At home with the chef of Soho House

By Mary MacVean
The heart of Matthew and Shelley Armistead’s house in Mar Vista is the yard, kitchen and adjacent dining area – a hub for friends and colleagues who drop by on the couple’s days off. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

March 23, 2014 3:57 PM PT

Matthew Armistead is chef at Soho House, the private club and celebrity hangout in West Hollywood where Shelley Armistead is general manager. The couple’s family house is a world away, the essence of low-key cool. We hang out for a day at home.

Soho House chef Matthew Armistead's kitchen

In the sunlit kitchen, Matthew Armistead prepares chicken piri piri and cauliflower with wild rice, jalapeño and ginger. Shelley keeps watch over lentils. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Mismatched cups and saucers lend a homey vibe in the kitchen. “It doesn’t matter where we go,” Matthew Armistead says of his china and his pots, “but those things have amazing memories.” (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Multiple cake stands, including a blue milk-glass beauty from the Venice boutique Bountiful on Abbot Kinney Boulevard, keep treats fresh for friends who drop by. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Herb gardening, Armistead style: For some homegrown seasoning, the couple can turn to their potted herb garden, planted in cans from Peru that are painted to reflect various religious figures. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

The four-burner stove is gas — a requirement, Matthew says. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Babette Quinn paintings — one of quince and the other of pomegranate, Shelley’s favorite fruits — hang on the wall as romantic counterpoints to the bounty on the wood counter. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

The setting sun streaming through windows under the vaulted ceiling. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

The grill? Old school, of course. For a basting brush, Matthew uses herb sprigs tied with kitchen twine. “If the barbecue is going strong, bits of herb stay on the food,” he says. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Isaac, 3, one of the couple’s two sons, watches Matthew prepare a plate the chicken. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

The grilled chicken piri piri. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

For the kids, Matthew soaks a couple of cups of cashews overnight, drains them and puts them in a blender. He adds coconut water (fresh or from a carton), plus cinnamon, vanilla, honey and a pinch of salt. Blended, the drink can be served as is or used as the base for a fruit smoothie. Almonds work too. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Who needs a fussy spice rack when you’re got a drawer? (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

A wonderful mishmash of colors and styles. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Purple potatoes and lentils. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

Matthew and Shelley Armistead sit down for lunch with Ashley Lent, far left; Christina Gilmore, standing; and young Isaac.

More chef’s kitchens: At home with Splichal, Drago, Tracht and more

Homes of the Times: Southern California design profiles (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)