Michael O’Hare is the British chef widely recognised as one of the most distinctive and provocative fine-dining voices in UK cookery across the past decade. Born 1977 in Ireland and raised in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, O’Hare trained at Middlesbrough College and worked at leading UK fine-dining kitchens before opening The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds, West Yorkshire, in October 2014. The restaurant earned a Michelin star in 2015 in its first full year of operation and held it continuously until the restaurant’s closure and transformation into Psycho Sandbar, and subsequently into his new 2026 venture In Lamentation.
O’Hare’s 2026 project is In Lamentation (also styled INLAMENTATION), a highly intimate 16-cover restaurant scheduled to open on 26 February 2026 in the West Yorkshire village of Boston Spa. The restaurant marks a deliberate shift from the urban Leeds fine-dining format of The Man Behind The Curtain and Psycho Sandbar to a smaller, more exclusive village-based tasting-menu experience operating four services a week. In February 2026 he appeared on the Go To Food podcast discussing Michelin stars, money and the economics of modern UK fine dining, a conversation that attracted significant attention across the UK restaurant trade.
TL;DR
- British chef born 1977 in Ireland; raised in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
- Trained at Middlesbrough College; worked at leading UK fine-dining kitchens
- Opened The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds in October 2014
- Michelin star from 2015 to restaurant’s closure in subsequent years
- Psycho Sandbar successor closed; In Lamentation 16-cover restaurant opens 26 February 2026 in Boston Spa
- February 2026: Go To Food podcast on Michelin stars, money and economics of UK fine dining
Michael O’Hare key facts
| Born | 1977, Ireland; raised in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England |
| Nationality | British (Irish-born) |
| Training | Middlesbrough College; leading UK fine-dining kitchens |
| Defining restaurant | The Man Behind The Curtain, Leeds, West Yorkshire (October 2014; Michelin star 2015) |
| Subsequent restaurant | Psycho Sandbar (successor to The Man Behind The Curtain; subsequently closed) |
| 2026 restaurant | In Lamentation / INLAMENTATION, Boston Spa, West Yorkshire (opens 26 February 2026; 16 covers; 4 services/week) |
| Notable television | Great British Menu 2017 and 2018; extensive UK trade-press coverage |
Early life and training of Michael O’Hare
O’Hare was born in 1977 in Ireland and raised in Middlesbrough in North Yorkshire, England, in a working-class family. He has spoken in multiple interviews, including the February 2026 Go To Food podcast, about a difficult childhood and adolescence, and about the role cookery played in providing structure and purpose through his teens and early twenties. He attended Middlesbrough College for catering qualifications and followed the traditional British pathway from technical college into hotel and restaurant kitchens.
Through the early 2000s O’Hare worked at progressively more senior positions in UK fine-dining kitchens, including extended periods at The Man Behind The Curtain precursor restaurants and at Anthony’s in Leeds. He built a reputation for distinctive plating and a punk-and-heavy-metal aesthetic that set him apart from the more conventional classical-French UK fine-dining register of the period. This aesthetic would later define his own restaurants.
In October 2014 O’Hare opened The Man Behind The Curtain on Vicar Lane in Leeds, a central Leeds fine-dining restaurant located above the Flannels department store. The restaurant’s distinctive plating, tasting-menu format and bold presentation style attracted immediate critical attention, and it earned a Michelin star in the 2015 Michelin Guide in its first full year of operation. The restaurant held the Michelin star continuously through the subsequent years, and O’Hare became one of the most-discussed UK fine-dining chefs of the late 2010s and 2020s.
Michael O’Hare career timeline
- 1977: Born in Ireland; raised in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England
- Mid-1990s: Attends Middlesbrough College for catering qualifications
- Late 1990s-2000s: Works at UK fine-dining kitchens including at Anthony’s in Leeds
- October 2014: Opens The Man Behind The Curtain on Vicar Lane, Leeds
- 2015: The Man Behind The Curtain earns Michelin star in the 2015 Michelin Guide
- 10 November 2015: Staff Canteen interview airs
- 2017: Great British Menu appearance on BBC Two
- 2018: Great British Menu appearance on BBC Two
- 2020: Joint Staff Canteen interview with Gareth Ward on Michelin and social-media pressure
- 2021-2023: Continued operation of The Man Behind The Curtain
- 2023-2024: The Man Behind The Curtain transitions to Psycho Sandbar format
- 2024-2025: Psycho Sandbar closes
- 2025: Announces new restaurant In Lamentation for West Yorkshire village of Boston Spa
- 1 February 2026: Go To Food podcast interview on Michelin stars, money and economics of UK fine dining
- 26 February 2026: In Lamentation / INLAMENTATION opens in Boston Spa, West Yorkshire (16 covers, 4 services/week)
- 2026: In Lamentation operates as highly intimate village-based tasting-menu restaurant
Michael O’Hare signature style: provocative fine dining with distinctive visual identity
O’Hare’s central argument, developed at The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds from 2014 and continued across Psycho Sandbar and the 2026 In Lamentation project, is that UK fine dining can combine technically precise tasting-menu cookery with a distinctive visual identity drawn from punk, heavy metal, and contemporary art rather than from the classical French register that had dominated UK fine dining for decades. The Man Behind The Curtain plating, the dining-room design, and the tasting-menu presentation all built on this argument across more than a decade.
