“A chef’s cuisine is influenced by experiences that particularly mark their careers. My meal at Geist is, without a doubt, one of those experiences (…),” said legendary chef Ferran Adria of el Bulli fame. He was referring to Bo Bech, the gentle giant of gastronomy who made a name for himself for his distinctive cuisine in Copenhagen.
Earlier this year, he announced that he was parting ways from his successful restaurant Geist because he deemed he was in the way.
He has always been passionate about cooking, travel and photography. His cooking established him as one of the most celebrated chefs in the world but his travels and photography have been a private endeavour until now.
His new book, The relation between us, his third, is the most personal. Bo Bech shares his experiences as a travelling chef with a Leica at hand and a life journeying the world equipped with curiosity, gratitude and an interest in people and their cultures.
Over the past 15 years, Bo has taken over 50,000 photographs. In March this year, when he found time for a pause, Bo looked back at this collection of images and decided to publish The Relation between Us. The photographic volume and cookbook shows Bo Bech’s journeys through his own lens.
He has travelled the globe, finding his way to a diverse variety of places from Tokyo’s elusive sushi restaurants to a temple in Bhutan, from the favela in Rio de Janeiro to a food market in Moscow.
Whenever he is travelling he brings his appetite, his love of food and his camera. In this book he combines the photo reportage with journal notes, stories and recipes. But this is not your normal recipe books. The recipes are there to inspire rather than to be followed.
It is how he has always worked in the kitchen. More often, the inspiration arises from the streets, in a view from Cuba, on a morning run in Shangai. The volume’s recipes are similar in style to the photos, sensory and candid. Paying homage to just a few ingredients each, the recipes are created without strict rules and fuelled by the wish to accentuate the taste of the produce. It is a sanctuary for any lover of food.
After parting ways with his restaurant Geist, Bo Bech said he would embark on a journey of new adventures. This book is his first one.
Bo Bech’s second book In My Blood was reviewed by Isabel Gilbert Palmer here.
Leave a Reply