Yotam Ottolenghi is the Israeli-British chef, cookbook author and restaurateur behind the Ottolenghi restaurant group in London and one of the most-read food writers of the twenty-first century. Born 14 December 1968 in West Jerusalem, Ottolenghi trained at the Cordon Bleu in London before opening the first Ottolenghi deli in Notting Hill in 2002 with business partner Sami Tamimi. The deli expanded into a group of London restaurants including NOPI (opened 2011) and ROVI (2018), alongside multiple Ottolenghi delis.
Ottolenghi is scheduled to open his first Netherlands restaurant in early 2026 at the Mandarin Oriental Amsterdam in the Museum District, a vegetable-forward sharing-plate concept similar to ROVI in London. His new cookbook Simple Too is scheduled for autumn 2026 as a follow-up to the 2018 bestseller Ottolenghi Simple. A 2026 live tour is also underway. Ottolenghi has published 11 cookbooks, eight of which have been New York Times and Sunday Times bestsellers.
TL;DR
- Israeli-British chef and cookbook author born 14 December 1968 in West Jerusalem
- Opened first Ottolenghi deli in Notting Hill, London, in 2002 with Sami Tamimi
- London restaurants: NOPI (2011), ROVI (2018), plus Ottolenghi delis across London
- 2026 openings: Amsterdam (Conservatorium Hotel, early 2026) (early 2026), Simple Too cookbook (autumn 2026), live tour
- 11 cookbooks published, eight on New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller lists
Yotam Ottolenghi key facts
| Born | 14 December 1968, West Jerusalem |
| Nationality | Israeli-British (dual citizenship) |
| Main restaurants | Ottolenghi delis (Notting Hill 2002, Islington, Belgravia, Spitalfields); NOPI (Soho, 2011); ROVI (Fitzrovia, 2018); Amsterdam (Conservatorium Hotel, early 2026) (early 2026) |
| Training | Tel Aviv University (MA in comparative literature); Le Cordon Bleu London |
| Cookbooks | 11 titles including Ottolenghi (2008), Plenty (2010), Jerusalem (2012, with Sami Tamimi), Ottolenghi Simple (2018), Ottolenghi Comfort (2024), Simple Too (autumn 2026) |
| Style | Middle Eastern and Mediterranean; vegetable-forward; bold flavours with olive oil, herbs, spices, citrus |
| Other role | Weekly Guardian recipe column since 2006 (the longest-running food column in the paper) |
Early life and training of Yotam Ottolenghi
Ottolenghi was born on 14 December 1968 in West Jerusalem. His father Michael was a chemistry professor at Hebrew University, and his mother Ruth was a high school principal of German-Jewish descent; the family spoke Hebrew, English and German at home. Ottolenghi grew up in the mixed food culture of Jerusalem, shaped by his Italian-Jewish paternal heritage, German-Jewish maternal heritage, and the broader Middle Eastern kitchen tradition of the city.
He completed military service in the Israel Defence Forces in the late 1980s and then studied at Tel Aviv University, earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree in comparative literature. He came out as gay in his early twenties, which he has described as a difficult period given the Jerusalem religious and social context of the 1990s. He worked briefly as an editor at the Israeli newspaper Haaretz before moving to London in 1997 with his partner Karl Allen. In London he enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu and began the transition to professional cooking at age 28.
After Le Cordon Bleu Ottolenghi worked as a pastry chef at Capital Hotel, Launceston Place and Kensington Place in London. At Baker and Spice speciality bakery in Belgravia he met Sami Tamimi, a Palestinian chef from East Jerusalem. The two discovered they had grown up within walking distance of each other in Jerusalem but had never crossed paths. The working friendship at Baker and Spice became the foundation for Ottolenghi, the deli they opened together in Notting Hill in 2002.