The second defining element is the willingness to transform or close successful restaurants. The Man Behind The Curtain transitioned to Psycho Sandbar format, Psycho Sandbar closed, and In Lamentation opens as a 16-cover village restaurant in Boston Spa with a completely different operational model. The willingness to abandon established formats and start over is unusual in UK fine dining, and O’Hare has spoken extensively about the economics and pressures that drive these decisions.
The third pillar is the public commentary on the economics of UK fine dining. The February 2026 Go To Food podcast interview on Michelin stars, money and the realities of running a starred restaurant attracted significant attention across the UK restaurant trade, and O’Hare has become one of the more candid public voices on the economic pressures facing the current generation of UK fine-dining chefs. Within the current UK and international fine-dining cohort O’Hare sits alongside peers including Simon Rogan, Sat Bains, and Rasmus Munk as one of the defining UK regional fine-dining figures.
Notable Michael O’Hare work
Several O’Hare projects have become reference points in UK fine dining. The Man Behind The Curtain on Vicar Lane in Leeds, opened October 2014, earned a Michelin star in 2015 and held it continuously through subsequent years, and was one of the most-discussed UK regional fine-dining restaurants of the late 2010s and early 2020s. Psycho Sandbar succeeded The Man Behind The Curtain but has subsequently closed. In Lamentation / INLAMENTATION in Boston Spa, West Yorkshire, opens on 26 February 2026 as a highly intimate 16-cover village restaurant operating four services a week with an ever-evolving tasting menu. His Great British Menu appearances in 2017 and 2018 extended his UK television profile.
Michael O’Hare awards and recognition
- October 2014: Opens The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds
- 2015: Michelin star in first full year of operation
- 2017: Great British Menu on BBC Two
- 2018: Great British Menu on BBC Two
- 2020: Joint Staff Canteen interview with Gareth Ward on Michelin and social-media pressure
- 2023-2024: The Man Behind The Curtain transitions to Psycho Sandbar format
- 2024-2025: Psycho Sandbar closes
- 2025: Announces In Lamentation for Boston Spa, West Yorkshire
- February 2026: Go To Food podcast interview on Michelin, money and economics of UK fine dining
- 26 February 2026: In Lamentation opens in Boston Spa (16 covers, 4 services/week)
Michael O’Hare impact on UK regional fine dining
O’Hare’s most concrete contribution is the 2014-2024 Michelin-star run at The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds. The restaurant’s combination of technically precise tasting-menu cookery with a distinctive visual identity drawn from punk, heavy metal and contemporary art gave UK regional fine dining a provocative new aesthetic that influenced subsequent UK chef openings.
The second contribution is the public discourse on the economics of UK fine dining, including the February 2026 Go To Food podcast interview. O’Hare has become one of the most candid public voices on the pressures facing starred restaurants in the mid-2020s, and his willingness to close Psycho Sandbar and restart with a 16-cover village format at In Lamentation demonstrates an explicit response to those pressures.
The third contribution is the 26 February 2026 opening of In Lamentation in Boston Spa as a new model for UK regional fine dining. The 16-cover, four-services-a-week format represents a deliberate move away from urban city-centre fine dining toward smaller, more exclusive village-based tasting-menu experiences, and will be watched closely across the UK restaurant trade. Within the current UK regional fine-dining cohort O’Hare sits alongside peers including Simon Rogan at L’Enclume Cartmel, Sat Bains at Restaurant Sat Bains Nottingham, and internationally Rasmus Munk at Alchemist Copenhagen.
Michael O’Hare FAQ
What is In Lamentation?
In Lamentation (also styled INLAMENTATION) is Michael O’Hare’s new restaurant in the West Yorkshire village of Boston Spa, scheduled to open on 26 February 2026. It is a highly intimate 16-cover restaurant operating four services a week with an ever-evolving tasting menu, marking a deliberate shift from urban Leeds fine dining toward a smaller village-based format.
Is The Man Behind The Curtain still open?
No. The Man Behind The Curtain in Leeds, which opened October 2014 and earned a Michelin star in 2015, transitioned to Psycho Sandbar in the 2023-2024 period, and Psycho Sandbar has subsequently closed. O’Hare’s current project is In Lamentation in Boston Spa, opening 26 February 2026.
When did The Man Behind The Curtain earn a Michelin star?
In the 2015 Michelin Guide, in its first full year of operation. The restaurant had opened in October 2014 on Vicar Lane in Leeds above the Flannels department store, and held the Michelin star continuously through subsequent years until its transition and eventual closure.
What is Psycho Sandbar?
Psycho Sandbar was the successor restaurant to The Man Behind The Curtain, operating from the Leeds site during the 2023-2024 period. The restaurant has subsequently closed, and O’Hare’s current project is In Lamentation in Boston Spa, opening 26 February 2026 with a different operational model.
Where is O’Hare from?
Born 1977 in Ireland and raised in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. He has spoken extensively about the role cookery played in providing structure through a difficult childhood and adolescence, and he attended Middlesbrough College for catering qualifications.
What is next for Michael O’Hare
In Lamentation in Boston Spa, West Yorkshire, opens 26 February 2026 and continues operating through 2026 as O’Hare’s new highly intimate 16-cover village-based tasting-menu restaurant. His public Instagram (@michaelohare_chef) is the best source for current updates.
