame and ginger, also grace the menu.
"I suppose the menu is deceptive. We could simply say 'lobster dumplings with pickled ginger', but with that lobster dumpling, there's a lobster oil, a lobster foam, a lobster ketchup, a lobster bisque. I suppose it comes across as simple, but when the diner eats it and they get it, it's complex and a lot more than they probably imagined. I think our dishes and descriptions on the menu leave a lot to the imagination. This heightens the Skosh experience and makes it better, more exciting," says the chef.
In late 2023, Skosh began an expansion and refurbishment and has doubled its dining space, has two bars, a private dining room and the open kitchen was made bigger -- a measurement of its success. Though chef Bentinck says "it was natural evolution".
"After nine years, I have come to the realisation that there will not be another Skosh from me. Even if I opened another restaurant, it would not have the same values or the same kind of food style because Skosh is so different. As much as I love to eat and cook, it wouldn't be professionally right for me. Needless to say, Skosh is here to stay," says chef Bentinck.