Yotam Ottolenghi career timeline
- 14 December 1968: Born in West Jerusalem
- Late 1980s-early 1990s: IDF military service; Tel Aviv University (comparative literature)
- Early-mid 1990s: Works as editor at Haaretz newspaper
- 1997: Moves to London with partner Karl Allen
- Late 1990s: Le Cordon Bleu London; pastry positions across London
- Late 1990s-2001: Works at Baker and Spice, Belgravia, where he meets Sami Tamimi
- 2002: Opens the first Ottolenghi deli in Notting Hill with Sami Tamimi and two other partners
- Mid-2000s: Ottolenghi delis expand to Islington and Belgravia
- 2006: Guardian weekly recipe column begins (The New Vegetarian, later just his recipe column)
- 2008: Publishes first cookbook Ottolenghi: The Cookbook with Sami Tamimi
- 2010: Publishes Plenty (vegetarian cookbook); becomes an international bestseller
- 2011: Opens NOPI in Soho (first full restaurant, not just deli)
- 2012: Publishes Jerusalem with Sami Tamimi; wins James Beard International Cookbook of the Year 2013
- 2014: Publishes Plenty More
- 2016: Publishes NOPI The Cookbook
- 2018: Publishes Ottolenghi Simple (global bestseller); opens ROVI in Fitzrovia
- 2020: Publishes Flavour with Ixta Belfrage
- October 2024: Publishes Ottolenghi Comfort
- 2025: 2025 book tour in the UK and United States
- Early 2026: Opens first Netherlands restaurant at Mandarin Oriental Amsterdam
- 2026: Live tour continues; Simple Too cookbook scheduled for autumn 2026
Yotam Ottolenghi signature style: Middle Eastern and vegetable-forward
Ottolenghi central contribution is the mainstream diffusion of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean ingredients into Anglophone home cooking. Before the 2008 Ottolenghi cookbook and the 2012 Jerusalem title with Sami Tamimi, sumac, za’atar, pomegranate molasses, harissa, tahini and preserved lemon were rarely seen in British or American supermarket aisles. The Ottolenghi cookbooks and Guardian column normalised these ingredients across the 2010s, and British and American supermarkets now routinely stock them.
The second defining element is the vegetable-forward menu. Ottolenghi has never been a strict vegetarian, but his cookbooks have consistently pitched vegetables as centrepiece ingredients rather than side dishes. Plenty (2010) and Plenty More (2014) were the breakthrough titles in this register, and ROVI (2018) formalised the vegetable-forward sharing-plate restaurant concept. The new Amsterdam opening at the Mandarin Oriental in early 2026 extends the ROVI format internationally. His approach sits in a different register from the meat-centric French-American fine-dining of peers like Jamie Oliver at the home-cooking level and Asma Khan at the London Indian fine-dining level.
The third pillar is the partnership with Sami Tamimi. The Palestinian chef from East Jerusalem and the Israeli chef from West Jerusalem have collaborated on Ottolenghi (2008), Jerusalem (2012) and Falastin (2020, Tamimi with Tara Wigley), and their joint work has become a widely cited model for cross-political culinary collaboration. The Jerusalem cookbook was the title that brought Ottolenghi to a global readership.
Notable Yotam Ottolenghi recipes and cookbooks
Several Ottolenghi recipes have become reference points in British and American home cooking. Roasted aubergine with saffron yogurt (from Ottolenghi: The Cookbook, 2008) is his most-cited single dish. The Jerusalem cookbook (2012) introduced the shakshuka variations, the basbousa semolina cake, and the hummus with cumin-roasted lamb that became standard British dinner-party dishes. Plenty and Plenty More normalised roasted cauliflower, courgette fritters, and aubergine preparations at the home-cook level. Ottolenghi Simple (2018) is the best-selling title of his series and the direct predecessor to Simple Too (autumn 2026). Ottolenghi Comfort (October 2024) extended the series toward warmer, more comforting recipes.
