The past week saw the launch of Milan Expo. The theme is Feeding the Planet Energy for Life. Much has been written about the event, including the incidents that took place in Milan, so we are not focusing on this event in our round-up. So we start this week's roundup with a restaurant review with a difference. As we've said on Twitter, we do not always agree with Jay Rayner but in this case, we really shared his pain. See what happens when he asks some innocent questions after eating out at Jinjuu Chris Dwyer has a report on the Madrid Fusion Manila in which he reports on the biggest food event that ever took place in the Philippines. Spanish chefs like Elena Arzak, Luis Aduriz and Quique Dacosta were there. Dwyer reports that the Philippines are known for using all parts of the animal in its cuisine. This was taken to the extreme by chef Margarita Fores who presented tuna sperm as the highlight of one of the dishes; which was followed by a demonstration of the versatility of … [Read more...]
Cipriani on celebrity chefs, Italian cuisine and the French guide to ‘tyres’
There is no question that Italian cuisine is stuck in tradition and in its rituals. In many ways, this nostalgia for the past as well as the quality of its ingredients have helped Italian cuisine to travel the world over the past years. But in Italy, many are speaking of an Italian cuisine that, like the whole of Italy, is suffering from an identity crisis. The problem, for some it seems, is that the country is too stuck in its ways. As Massimo Bottura likes to say, if traditions are put under glass they stagnate. So it is no surprise that an interview with Arrigo Cipriani, the owner of the legendary Harry's Bar in Venice, has created a storm in Italy. He said that Italian cuisine is today an ugly copy of French cuisine and destined to lose. "The obsession of designers, fancy restaurants without any substance," is ruining everything according to the 83-year-old proprietor of 22 restaurants across the world. In the interview with Il Fatto Quotidiano, Cipriani criticised two … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #30
A series of documentaries called Chef's Table featuring Massimo Bottura from Italy, Magnus Nilsson from Sweden, Niki Nakayama and Dan Barber from the United States, Ben Shewry from Australia and Francis Mallmann was launched today. Many have written about these documentaries. Judging from social media, the series created by David Gelb who directed the popular documentary Jiro Dreams of Sushi in 2011 will be a success. Here you will find an interview with the creator of this series. You can also read a review of the three episodes featuring Shewry, Nakayama and Mallmann here. He's rated the three documentaries 5 out of 5 stars. On the same theme, you may want to watch this amazing Op-Doc video which focuses on one of these six chefs. Ben Shewry, whose restaurant Attica, in Melbourne, Australia, is constantly considered as one of the best, developed his love for nature while growing up on a farm in New Zealand. His menu is an example of how sustainable ingredients can be made … [Read more...]
Hélène Darroze named female chef of 2015 by World’s 50 Best Restaurants
The World's 50 Best Restaurants have announced that the Veuve Clicquot World's Best Female Chef of 2015 is Hélène Darroze. She is a fourth-generation chef born into a family of chefs who has been cooking since the age of six. She has opened two highly acclaimed restaurants in Paris and London after three years of training under Alain Ducasse. After winning the award, Hélène spoke to The World's Best 50 website (see full interview here) saying that she was not expecting the award. She speaks about the hardships of being a chef and the fact that there are so few women at the top level in this industry. "There's one day in this job when you have to choose between being a wife and a mother and being a chef. The two things are very, very difficult to combine and most of the really talented young women in my kitchen stopped because they wanted to be a mum and a wife and they thought it was not compatible - which is probably not true but for them it was." Hélène who adopted two children … [Read more...]
Gordon Ramsay hated Noma but was nice about it – Redzepi on Reddit Q&A
Gordon Ramsay had visited Noma and hated it according to the award winning chef René Redzepi who was answering a question and answer session he organsied on Reddit called Ask Me Anything. "But he was nice about it," Redzepi said with a smiley. The AMA (as Ask Me Anything is called on Reddit) is full of incredible insights from one of the best chefs in the world. Here are some of the highlights, but if you are interested you might want to check out the whole session here. Redzepi is a chef from Denmark and the son of an Albanian Muslim immigrant and a Danish mother. He trained in many restaurants around the world before returning to Copenhagen and opening Noma in 2003. The restaurant celebrates the Nordic region's ingredients and aims to present a kind of cooking that expresses its location and the seasons, drawing on a local network of farmers, foragers and purveyors. Noma has held 2 Michelin stars since 2007 and was voted best Restaurant in the world in 2010, 2011, 2012 and … [Read more...]
