Thomas Vado, chef at NYKAT in Antibes
NYKAT chef & DJ
Chef Thomas Vado’s Culinary Vision
At NYKAT, Thomas Vado creates much more than a menu: he creates a whole way of enjoying the table.
Inspired by sharing and the joy of being together, the chef designs every dish as a feeling to pass on, pass around and discover with others. At the heart of his vision, one simple idea drives his creativity: put warmth and authenticity back at the center of the experience, without ever cutting corners.
Carefully chosen local, seasonal ingredients, precise technique and perfectly balanced flavors: Thomas Vado’s cooking is both generous and controlled. A Riviera-inspired culinary invitation, made to be shared in the elegant, welcoming setting of our restaurant in Antibes.
Thomas Vado, a taste for creating
From a family rooted in Saint-Paul-de-Vence for three generations, and proud of it, Thomas Vado grew up around family meals and his Italian grandmother’s home cooking. Three things became clear early on: he loves to cook, he’s good at it, and people love eating at his table.
Trained between Nice and Saint-Paul-de-Vence
At 15, while others were choosing between movies and video games, he started a professional culinary diploma, splitting his time between the Paul-Augier culinary school in Nice and Le Mas de Pierre, a 5-star hotel in Saint-Paul-de-Vence. Four years alongside chef Emmanuel Lehrer, one of the great names of the French Riviera: enough to shape his palate and his standards.
Meanwhile, he discovered DJing thanks to his dad and his big sister’s DJ friends. Birthdays, small bars, parties with friends: the turntables came into his life at the same time as cooking. Spoiler: he never chose between the two.
From Courchevel to Verbier, a career in top kitchens
The rest of his résumé reads like a stack of postcards, except he was working, and hard: Courchevel, Ibiza, then Alain Llorca’s kitchens in Vallauris, where he landed his first chef de partie job. In Ibiza, he fell in love with Spanish cooking… and house music.
Next came Switzerland, for ten years of great addresses and big challenges: W Verbier, the Beau-Rivage in Lausanne, EAT ME, where he became head chef, the lively TARATATA, then La Table d’hôte du 22 in Verbier, recognized by the Michelin Guide and Gault&Millau. And of course, he kept on DJing.
Then back to the sunshine in Nice, at NUANCES, before setting down his knives with us at NYKAT, in the heart of Old Town Antibes.
Cooking like a canvas, a table like a dance floor
In the kitchen, Thomas works like an artist at a canvas: looking for the right color, the right texture, the pairing that creates harmony. Every season refreshes his palette, every ingredient becomes an inspiration. Food that takes you on a journey without ever leaving the table.
For him, cooking and music play from the same score: find the right rhythm, hit the right notes and share a feeling. On the plate or behind the decks, he loves it when things come alive, when they surprise, and when everyone leaves with a smile.
An experience to enjoy freely at the table
Here, a meal doesn’t follow a fixed pattern. It builds as the conversation flows, the plates arrive and cravings change.
Plates are passed around and shared, creating a natural, spontaneous energy at the table. A way to rediscover the pleasure of eating together at our restaurant in Antibes, in an atmosphere that’s both warm and refined.
