Alastair Long

Our head chef

Originally from Scotland, Alastair grew up in Manchester and discovered his passion for Japanese cuisine at the age of 18. He trained with Gordon Ramsay in London at his Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant. His international career then led him to Zuma, a global reference for contemporary Japanese cuisine, where he served as executive chef.

A British chef and founder exploring Japanese kaiseki through exceptional ingredients from the British Isles and Europe.

British chef and founder Alastair Long created Manabu to explore the principles of Japanese kaiseki through exceptional ingredients from the British Isles and Europe. His cuisine combines the discipline and structure of kaiseki with carefully selected produce from the British Isles and Europe’s finest regions, including exceptional seafood from the British Isles and Northern Europe.

Originally from the United Kingdom, he began his professional career in Manchester in 2008, before moving to London and continuing his work internationally, eventually settling in Switzerland in 2018. His connection with Japanese cuisine began during his university years and quickly became the focal point of his professional career.

It was while teaching Modern Japanese Gastronomy at Glion Institute of Higher Education that the concept of Manabu was born. The word “manabu” means “to learn” in Japanese—a philosophy that continues to shape the restaurant today.

After a series of pop-ups and residencies across Switzerland and Europe, Manabu found its permanent home in Vevey in 2022. The restaurant is now located within the historic Hôtel des Trois Couronnes, where he leads a kitchen characterized by precision, seasonality, and an uncompromising respect for exceptional ingredients.

His approach is defined by purity, balance, and refinement, from house-made preparations like Manabu’s signature soy sauce to the precise seasoning of the fish before it is served.

For Alastair, Manabu remains exactly what its name suggests: a place of continuous learning and the relentless pursuit of exceptional ingredients.