Two cult favourites on the London food scene have come together to create a limited edition menu, riffing on their most iconic dishes. F.K.A Black Axe Mangal founder Lee Tiernan and St. JOHN’s Fergus Henderson are excited: “What a joy to combine some of our best-loved classics for like-minded folk up and down the country to enjoy at home. It’s a doddle to put together, and a riot to eat”.

Kick off with F.K.A.B.A.M’s playful take on a ‘pickle back’ (whisky shots chased by tangy pickle juice). Lee’s borscht back follows Ketel One vodka with a shot of beetroot juice, vinegar and horseradish, then a silverskin pickled onion and St. JOHN favourite, smoked eel.

“The bread we make at F.K.A.B.A.M is, and always will be, a fundamental facet of our identity,” says Lee, “flatbreads char wonderfully when cooked over extreme heat, giving an incredible texture and flavour.” The first of two flatbreads on the menu is St. JOHN’s renowned rarebit – “everyone loves gooey, bubbling cheese”, says Fergus, “and it’s perfect with a nip of Guinness”. The second is another F.K.A.B.A.M spin on St. JOHN’s most iconic dish: roasted bone marrow with parsley salad. It’s served with a smoky, chargrilled flatbread, capers, shallots and Lee’s pickled chilli to cut through the richness.

“The best version of mapo tofu I ever had was at Mission Chinese in New York,” Lee remembers, “chef Danny Bowien took this classic Chinese dish and amplified every flavour.” The recipe for Lee’s death-row meal main course stays close to Danny’s original, packed with plenty of umami flavours, but this time St. JOHN’s rich confit pork nestles into the sauce among the tofu. It’s finished with St. JOHN’s beloved pickled red cabbage and cucumbers; crispy onions and potato sticks (a nod to hash browns, Lee’s favourite mapo tofu topping); and a sprinkling of Mission Chinese-inspired Mission Spice.

“I love the combination of cherries and chocolate, and Fergus loves a trifle,” says Lee, so the Black Forest trifle is a gloriously retro marriage of minds. It combines layers of Kirsch and brandy-soaked cherries, chocolate sponge, silky chocolate custard and whipped cream. It’s finished with bitter dark chocolate shards; crunchy, sherried almonds and a scattering of hundreds and thousands, because, as Lee puts it: “it’s impossible to not have fun when there’s hundreds and thousands involved.”