Yiannis Vlastaris

Yiannis Vlastaris is the head chef, founder and owner of Unami Earth Food. He was born and raised in the capital of Athens Greece and moved to the big island 14 years ago. His early inspirations came from his grandmother's kitchen and Mediterranean cuisine especially the gastronomy from Constantinople, where his grandmother and grandfather were from.Salads, dips, olive oil, sea salt, routed vegetables, fruits, freshly baked bread, and lots of tray cakes, cultured his deepest knowledge.In 1991 -1993 he graduated from the Hospitality University of Athens, where he developed his sommelier profession, and Ala carte professional waiter and general manager of a restaurant.He continued contemplating between roles of front-of-the-house management till 2000 when he was involved in the sales of fruits and vegetables.Before 1996, he developed a passion for plant-based nutrition where he entered a new era for his widening knowledge of nutrition and ingredients.The following decade found him starting a journey as a professional grill chef, leaving behind the plant-based era to approach in another angle his personal dietary preferences.It's all a journey a learning curve. He established himself as head honcho of various grill restaurants in Athens, and lastly in 2007 he went back from where he started as a plant-based passionate advocate and provided his services and managed cafe restaurants and bistro cafes in Athens, which gave him opportunities to work with light cooked menu and as a barista to perform various coffee delicacies.In 2012 at the Great John Street Hotel in Manchester, starting from the bottom of the rank as a newcomer in the UK, as a kitchen porter, then became a commis chef and then breakfast chef along with other shifts as an event and functions assistant. Lots of duties on his plate.In 2014 he went back into full plant-based nutrition.In the last decade, he has climbed up the ladder, working as Chef De Partie for the BM contract caterer, preparation chef for the Ole & Steen UK, head chef for The Clapham Day Nursery & Pre-School head chef for the Big Picture Nursery in Southport.He studied and he is certified as a raw vegan nutritionist.Unami Earth Food is the evolution of his first attempt at another home cookery craft takeaway when he was in London in 2018, Veta Plant Based. The menus are a kaleidoscopic view of everything he loves and he is passionate, about sauces, dips, marinades, bakes, and roasties, from Greece his homeland with influences from British gastronomy, with a twist of his own interpretations.Gastronomy is an art the art of living and providing to your body and your soul the photons, the sunfire nutrition. We came from the soil and to the soil we dedicate our birth and our endings. Soil is where everything grows and roots find their way to the core of Mother Earth.Yiannis as a flavour gardener seeded his own trees in the garden of his art, and you are all invited.Besides gastronomy, Yiannis has been a composer for almost 14 years with a worldwide reputation John Ov3rblast, runs his own music label Spaceal Orbeats Records and he is a passionate photographer Ioannis the photographer.He is working on his first recipe book which will be released in a few months.As we say in Greece Καλώς ήρθατε, means You are welcome.