COGNAC: The number of three Michelin star restaurants have risen to 31 after two new restaurants received their coveted three stars at the award ceremony in Cognac on Tuesday 22 March. Arnaud Donckele, already chef of the three Michelin star restaurant La Vague d’Or in St Tropez also clinched three stars for his restaurant Plenitude - Cheval Blanc in Paris. On the other hand, Dimitri and Marielle Droisneau also joined France’s culinary elite for their restaurant La Villa Madie in Cassis. There were six new two Michelin star restaurants and 41 one Michelin star restaurants in the new guide which today has 627 Michelin star restaurants in total, the large majority of them in the Paris region. Jerome Schilling was the first to be called on stage to receive the second star for restaurant Lalique. Duende received its first star in 2021 and a year later the team of Pierre Gagnaire has clinched a second star for their restaurant in the hotel Emperator. Greek chef Philip … [Read more...]
Reale reopens with vegetable tasting menu
CASTEL DI SANGRO: When Reale reopens on March 23, Niko Romito will present a tasting menu that represents the chef’s journey into his research of the vegetable world. The choice to reopen Reale with a tasting menu dedicated to vegetables is a response to a creative process born 20 years ago. Vegetables have often featured on his menus and some vegetable dishes such cauliflower or mushroom have become iconic. The Italian chef is now taking his continuous research to extract the best flavour out of very ingredient into a full menu which ennobles simple ingredients through creativity and intuition. “This year more than ever, I realised that vegetable dishes are those in which our creativity is expressed in a way that is powerful but also spontaneous. This is the origin of the new vegetable menu. We offer a table of colours, tastes and flavours which has hues that other ingredients lack. The keystone is preparation. It is the creative process that guides the transformation of the … [Read more...]
Nick Bril and Lionel Rigolet join forces for four-month Brussels pop-up
BRUSSELS: Nick Bril and Lionel Rigolet have teamed up to create a new gastronomic experience in Brussels. It is housed at the top of one of the most emblematic buildings in Belgium. From March 15, the pop-up restaurant Table 58 will be set up on the rooftop of Palais 5 at Brussels Expo with a view of the Atomium one of Brussels’ most recognised symbols. Nick Bril is chef of two Michelin star Antwerp restaurant The Jane and Lionel Rigolet is the chef of Brussels iconic two Michelin star restaurant Comme Chez Soi. It is the first time that the two team up together for a collaboration that is unique. The pop-up restaurant will be open till the beginning of summer. The restaurant, called Table 58 is housed on the roof of the monumental Palais 5 which was the centrepiece of the World Expo of 1985. The restaurant is found on the 9th floor of the building. The Brussels Expo has for the past years been diversifying its activities and increasing the number of activities and … [Read more...]
Brussels restaurant La Canne en Ville to move to new spot after three years
BRUSSELS: One of Belgium's most promising young chefs Kevin Lejeune has announced that restaurant La Canne en Ville will move to a new place in April. In 2018, he took over a popular family restaurant, La Canne en Ville, a neighbourhood restaurant in the an area close to Chatelain in the Brussels capital. He gained a star soon after despite keeping the same decor and style of a neighbourhood restaurant. In April, he will move to the the Steingenberger Wiltcher's Hotel. He will still propose a creative cuisine in a larger dining room with a new ambiance and decor. This follows a collaboration that took place between the chef and the hotel during the lockdowns. At the time, he proposed Michelin starred dinners in the hotel rooms thus creating a private restaurant for guests. The new restaurant will be accessible from one of the most prestigious streets in the Belgian capital, Avenue Louise. With this move, the young chef wants to have a central place in the city, attract … [Read more...]
What it takes to be The Best Chef
Readers of best selling book Thinking Fast and Slow by Nobel prize winner Daniel Kahneman know that there are two thinking systems. One is Type 1 which is fast, intuitive and unconscious thought. The other is type 2 which is slow, calculating and conscious thought. You could say that opposites attract. And that Cristian Gadau and Joanna Slusarczyk used the two systems Kahneman coined when they launched The Best Chef. The first is Italian, the second Polish. The former was in the world of gastronomy, the latter loved food but was a neuroscientist. Cristian may have been the one to have the intuition while Joanna was the one to have thought slowly as to where to take the Best Chef in the coming years. What launched in 2015 purely on social media is today one of the top awards in the field of gastronomy competing with more established names like Michelin or The World's 50 Best Restaurants List which came before them. Cristian loved gastronomy, Joanna is a neuroscientist but they … [Read more...]
