Core by Clare Smyth, her much anticipated debut book will be released on 7 July by Phaidon. The book captures Smyth's singular passion, experience and pursuit of excellence, charting her rise from prodigy to protégé to culinary giant. It tells the story of her journey from a farm in Country Antrim to becoming the first and only British female chef to hold three Michelin stars and being appointed MBE for her contribution to UK gastronomy. This is the latest addition to Phaidon's seminal chef monograph series. Writing the foreward to the book, chef Gordon Ramsay who had Clare along his side for many years as head chef in his restaurants said "Clare Smyth is one of the most talented chefs I have ever worked alongside. This woman is relentless, and in that pursuit of perfection, she has a drive that cannot be bought or taught. But more than this, she has an understanding of finesse and style like few others; she cooks with attitude and personality, and that’s rarer than you’d … [Read more...]

Belgium for Foodies is a new book that has just been released featuring 350 places in Belgium. It invites the reader to discover Belgium's extraordinary culinary scene by taking you on a trip through the country from the North Sea to the countryside as well as the vibrant cities. Written by Femke Vandevelde with photography by Tony de Luc, the book is made up of various lists which enables you to choose what you want from young talents to favourite female top chefs, Belgian fries done right, dining at the bar, places to eat drink and read and much more. The following is a list of favourite Female Top Chefs from the book published by Luster. Cachet de Cire A warm welcome, a serious menu, a quiet garden and an affordable drinks list are all trademarks of one of the best culinary discoveries. Lady chef Greet Verbeeck and maître Fée Van Doorselaere put a lot of effort into giving you that little extra something. The superb wines – check out the Belgian ones – are also available … [Read more...]

"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 … [Read more...]

One of society's biggest challenges is work life balance. Can you succeed in life and have an adequate work life balance? As David Choe, an artist friend of David Chang rightly put it, being a workaholic could be the last socially acceptable addiction. In Eat like a Peach - a memoir, David Chang speaks about his battle with depression, his suicidal thoughts which come and go and says that "the paradox for the workaholic is that rock bottom is the top of whatever profession they’re in.” The first time I met David Chang was in Vienna a few days before the GELINAZ! event GELINAZ! does Upper Austria. In the span of a few days, I would get to eat next to him, to have dinner conversations, listen to him discuss what his team would cook, the tension surrounding the preparations, the stress of fine-tuning the dish amid ‘huge personalities’ and the final relief when it was all over. I’d naively told him to relax and have fun but I still recall him saying these events caused him a huge … [Read more...]

BRUNICO: At the ALPINN restaurant, over 2,300 metres above sea level, chef Norbert Niederkofler has finalised a project that started in 2008. "Cook the Mountain" - The nature around you is the book he has been working on over the past 10 years. The chef, who became famous for his Cook the Mountain philosophy at St Hubertus said he is telling all the stories of the mountain culture, the mountain food, the producers, their way of working, sustainability, how they used to work in the old days and what they have been doing to recover and bring back these traditions for the next generation. Printed entirely on apple paper (made from apple waste) and in a fully recyclable box, the book will be on sale as from October. The chef has announced that the 400 page book is being sold from his website. The first 500 copies will be signed by the chef himself and will be numbered. "With this book, I want to motivate people to become part of this harmony that exists between nature, culture … [Read more...]