Douglas McMaster

Coming Up

Zero waste is the operating system at Silo in London, where Douglas McMaster has made closed-loop thinking part of the kitchen’s daily mechanics. The work there is built around purity, whole ingredients, direct trading with farmers, reusable delivery vessels, and techniques that move between the modern and the ancient without asking for special treatment. The point is not a slogan at the pass; it is the way the place is run. Early time in exacting kitchens gave Douglas McMaster a discipline that shows up in the precision of the restaurant’s structure as much as on the plate. Work as chef at Noma, chef at The Fat Duck, and chef at Silo by Joost in Melbourne, Australia put him inside different systems of flavour, ordering, and restraint. Those roles formed a practical education in standards and left him with a clear sense of how far a kitchen can be pushed when consistency matters. The fullest expression of that approach came later as chef and owner at Silo in Brighton, England; London, England (2014–2025). In that setting, Douglas McMaster was not simply cooking within a philosophy. He was shaping the restaurant around it, with the system itself treated as part of the craft.

Where They Are Now

At Silo, the menu reads as a record of the kitchen’s method as much as a list of dishes. The ‘Silaof’ Ice Cream Sandwich is one example, and the name carries its own dry wit without needing extra framing. Quaver, Goats Cheese is pared back in the same way, while Kalibos Cabbage, Yoghurt, Sea Buckthorn, Douglas Fir and Smoked Ratte Potatoes, Caramelised Cream, Pickled Seaweed show how the restaurant builds from ingredients, not ornament. Supply and technique are treated as one system at Silo. Direct trading with farmers sets the menu’s pace before service begins. Reusable delivery vessels carry the logistics, so the ethics are not separate from the practicalities. Whole ingredients open the door to preservation, transformation, and restraint, with old and new techniques used as tools rather than as display. As Douglas McMaster puts it: “This is not an adjustment of another restaurant - this is a whole other restaurant.”

Signature

Douglas's signature dishes include The ‘Silaof’ Ice Cream Sandwich, Quaver, Goats Cheese, Kalibos Cabbage, Yoghurt, Sea Buckthorn, Douglas Fir, Smoked Ratte Potatoes, Caramelised Cream, and Pickled Seaweed.

In Their Words “My challenge at my zero waste restaurant Silo in Brighton is to make consistently brilliant food without generating any waste.” “This is not an adjustment of another restaurant - this is a whole other restaurant.”