Bon Bon to close in June: Chef Hardiquest says this is the start of a new chapter
BRUSSELS: One of the most influential restaurants in Belgium, Bon Bon will close its doors on 30 June 2022 after 20 years, chef Christophe Hardiquest announced on social media. Hardiquest is one of Belgium's top chefs and restaurateurs and one of the most internationally recognised chefs in Belgium. Over the past few years, the restaurant has established itself as one of the leading restaurants in Belgium with a near perfection score in the Gault & Millau guide. Cristophe Hardiquest said that we have been living in a strange period of time which has led him to think but also to accelerate his wishes and vision. "After 20 years behind the stove in the kitchen of my restaurant Bon Bon, 20 years of giving 200 per cent everyday it is time for me to make a turn in my life and my career," the Belgian chef said. He said he was passionate about his job and about creating new dishes and will never stop cooking. "I am not sure how yet but it will be full of … [Read more...]
Vicky Lau’s new restaurant Mora is all about soy
HONG KONG: Despite current restrictions, chef Vicky Lau has opened a new restaurant together with co-founder Romain Herbreteau and head chef Percy Ho. The new restaurant Mora, an intimate 28-seater French-Chinese restaurant will showcase one of Asia's oldest culinary traditions: soy food. It has opened in the historic street if Upper Lascar Row in Sheung Wan. The location connects Mora to Hong Kong's fascinating history with a Chinese character that represents texture. Mora pays tribute to the humble yet versatile ingredient soy which is a pillar of Asian cuisine and culture. Not only does it play an important role in Asian diets, it is a driving force for heritage, tradition and mindfulness. Its fragility in cuisine can endure time and temperature while being fleeting and subtle. When paired with other ingredients in cooking, the possibilities with soy food are surprising as they are abundant. "Tofu, bean curd and other foods derived from soy have always been such an integral … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman to open Blueness in Antwerp
ANTWERP: After the success of Blueness in Cadzand, Sergio Herman has announced that he will open Blueness Antwerp in spring 2002 in a classic building on the Lange Gasthuisstraat in the heart of the fashion district. The project will be in the hands of chef Jaclyn Kong and Maitre Dorine van den Eydne who both share a common professional past and a healthy dose of ambition. Both women used to work with Sergio Herman at Oud Sluis and The Jane. While Jaclyn has been part of the Pure C team and later was one of the two chefs at Blueness Cadzand, Dorine went to the UK to work at Dinner by Heston Blumnethal before going to Restaurant 108 in Copenhagen. The Blueness project focuses on modern French cuisine with Japanese accents and the two promise to provide a unique hospitality experience. The concept is based on a fine casual approach in which the bar plays a prominent role for signature cocktails, special wines and exclusive sakes. Opening hours and the actual date of the open … [Read more...]
Nick Bril gives helping hand to Thijs Meliefste with two week pop-up at Upper Room Bar in The Jane
ANTWERP: Chef Nick Bril has offered the Upper Room Bar of The Jane Antwerp to Thijs Meliefste and his team for an unusual and unique two-week pop-up in Antwerp. Like other restaurants in the Netherlands, Meliefste in the Netherlands are still closed. "After last Friday's news we have decided to help our northern neighbours and reach out a hand to our dear friends from restaurant Meliefste. As from Thursday 27 January, Thijs Meliefste, the acclaimed Dutch chef will takeover the Upper Room Bar for a temporary pop-up from Thursday to Sunday for lunch and dinner. There is still uncertainty as to when restaurants will be allowed to reopen and also in what form. "Will we be allowed to open until 5pm? Nobody knows." Meliefste said that this was a strange time but they had come up with this fun idea together with good friend Nick Bril. "This way we can still do what we love to do, which is to make our guests happy. We want to see that smile on our guests face again and we want to … [Read more...]
Michelin postpones launch of Belgium and Luxembourg guide to May
The Michelin Guide for Belgium and Luxembourg will be released on May 23. The announcement of the new guide and stars had to be made on 21 February but the current health crisis has led to The new Michelin stars for Belgium and Luxembourg will instead be presented on May 23 at the Royal Theatre in Mons. Physical meetings for the time being are not possible due to the rules in Belgium. By postponing the 2022 star ceremony by three months, the Michelin Guide wants to try and do everything in its power to ensure that a physical event can be organised in a friendly and warm celebration of the new Michelin stars. “Around the world, the past year has been extremely difficult for the restaurant industry. Nevertheless, despite the challenges that professionals continue to face, our teams have been impressed by the level of commitment, dedication and creativity shown by the chefs and their teams, while continuing to offer gourmet experiences of great value” said Gwendal Poullennec, … [Read more...]