IN Walmgate, James Gilroy runs the galley kitchen at Bicis Y Mas, alias Bikes And More, the "more" being his artistic flare with a vegetarian dish.

Up the road in Fossgate, Jim Cereal's artwork is to be found on the walls of another York café, the Fossgate Social, in an exhibition entitled Mirlo vs Cereal; the two York artists in that stand-off being Matt Shelton, aka Mirlo, and James Gilroy, the chef with the Jim Cereal soubriquet. Put them together and they sum up their art as stencil/street art.

York Press:

Mirlo vs Cereal on the walls of the Fossgate Social, York

They first met last year when Matt was exhibiting at the Fossgate Social, discovering a shared passion for street art that has led to a joint show that will run to the end of October.

Photographer Matt has travelled the world capturing delicate moments in everyday life, and over the past year he has fused street art with his photography to create multi-layered stencils that "stay true to the moments he has captured".

York Press:

Mirlo's artwork

James, meanwhile, has been involved in the street art scene for more than ten years. His alter ego Jim Cereal and the York-founded One Trick Pony Collective started out as many young graffiti crews did, putting up stickers, spraying up stencils and and playing their part in the local hip hop scene.

This quickly escalated to James/Jim Cereal taking part in exhibitions, gaining commissions, then travelling the world to work with clients such as the BBC, the BRIT Awards, the Stussy clothing brand, World Music Awards and Virgin Records.

After a five-year hiatus from artistic endeavours, he now returns with a combination of fine art, street art and popular culture to "give a nostalgic nod at the sign of the times".

York Press:

Bicis Y Mas chef James Gilroy aka York street artist Jim Cereal

In focus...chef and artist James Gilroy answers Charles Hutchinson's sizzling questions

How did you acquire the alter ego of Jim Cereal and why, James?

"The name came from a group of people in a garage in Acomb. We started selling graffiti and street art from a stall in York market around 2004. When we finished, we'd pack up, and head back to a friend's house. Then the evening would be spent in his garage, chatting rubbish and listening to UK hip hop. I think I called a fellow 'Jim' – Jim Cereal – first but then it just stuck with me."

How did Matt Shelton attain the name Mirlo and why?

"When Matt was born, his grandfather gave him a pendent of a blackbird, and the Spanish for 'blackbird' is 'Mirlo'. That's where the name came from."

Did you train as an artist or as a chef?

"I've only been a chef for two years and no, no training there.

"I studied surface pattern in Huddersfield, then I did a MA in design and art direction a few years back at Manchester. The use of stencils did come from my time at university; I needed to recreate images on a large scale, though at that time I was unaware of the 'street art scene'."

What is your peak achievement as an artist?

"Street art has thrown up some great experiences and allowed me to work with clients that most artists or designers could only hope to work with. When you see the artwork you've created, pasted on a 20ft-tall billboard on a busy central London street, then that's always a good feeling."

What’s been your involvement with the York hip hop scene?

"It was always a natural evolution due to the medium I use. I would go to the hip hop open-mic nights that used to be held every Sunday at the Judge's Lodging on Lendal, and there I'd meet MCs, beatboxers, breakdancers and fellow artists. Then there were the [BEATS]IALITY nights at Fibbers, which I used to make stage banners for, or spray up logos for the artist that night."

Can your street art be seen on the walls of York? (Don’t answer if it would lead to a prosecution).

"There might be a big old Cereal at the zoo skate park. There's a robot and a dog down Fossgate that Mirlo might have had something to do with."

What do you enjoy most about being a street artist?

"Being a street artist. When I first started out, I'd travel to London most months with a new stencil in hand, ready to put up a new Cereal. That was my most enjoyable time. Then as street art became more popular, and we started to get more paid work, the streets got left behind.

"I spent a year living in the heart of East London and Shoreditch, and although I had two big exhibitions, I don't recall going out and putting new work on a wall.

"At that time I decided to step away from the scene. My new work at the Fossgate Social is the first I've produced and exhibited since 2010."

York Press:

The Blind Preacher by Jim Cereal

You say your work gives a "nostalgic nod at the sign of the times", maybe like a Glen Baxter with a darker core to your work. Do you have a sense of foreboding?

" I agree there's a darker core to my work, but I wouldn't say I have a sense of foreboding. It's more a reflection of now, and what I have experienced. One of my biggest influences is the c**p that comes out of people's mouths.

"I worked at a working men's club for many years, and I remember one guy making his self heard about his beliefs on homosexuals and then immigrants. As the evening went on, everyone started talking about music, and someone said something negative about the band Queen... to which the very same homophobic, racist got back on his high horse, proclaiming them as the greatest band in the world! This stuck with me and the Entertainer piece at the Fossgate Social is a nod to this."

Are art and cookery natural bedfellows?

"I think that depends on the artist..and the cook."

What's your most artistic dish?

"Beetroot carpaccio, but the beetroot has to be cooked on a fire in your back garden, in a bin."

What's your favourite ingredient and why?

"Lemons, because they're lemons."