COPENHAGEN: Noma, one of the most influential restaurants if not the most influential restaurant in the world will close in winter 2024 for good as chef René Redzepi pledges to transform the restaurant into a giant lab - a pioneering test kitchen dedicated to work on food innovation and the development of new flavours. Winter 2024 will be the last season of noma following which Redzepi and his team will start a new chapter with what he calls noma 3.0. "In 2025, our restaurant is transforming into a giant lab - a pioneering test kitchen dedicated to the work of food innovation and the development of new flavours, one that will share the fruits of our efforts more widely than ever before." Rene announced that in this new phase, the team will continue to travel and search for new ways of working. Noma pop-ups will stay in the new configuration and when the team has gathered enough ideas and flavours, they will create a season in Copenhagen. "Serving guests will still be part of … [Read more...]
untitled. is name of new bar at The Jane Antwerp
ANTWERP: After several successful pop-ups, the Upper Room Bar at The Jane Antwerp will undergo a complete makeover in early 2023. Called untitled. the space will have a new interior, a new chef, longer opening hours and an attractive price tag. Chef Nick Bril has entrusted Joeri Timmermans as the bar's new chef. Together they will create a playful and rustic menu with flavours that will be a bit more powerful than those used at The Jane. untitled. join's Antwerp's Groen Kwartier, a cost hideout offering something quick for an hour and a half lunches, pre-meal aperitifs or impromptu late night cocktails. Nick Bril imagines this to be a playful environment appealing to late deciders or those who want to spend a bit less. The bar will open its doors on 19 January 2023. The lunch menu has a light lunch menu, an a la carte menu and an extensive multi-course menu that is also served in the evening. The focus will be on fish, seafood and shellfish and vegetables that arrive from local … [Read more...]
Syrco Bakker to embark on new culinary experience as he sets to leave Pure C in spring
CADZAND: After 12 years at the helm of Pure C, Syrco Bakker will embark on a new culinary and entrepreneurial journey as he parts ways with his mentor and chef Sergio Herman. The Dutch chef has been working with Herman for over 15 years having started at 3 Michelin Star Oud Sluis before taking the helm at Pure C. "Gratitude and pride prevail when I think about 15 years working with Sergio Herman. I have been able to develop optimally and mature. Now I am ready to write my own story. After obtaining two Michelin stars, an 18/20 Gault & Millau score and title of Chef of the Year in 2002 my next challenges will be in entrepreneurship and in fulfilling new ambitions," Syrco Bakker said. "I deeply respect, admire and appreciate Syrco and wish him nothing but the best for his future. To hold on to such a talent for more than 12 years in this fast changing world is unique and admirable. We are all convinced that his ongoing culinary path will be a successful one. The legacy of Pure … [Read more...]
How can provocation, displeasure and disgust be integrated into a restaurant experience
COPENHAGEN: On November 15, the disruptive and rebellious culinary universes of Andoni Luis Aduriz of Mugaritz and Rasmus Munk of Alchemist will come together for a one-day-only experimental dining experience in Copenhagen. But while the event that is being hosted at Alchemist sold out within minutes, there is the possibility to explore Andoni Luis Aduriz's vision at a public talk that is being held in Copenhagen on November 14. At the talk entitled Beyond the plate, the two chefs, their teams and guest speakers will explore how provocation, displeasure and even disgust can be integrated into a restaurant experience. Guest speakers at the talk will include biochemist and fungi researcher Dr. Vayu Maini Rekdal, UC Berkeley, Director of Arken Museum of Modern art, Marie Nipper, and members of the Research and Development teams from both Mugaritz and Alchemist. The culinary event on 15 November will be held at Alchemist, at Refshaleøen in Copenhagen, and the holistic dining … [Read more...]
Nick Bril is Belgium Gault & Millau Chef of the Year
BRUSSELS: Nick Bril, chef and owner of iconic Antwerp restaurant The Jane is the new Belgian chef of the year according to Gault & Millau which launched its 2023 guide today. The Dutch chef has crowned a year which has seen him climb the rankings of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, launch a music project and feature in a Brussels pop-up with this prestigious title. “As a passionate chef, Nick Bril likes to lead his guests to a special experience. With an 18.5 rating, he has the gift as a chef of being innovative and in doing so he continues to reach exceptional levels. He has strengthened his position as one of the best chefs in the country and his cuisine of the highest level makes a dining experience at The Jane one of the best in the world,” said March Declerck, CEO of Gault & Millau in Belgium. The chef of The Jane has been in the limelight over the past year not only for his work at The Jane and August, his second restaurant in Antwerp but also for his … [Read more...]
