CORDOBA: To have missed out on the first four seasons of Noor is akin to having started watching Games of Thrones directly in its fifth season. That’s an analogy Paco Morales, chef patron of Noor makes as he now enters the age of discovery or exploration as the 15th century is often known. Today you can say Paco is riding the crest of the wave. For five years, since opening his restaurant Noor, or Light as it is translated into English, he has constrained himself to explore his city’s glorious past limiting the scope of space and time while following a clear time path. Since 2015, when the restaurant opened, he has served guests a taste of Cordoba's culinary history researching past centuries starting from the 10th century, Paco chose a suburb where he grew up to open his restaurant. It is a modest neighbourhood that also reflects Paco's modest past. The neighbourhood was build in the 1950s and it would take years before it had power, telephones and paved streets. It is in this … [Read more...]
Muhr-van der Niepoort becomes Weingut Dorli Muhr
A few years after Dorli Muhr and Dirk Niepoort went separate ways in their private lives, they have decided to terminate their professional partnership. Dorli Muhr is taking over the fifty per cent holding from her Dutch/Portuguese partner to turn the former limited partnership into Weingut Dorli Muhr. It was in 2002, the year of their marriage that Dorli Muhr and Dirk Niepoort vinified their first Blaufrankisch red wines on the slopes of Spitzerberg in the Carnuntum region of Austria. They produced just 500 bottles and since then the estate has grown steadily. "It is a highly emotional moment for me to return the name Muhr to Prellenkirchen," said Dorli Muhr. "My grandmother spent her childhood and teenage years in Prellenkirchen and she always carried this village and the Spitzerberg with her in her heart. For me, the hours I spent with her in the tiny vineyard parcels on the Spitzerberg were always very special. They left an indelible mark on my relationship to this place and … [Read more...]
New Alchemist in Copenhagen to open on 4 July with 50 servings menu
UPDATED: Two years after closing the former Alchemist, head chef and co-owner Rasmus Munk has revealed the features of the new 24,000 sq ft dream restaurant in Copenhagen. The new Alchemist is set to open its 100 sq ft bronze door on 4 July. Bookings open on 22 June. The 27 year old chef opened the former Alchemist in 2015 with a vision of challenging the meal and serve more than just great food. When he designed the new Alchemist in 2016, his initial visions were accompanied by the dream of building a restaurant able to stimulate all the human senses to create complete sensory dining experiences. This was always the vision for Alchemist, but now, he feels, the surroundings are ideal. “We were very happy in Århusgade. But the relatively few square feet have also had their limitations. I’m looking forward to showing new and old guests Alchemist’s full potential,” Rasmus Munk said. The new restaurant is more than 20 times bigger than the old one. The dimensions of the … [Read more...]
Tokyo: In Zaiyu’s DEN
Den or no Den? Tiramisu or Tea-ramisu? Coffee or no Coffee? Japanese chef Zaiyu Hasegawa loves what he does and he and his team do their utmost to put a smile on people's faces. As you walk into restaurant Den, there is a sign on the door. It is Le Gaulois. It is a bit confusing they tell me when they send an email with instructions of how to get to the restaurant. The name is that of a French restaurant which was there before Den. So why didn't they change it? It is because it was one of Hasegawa’s favourite restaurants and he decided to keep the decor in place when he moved the restaurant there. What was most important for him was to have a bigger kitchen because he wants to be able to see everyone while he is cooking. Zaiyu Hasegawa and his team at Restaurant Den are the Japanese family you never knew you had until you set foot in their restaurant in Tokyo. Japan and the Japanese are known for their welcome and their hospitality but the team at Den take it to the … [Read more...]
Skiing, fine dining and wine in Austria this winter
For the first time ever, gourmet-skiing routes have been developed in five regions in Austria. Based on regional culinary traditions, they are designed to highlight the specialities of each region. The suggested routes combine leisurely skiing with getting to know both the ski resorts and the local cuisine. The regions are Salzburg Sportwelt, Schladming-Dachstein, Gastein, Grossarital and Hochkonig. From 16 to 23 March 2019, more than 20 hotels will be offering packages geared towards the theme of skiing and wine. For the whole week, wine tastings will be offered in the hotels and at the ski and wine huts. A special highlight will be the Highest Farmers' Market in the Alps where farmers and producers will service their products directly at market stalls found in the ski huts. Just like a true farmers' market in the valley, skiers will be able to purchase cheese, ham, sausages and schnapps directly from the producers as well as jams, honey and tea. Numerous gourmet programmes … [Read more...]