Yotam Ottolenghi awards and recognition
- 2013: James Beard Foundation International Cookbook of the Year (Jerusalem)
- Multiple Guild of Food Writers awards across the 2010s
- Multiple New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling cookbooks
- 2018: Ottolenghi Simple becomes global bestseller
- 2023: OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) for services to the culinary arts
- October 2024: Ottolenghi Comfort published
- Early 2026: First Netherlands opening at Mandarin Oriental Amsterdam
- Autumn 2026: Simple Too cookbook scheduled for release
Yotam Ottolenghi impact on Anglophone home cooking
Ottolenghi most concrete contribution is the mainstream diffusion of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean ingredients into British and American home cooking across the 2010s. The Ottolenghi cookbooks and Guardian weekly column normalised sumac, za’atar, pomegranate molasses, harissa, tahini and preserved lemon at a scale that no previous food writer had achieved. British and American supermarkets now routinely stock these ingredients in consequence of the sustained 15-year publishing programme.
The second contribution is the vegetable-forward cookbook category. Plenty (2010), Plenty More (2014) and the ROVI restaurant (2018) argued consistently that vegetables could sit at the centre of serious cooking rather than as side dishes. The argument reshaped the vegetarian and flexitarian publishing category and has influenced a generation of British and American food writers, alongside peers like Martha Stewart and Jamie Oliver who have extended comparable vegetable-focused arguments in their own registers.
The third contribution is the Ottolenghi-Tamimi collaboration as a model for cross-political culinary work. The Jerusalem cookbook (2012) was widely cited as a serious attempt to document the shared culinary heritage of West and East Jerusalem from an Israeli and Palestinian perspective respectively, and the collaboration has continued across Falastin (2020, Tamimi) and subsequent joint projects. The Ottolenghi London group continues to operate in a politically conscious register that pairs commercial success with cultural openness.
Yotam Ottolenghi FAQ
How many Ottolenghi restaurants are in London?
Multiple Ottolenghi delis (Notting Hill, Islington, Belgravia, Spitalfields) plus two full restaurants: NOPI in Soho (opened 2011) and ROVI in Fitzrovia (opened 2018). The first Netherlands restaurant opens at the Mandarin Oriental Amsterdam in early 2026, the group’s first expansion outside the UK.
How many Ottolenghi cookbooks are there?
11 cookbooks published as of October 2024. Simple Too, scheduled for autumn 2026, will be his 12th. Eight of the existing titles have been New York Times and Sunday Times bestsellers. The series includes Ottolenghi (2008), Plenty (2010), Jerusalem (2012), Plenty More (2014), NOPI (2016), Ottolenghi Simple (2018), Flavour (2020), Shelf Love (2021), Test Kitchen: Extra Good Things (2022), Comfort (October 2024), and Simple Too (autumn 2026).
Is Yotam Ottolenghi vegetarian?
No. Ottolenghi is not strictly vegetarian, but his cookbooks are consistently vegetable-forward, treating vegetables as centrepiece ingredients rather than side dishes. Plenty (2010) and Plenty More (2014) were explicitly vegetarian; Ottolenghi Simple, Flavour, and Comfort include meat and fish recipes alongside vegetable mains.
Who is Sami Tamimi?
A Palestinian chef from East Jerusalem, co-founder of the Ottolenghi deli group (2002), and co-author of the Ottolenghi cookbook (2008) and the Jerusalem cookbook (2012). Tamimi and Ottolenghi grew up on opposite sides of Jerusalem but met in London at Baker and Spice speciality bakery in Belgravia in the late 1990s.
When does the new Ottolenghi cookbook come out?
Simple Too, a follow-up to the 2018 bestseller Ottolenghi Simple, is scheduled for autumn 2026. It will be his 12th cookbook. A 2026 live tour is underway alongside the book release.
What is next for Yotam Ottolenghi
The early 2026 opening at Mandarin Oriental Amsterdam is the group’s first expansion outside the UK, and the Simple Too cookbook in autumn 2026 is the next major publication. The 2026 live tour continues across the UK and United States. His public Instagram (@ottolenghi) is the best source for current updates.
