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A Ukrainian chef, who had just opened his first restaurant in his home city of Dnipro, details how the war with Russia dramatically changed his life.
When the invasion began in February 2022, just three months after his restaurant opened, he made the decision to join the army, while his team stayed behind to keep the restaurant going and cook for hospitals and the national guard.
The war was a massive shock, but it also brought people together, with a new culture of sharing food and resources among restaurants and suppliers.
While he was away fighting, the chef remained in contact with his team but his focus was on the war, not his business.
He was initially sent to the Kyiv region, where he faced a confusing and stressful reality, including watching YouTube videos to learn how to operate anti-tank missiles.
Later, when his unit was in Kharkiv, he started advising army cooks and found that cooking and sharing food became a vital part of their daily life.
He would even find things like canned anchovies or edible herbs to cook with.
In late 2023, he was encouraged by his unit to follow his passion and return to cooking.
He went on to open a new restaurant in London with an almost entirely Ukrainian kitchen team.
He now sees cooking as a form of soft power and consults with the Ukrainian embassy to promote Ukrainian food culture internationally.
The experience taught him a new perspective on life and running a kitchen, making him realize that things like running out of walnuts or breaking a plate are not 'real problems' in the grand scheme of things.