Gelinaz gang of 37 chefs pushing boundaries again with unique shuffle in July
The Gelinaz! gang, a collective of chefs that was formed by Italian food journalist Andrea Petrini have announced an interesting plan as their next project. 37 of the world's best chefs from 17 different countries will swap places with each other and take over the respective restaurants for a day. The event takes place on July 9. Chefs come from countries such as Japan, Chile, Brazil, France, Sweden, Italy, UK, Peru, Spain, Belgium, Denmark and the United States among others. Tickets go on sale from May 13. The question being asked is who will be cooking in which restaurant? The full list of chefs taking part in this incredible shuffle are the following: Albert Adria, Danny Bowien, Blaine Wetzel, Jock Zonfrillo, Riccardo Camanini, Fulvio Pierangelini, Inaki Aizpitarte, Davide Scabin, Massimiliano Alajmo, Claude Bosi, Sean Gray, Magnus Nilsson, Colombe Saint-Pierre, Bertrand Grebaut, Rene Redzepi, Ben Shewry, Alexandre Gauthier, Paul Cunningham, Ana Ros, Kobe Desramaults, Alain … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #29
It has been a relaxing two weeks for me with limited access to the internet, which meant that not only blogging was sporadic but also the collection of stories for the weekly roundup was a bit harder than usual. Nevertheless, we have still managed to come across a number of interesting reads. At the start of this week, there was an event in Paestum, Italy showcasing the Mozzarella di Bufala called Le Strade della Mozzarella. Here are a few links to what was presented by chefs at the event starting from Belgian chef Sang-Hoon Degeimbre, a resumé of what happened on the first day and on the second day of the event. Food Beast has come up with a list of 50 of the world's most breathtaking restaurant views. Which of them do you want to visit? In our view they've missed Brussels new restaurant La Villa in the Sky. This week we finished a splendid book by Michael Pollan called Cooked. It is a really interesting read. If you've missed our review, you can read it in our previous … [Read more...]
Book review: Cooked – A Natural History of Transformation
There are very few times in today’s hectic world when we are able to just do one activity without being distracted by technology. Our attention span has decreased considerably, we barely have time to sit at table and eat let alone cook on a daily basis. Yet, never have food programmes on television been so popular and chefs been such household names. Speaking for myself, cooking is the place where I can relax the most. It is the place where I can focus on one small process after another. There is a certain element of relaxation that goes with chopping vegetables, hearing the sizzle of a grill or the gentle patience required as you constantly stir a risotto. I have just finished Michael Pollan’s brilliant book Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation, published last year and found it extremely interesting. Pollan has written a splendid book about cooking which should be a must read for anyone interested in food and its place in our history and culture. And while you might … [Read more...]
10 things we learnt from Sang-Hoon Degeimbre (L’ Air du Temps)
This is the second post in our series on 10 things we learnt from very successful chefs. Our second is Sang-Hoon Degeimbre, a self-taught chef who is considered to be one of the most innovative chefs in Belgium. His story is an inspiring one because he cooked for the first time in his own restaurant calling it ‘the bluff of his life’. He has now been cooking there for the past 17 years, has 2 Michelin stars and it is one of a handful of restaurants in Belgium growing its own produce. He is known for his inventive combinations of uncommon ingredients and constant innovation. 1. Creativity comes from constant questioning: At this level, creativity is essential. But there is no magic formula for creativity. Not being trained as a chef means that you are constantly seeking answers to your questions. Sang-Hoon believes everyone is born creative. But what is necessary is to keep and open mind and have an interest in everything. We all want to create something but it is not always easy for … [Read more...]
Stéphane Diffels: The hard route to finding one’s passion
It is often, these days, that we hear of people who quit their jobs to follow their passion. Then there are those who are restless because they are not sure what they want to do. They may be sitting in their jobs but they know this is not what they want to do. When they finally find what they really like and what they really want, they beat all the hurdles in their way and race ahead trying to gain lost time. The same can be said for Stéphane Diffels of L’Air de Rien. How do you spot the difference between a chef who has taken a more traditional route and one who has discovered the vocation for cooking at a much later stage? The signs are all in the cooking and in the way the chef speaks about food. Cooking in many ways can be technically flawless, but if there is no passion and if it is treated like any other job, it can be spotted from a mile away. In many ways, the difference between a memorable meal and a great meal could be boiled down to the passion of the chef in … [Read more...]