‘London opening at the Corinthia is a big deal for me’ – Tom Kerridge
Tom Kerridge, the first ever chef to clinch two Michelin stars for pub food at his restaurant The Hand and Flowers in Marlow has opened his first restaurant in London at the Corinthia Hotel. In London, it has been considered as one of the hottest openings of the year. "It is a big deal for me personally. I know it is massive but it is not daunting because I worked in London for 10 years before I opened the Hand and Flowers in Marlow," the British chef told Food and Wine Gazette in an interview at Tom Kerridge Bar and Grill. Tom is a household name in the UK and beyond. He became popular not just for his two restaurants in Marlow but also because of his programmes on the BBC apart from having authored many cookbooks. Over the past years, he has inspired many for taking matters in hand when he turned 40, cutting alcohol competely and eliminating carbs from his diet losing 12 stones or 76 kilogrammes in weight in the process. "It is a city I know well, a city I am comfortable … [Read more...]
Four new grape varieties permitted for Austrian quality wine
Four new white wine varieties are now permitted for Qualitätswein (quality wine) in Austria, via a collective amendment to Austrian wine law. Three of these are fungus-resistant new crossings known as PIWIs. Blütenmuskateller, Goldmuskateller, Muscaris and Souvignier Gris, all white grape varieties, were elevated to the status of Qualitätswein varieties during the summer through a collective amendment to Austrian wine law. This increases the total of Qualitätswein varieties in Austria to forty. The inclusion of the Goldmuskateller (Moscato Giallo) takes into account that, along with Muskat Ottonel and Gelber or Roter Muskateller, the Goldmuskateller, which is less susceptible to rot, also shows promise. Blütenmuskateller, Muscaris, and Souvignier Gris are three of the fungus-resistant grape varieties known as PIWIs. In addition to the two red PIWI varieties Rathay and Roesler, this is the first time that white PIWI wine varieties have been approved for the production of … [Read more...]
Intentional minimalism at Spazio Niko Romito Roma
Why do restaurants only use their space for lunch or dinner other than to give the owners and their staff time to rest? Is there a more efficient way to utilise a space by offering more than just lunch or dinner? That’s what Niko Romito set out to test with Spazio Niko Romito Roma. His vision was that of creating a space that could serve as a restaurant, a cafeteria, a bakery and a place where Romans could convene in the evenings for an aperitivo or a glass of wine. You can say that vision has materialised. Located in a square in the Parioli district of Rome just two and a half kilometres away from Piazza Di Spagna and the Fontana Di Trevi you can find this space (spazio) which reflects Niko Romito’s vision to offer a space for the young students of his cooking school Niko Romito Formazione to gain experience in a real life restaurant. Today, the restaurant is welcoming Italians and tourists alike to this elegant residential area that became popular in Rome during the Fascist … [Read more...]
Retro Bottega: Modern Italian cuisine in the heart of Rome
The dessert spoon has already been placed on the table at Retro Bottega in Rome. I've been chatting to one of the two chefs Giuseppe Lo Iudice who owns this place in the centre of Rome together with another chef Alessandro Miocchi. He leaves and soon after returns to replace the spoon with a fork and knife. "We've changed plans he tells me. We want you to try another dish before dessert," he tells me. The dish that follows is pigeon cooked in a Peking Duck style. "My business partner and chef Alessandro Miocchi was in China and he got inspired by this dish which you can find everywhere. We love to work with pigeon and thought we could use the method to prepare pigeon this way," he said. It is cooked to perfection. The pigeon is perfectly seasoned, crisp on the outside and perfectly cooked on the inside and is served with spinach and savory. In the space of a year I’ve eaten the best pigeon dishes I've ever eaten at Reale in Castel di Sangro and Le Chalet de La Forêt in … [Read more...]
The last wine: Going once, going twice…. sold
When Gut Hermannsberg's general manager and oenologist Karsten Peter opened a bottle of the Schlossböckelheimer Kupfergrube Trockenbeerenauslese 1921 vintage in 2017 to replace the cork he was astonished by the concentration, complexity and freshness of the wine. He was heard exclaiming 'the wine is as fresh at the new morning'. This was the last bottle of the wine that remains in the Rarities Cellar of Hut Hermannsberg, a bottle that that is not only historical but also comes from a phenomenal vintage. The neck of the bottle is decorated with a banderol, where one can read the ornamental script: Presented as a celebratory libation to honour the President of Germany, General Field Marshall von Hindenburg, at the liberation festivities in Cologne, on 21 March 1926. This last wine bottle is being put on auction. The couple who own Gut Hermannsberg, Dr Christine Dinse and Jens Reidel, along with the general manager Karsten Peter, made the decision to auction the 1921er for this … [Read more...]