Sera x Lap-fai Lee (@Oishinboy)

On 7 August, Join us for an intimate night with Lap-fai Lee, Birmingham’s cult favourite cook, mentor, and the creative force behind the viral instagram account @Oishinboy. Known for his deeply personal cooking that folds together his Cantonese heritage and a lifelong love of American BBQ, Lap crafts dishes that are playful, unexpected, and rooted in soulful technique.

Lap has spent over a decade as a specialist BBQ teacher, crossing worlds from glossy Cantonese duck and char siu to deep, smoky American pork ribs and peppery beef. He’s as comfortable pleating delicate dim sum as he is breaking down a whole pig for the pit. His skill has seen him collaborate with Michelin-starred chefs, develop dishes for Marks & Spencer, and even train the kitchen teams at Paris’ dumpling hotspot, Petit Bao.

Lap is bringing his Asian x Texas BBQ mash-up to East London. Hosted at Nest Restaurant in Old Street, expect a menu that tears up the rulebook — a cured salmon chiuchow ceviche, with tiger crackers, a lamb barbacoa curry puff that tastes like two continents colliding, and Texas prawn toast with pimento cheese that’s at once comforting and thrillingly new.

Then there’s the main event: a whole piglet, slow-roasted over charcoal and cherry wood, carved in front of you in a room thick with anticipation. Alongside, a riot of sides: a Sichuan hotpot cheesy beef hotlink, fermented fish relish, fresh and pickled greens, pork crunch, and dirty fried rice that ties it all together.

It ends on a sweet, slightly unexpected note — a matcha flan with whipped cream and lychee, smooth and lush.

Gather around long shared tables for a night that feels more like a dinner party than a restaurant, with Lap personally carving, chatting, and guiding you through each course.

Like all Sera events, some seating is communal, on long shared tables. Due to the one off nature of this event, we are unable to accommodate menu substitutions or dietary restrictions.