CHARLEROI: With not much to do after a government decree to close restaurants, a group of chefs from around Charleroi started Chefs Carolos Solidaires, a non-profit organisation, aimed at delivering food to staff working incessantly in hospitals. On the first day, the founder of the organisation, Constantino Longo, together with a group of chefs prepared some soup that was delivered for lunch in one of the hospitals in the Belgian city. But they were not aware that the response to this initiative would be huge. Since then, thanks to donations from various organisations and interest from other chefs, they have been delivering food made by chefs to staff in hospitals that have been hit by the COVID-19 crisis in various cities around Belgium. The chefs that have founded the association are Fabrizzio Chirico of La Table de La Manufacture urbaine, Alain Stennier of Le Substrat, Tienchin of Esprit Bouddha and Tolis Lalos of Fetavie. Others have in the meantime joined … [Read more...]

BRUSSELS: Karen Torosyan, chef-patron of Bozar Restaurant in Brussels has launched a take-away this week as all Belgian restaurants are closed due to a lock-down. The service from the Brussels 'pie-king' has proven to be successful with the Armenian-born chef announcing that he has sold out till 31st March. He is taking orders for next week and working on his preparations already. He launched the service last Tuesday saying this is what happens when he is alone in the kitchen. "You can come to pick up these from the restaurant by appointment and one person at a time," he said. Among the dishes he is serving are classics from his menu like Jambon persille, fromage de tete, his signature pate en croute with pork, duck and fois gras, as well as pots of rillettes of veal and pork and one with fois gras seasoned with piment d'Esplette. Details on his Facebook page. Karen explains that his Pâté en Croûte is 25 per cent fat and 75% lean meat when the original recipe calls for … [Read more...]

NEW YORK: Daniel Humm and the team at Eleven Madison Park have set up an auction and donation page to help its staff whether the future. Daniel Humm said that 100 per cent of the proceeds will go directly to the team in New York city to help them through the uncertainty ahead. "Our biggest shared worry is the lack of clarity as to what the future holds - will this be days or weeks or months?," Daniel wrote in a newsletter. "We just don't know," he said. New York has been the hardest hit in the United States with cases increasing exponentially over the past few days. "It won’t be news to any of you that the past week has been unquestionably the most difficult in our lives, both personally and professionally.  While we always have and always will believe that we can overcome any challenge together, this crisis has impacted our team in a way that we never could have imagined. Over the years our guests — you — have been so much more than customers to us; you’re part of an … [Read more...]

COPENHAGEN: Have you ever dreamed of getting a reservation at noma but always ended up disappointed? Here is your chance to finally secure that difficult seat. In these challenging times for all sectors of the economy, the restaurant owned by chef René Redzepi is calling friends as well as future clients to buy vouchers which are redeemable against a future reservation at restaurant noma. These vouchers will be valid for two years and can be exchanged either for a visit at noma as well as for a future reservation or visit at any noma-branded pop-up restaurant or event in or outside Denmark. "We continue to face unprecedented difficulties both at noma and across our entire industry so we truly appreciate your interest in purchasing a voucher," the restaurant said. The value of the voucher may be applied to a reservation of any size, including the standard tables for 2, 4, 6 or 8 or for subsequent visits as a single diner on a shared communal table. The voucher can also be … [Read more...]

MODENA Every day, over the past days, Massimo Bottura has given Instagram viewers a glimpse of his family life in Modena as he prepared his family meals every evening at 8pm. It was his daughter’s idea two days into the lockdown in Italy to create a show that has been called Kitchen Quarantine. It shows how her family are dealing with the lockdown. Alexa is filming the show and also asking questions to her father in the Q&A that follows after the episodes. Massimo Bottura is chef of one of the most famous restaurants in the world, Osteria Francescana in Modena. The show is a mix of Italian and English. When asked why he communicates in English he said he wants to be able to communicate with the rest of the world because the coronavirus is something that is impacting the global community. The chef is always reminding viewers to wash their hands and also to stay at home. The evening show is not a masterclass but rather a glimpse of his family’s life as they deal … [Read more...]

COPENHAGEN: Matthew Orlando, the chef owner of AMASS restaurant in Copenhagen has hit out at the World’s 50 Best, Opinionated About Dining and 360 Sustainability Awards among others for not using their platforms to raise awareness about the plight of restaurants in the current crisis. “I believe that when times are tough, as they are right now, people and entities’ true colours come to the surface,” he said on his Instagram feed. “In a time when then the restaurant industry is reeling from circumstances beyond our wildest imagination, where are the lists and rating systems that make their living off us,” he said. The chef of Amass, who was former Noma Head Chef before opening Amass serving contemporary, organic cuisine with a strict focus on locally sourced ingredients asked how was it possible that ‘they can remain silent while the people that they use to justify their vanity are in danger of losing everything.” “Why are they not using their resources to at least bring … [Read more...]

CHICAGO: It was something that Nick Kokonas and Grant Achatz never thought possible. That they would be selling an Alinea on the Go menu. But the closure of Alinea as well as other restaurants of the group which includes Next, The Aviary, Roister and St. Clair Supper Club meant that they needed to do something to bring back staff to at least work part time. What they have come up with are simple menus. Within a few days, they have managed to sell out over 2,000 meals which means that they will be able to bring back more staff members to work on the concept. Nick Kokonas, who is also the founder and CEO of Tock, a restaurant experience booking engine, is being transparent about all this and intends to open source his business plan to help other restauranteurs in this time of crisis. The menu for the first week for Alinea to Go was a Wellington Short Rib together with 50-50 mash and a creme brulee. "Our goal is to make profit," he said on Twitter, "so that we can share it … [Read more...]

HONG KONG: Over the past two months, the Hong Kong restaurant industry has been dealt a devastating blow, with once-thriving outlets struggling to stay afloat in a city that no longer dines out. Recording the first sweeping loss in annual revenue since 2004, Hong Kong’s restaurants are now in need of help and support. As a response to a declining industry that remains the heart and soul of the city, Hong Kong’s leading F&B experts The Forks & Spoons, Tatler Dining Hong Kong and On Air Collective, along with supporting media Tasting Kitchen (TK), Time Out Hong Kong, Foodie, The Loop, and WOM Guide have teamed up to launch #UnitedWeDine, a city-wide restaurant campaign that encourages all of Hong Kong’s food lovers to dine out and enjoy some of the best promotional offers. Restaurants participating in #UnitedWeDine Starting from 16th March until 30th April 2020, over 100 restaurants across Hong Kong will participate in … [Read more...]

VALLETTA: Jonathan Brincat had everything going for him. Three weeks ago, riding the crest of the wave as chef-owner of Noni, he was chef of one of the first three restaurants in Malta to clinch a Michelin star. Three weeks later, he has taken the decision to close the Valletta restaurant Noni, despite the fact that the Maltese government had not (at the time of writing) decreed that restaurants should be closed. Like many other restauranteurs on the island, including the two other restaurants that clinched a Michelin star (Grain and De Mondion) when the Guide came out late last month, many restaurant owners have unilaterally decided to close their restaurants and urge their clients to stay at home. "I am not one for long posts but I feel it is due now that I have more spare time on my hands," Jonathan said on Facebook. "Less than three weeks ago, we were celebrating our biggest achievement as yet, winning our first Michelin star. There was not even time for the plaque to … [Read more...]