Humus x Hortense invite Emile van den Staak from De Nieuwe Winkel for plant-based feast
BRUSSELS: Humus x Hortense in Brussels has fast established itself in Belgium as one of the leading, if not the leading proponent of plant-based fine dining in Belgium. The visionary couple Nicolas Decloedt and Caroline Baerten started their concept in 2008 and today have won accolades not only in Belgium but also outside of Belgium for their vision and direction. So it was no surprise that for the first ever Belgian gastronomic tour on plant-based dining, Humus x Hortense would play a central role. Visit Flanders recently hosted a four day gastronomic tour for food writers from across the globe to plunge them into the world of plant-based dining. Humus x Hortense have been proponents of sustainable gastronomy and lowest food waste possible thanks to ancient conservation techniques and zero-waste cocktails. For the occasion, Nicolas invited chef Emile van den Staak from two Michelin star Dutch restaurant De Nieuwe Winkel for a unique four hands dinner which showcased what … [Read more...]
Bar Bulot to move from Bruges to Zedelgem
ZEDELGEM: "When one door closes, another opens." Gert de Mangeleer and Joachim Boudens, the duo behind the successful Hertog Jan Group have announced that Bar Bulot, their bistrot/brasserie concept of traditional Belgian/French food will be moving from Sint Michiels in Bruges to the former location of Hertog Jan in Zedelgem. The location of the current Bar Bulot was until today the cradle of the group's activities. It was there that Hertog Jan grew from an ambitious young restaurant to three Michelin stars. It was there that the Belgian dup experimented with L.E.S.S. Eatery as a pop-up before they opened it in the centre of Bruges and it was there that Bar Bulot was able to grow to a Michelin star from scratch and to develop into a 'franchise' with a second opening in Antwerp at the Botanic Sanctuary hotel. Zedelgem is the place where Gert and Joachim developed Hertog Jan into one of the most exciting restaurants in the global culinary scene before they decided to close it and … [Read more...]
Noma to pop-up in Kyoto for 10 weeks in spring next year – ‘what if it all started from a cup of tea?’
COPENHAGEN: Noma will set foot in Japan for a second time, this time in the city of Kyoto. The 10-week pop-up will take place between March 15 and May 20 at the Ace Hotel, Kyoto. And the foundations are being set for the transformation of noma as we know it in 2024. René Redzepi said that for the past two years, they had been studying, travelling and researching the city of Kyoto and the Kansai region, in particular kaiseki cuisine. “This spring, we return to the place where so much of our own journey began.” René Redzepi, chef of noma, one of the most influential restaurants in the world said it is incredibly inspiring for the team to have the opportunity to explore this unique tradition in the beautiful city of Kyoto during the height of the sakura (cherry blossom) season. “We cannot wait to pack our bags - a group of 95 people, from apprentices to owners - and live in a new corner of the world, to meet new people and to learn from a different culture and see things … [Read more...]
Dine with Italian winemakers is a series of dinners organised by Racines Bruxelles
BRUSSELS: Ugo Frederico and Francesco Cury has invited winemaker Alessandra Divella for a special dinner at Racines in Brussels, Belgium. The Italian wine maker who is known as the queen of bubbles on Gussago Hill in Franciacorta will be presenting a selection of her cuvées on Thursday 20 October in a first in a series of dinners being organised by the restaurant with winemakers present. There will be two options during each evening. The first is to taste a classic Racines 4, 5 or six course menu with the possibility of a unique Divella wine-pairing where Alessandra will be present throughout the evening to guide guests through her selection of wines. The second is a dinner with the winemaker which is a more intimate and exclusive experience on the same night. Here a private table will welcome 12 guests who will have the opportunity to dine with Alessandra and taste older vintages accompanied by a special menu created specifically to Divella's region of origin. In total, … [Read more...]
“Time dictates what we do. We cook with time” – Fatih Tutak
ISTANBUL: The decision for Fatih Tutak to return to his home and open TURK after spending the best part of his career outside Turkey was vindicated this week when he was the first ever Turkish restaurant to clinch two Michelin stars when the French guide released the first ever guide for Turkey. Born in Istanbul in 1985, Fatih may have learned his trade in Turkey and worked in some of the country's best hotels and restaurants including the Ritz-Carlton Cam in Istanbul under famed chef Paul Pairet. it was here that he decided he needed to expand his horizons and get out of his comfort zone. He headed East for what you could call a culinary odyssey going to kitchens in China's Qingdao and Beijing before heading to Singapore. During this time, his drive and evident talent earned him a four month training in Tokyo under Seiji Yamamoto at three Michelin-starred Nihonryori Ryugin, before he was presented with a unique opportunity to join René Redzepi at the much celebrated Noma in … [Read more...]