BRUSSELS: Dinner in the Sky goes 2.0 for 2020 with the new generation platform. This is the first time that the new platform for Dinner in the Sky is being used in Brussels. The new platform has been called Dinner in the Sky 2.0 and is certainly more 'COVID-19 proof'. Instead of a communal table, the 'hanging' platform will host 32 people sitting at tables of 4. They will be served a 'Michelin starred' dinner 50 metres above the ground. Tables are separated by at least 3 metres ensuring there is enough distance and they are set around a large central kitchen. Chefs and their teams have more space to move around and mingle with guests. Dinner in the sky is a considered to be one of the most surrealist events in the international gastronomy scene. The Brussels edition will be organised in the second part of September. It takes place in the heart of the Belgian capital in Place de Brouckere, just opposite the Hotel Metropole. The hotel, an icon of the city, closed its doors earlier … [Read more...]
Pandemic and lack of tourists forces closure of Restaurant 108 in Copenhagen
COPENHAGEN: Kristian Baumann, chef of Restaurant 108, has announced the closure of the restaurant 108 because of the global COVID-19 pandemic. The restaurant is co-owned with René Redzepi among others. "It is with great sadness that we announce the closure of Restaurant 108. Due to the negative consequences of the global pandemic and in particular the drastic reduction in the number of international tourists visiting Copenhagen, we have concluded that it is no longer economically sustainable to operate 108 in the current location." "I wish to thank every member – past and present – of our incredible team, for helping make 108 a truly special place. I would not have come so far or achieved so much without you. I also wish to thank our guests and our friends within local and international food media, as well as those at The White Guide, Michelin and World’s 50 Best Restaurants, for their many years of support - I am forever grateful to you all," said Kristian Baumann, Headchef and … [Read more...]
First authentic American smokehouse to open in Hong Kong
HONG KONG: SMOKE & BARREL, which opens its doors on 32 Wyndham Street, Central, Hong Kong in early October promises to be the first authentic American smokehouse barbecue joint. The brainchild of chef-restaurateur duo Chris Grare and Arron Rhodes, Smoke & Barrel follows hot on the trails of their first successful restaurant co-venture, Kinship, that opened in May 2019. Leading the Smoke & Barrel kitchen will be Southern native Head Chef Christopher Tuthill, who has roots in Albuquerque, New Mexico, together with American Chef Chris Grare. Prior to joining Smoke & Barrel, Chef Tuthill helmed the kitchen at prestigious private member’s club The American Club Hong Kong, in addition to spending 9 years working in Texas – the state hailed as the birthplace of barbecue. Smoke & Barrel captures the heart of old-school American barbecue, using all-American meats, slow-and-low traditional cooking techniques, and the one and only authentic … [Read more...]
TATE introduces private home dining experience
HONG KONG: Vicky Lau, chef of TATE Dining Room in Hong Kong is introducing Date by TATE, a new private home dining experience and online gourmet shopping platform that brings a Michelin-starred restaurant experience directly to the home. The service is designed to be enjoyed for any occasion from birthdays to date nights or simply celebrating the end of a busy week. Date by TATE enhances the at-home dining experience with a fully-catered multi-course menu, beverage pairing and a specially curated music playlist. “Date by TATE isn’t your average restaurant takeaway and delivery service. Our team has worked tirelessly to design a French Chinese home gastronomic experience that reflects the quality of any dine-in journey at TATE Dining Room, down to the last details. In today’s stressful COVID-19 era, we hope to give our guests all the tools they need to celebrate meaningful occasions over exquisite cuisine, even despite the current lockdown restrictions,” said Vicky Lau, chef … [Read more...]
Iceconic, the new ice cream concept by Gert de Mangeleer
BRUGES: Visitors to Bruges this summer will be able to get a taste to Iceconic, a brand new ice-cream brand created by star chef Gert de Mangeleer. The first location of Iceconic is the 't Zand in Bruges where a pop-up store is open until the end of August. It may well be the 'Willy Wonka' of ice-cream as the chef and co-owner of the former 3 Michelin star restaurant Hertog Jan has created five ice-cream creations. Gert has given is personal take on the ultimate ice cream experience focusing on purity of taste as well as high quality of produce to create a combination of silky and light texture of the freshly churned ice-cream. Iceconic is a collaboration with Friesland Campina, known for its high quality dairy products and also a strong partner for professional end users with their brand Debic. Gert was asked to think of surprising flavour combinations and went into his food lab to create this new story. He has created three basic flavours, vanilla, yogurt and … [Read more...]
‘Never renounce to books and to quality ingredients’ – Massimo Bottura
MODENA: Massimo Bottura needs no introduction. Known mostly for as the chef-patron together with his wife Lara Gilmore of Osteria Francescana in Modena, today he is the best known Italian face in the world of gastronomy. At a recent e-Class he explained his mantra to never renounce to books and to great quality ingredients. The e-Class was organised by the Italian Chamber of Commerce of the Benelux country as part of the True Italian taste initiative, which aims to showcase the exceptional produce that comes out of Italy. And it was fitting for Massimo Bottura to represent and showcase these ingredients. I’m given the opportunity to ask Massimo a question and I wanted to understand his take on Italian cuisine outside Italy. Over the past few years, the Italian offer outside Italy has improved considerably in all corners of the world. While pizza and pasta remain Italy’s most ‘exported food’ there is another, more sophisticated approach to cooking Italian food outside Italy. At … [Read more...]
Al Meni to return in September
RIMINI: Al Meni, a food festival celebrated under a circus tent in the Italy city that gave the world Federico Fellini, will return in September. Usually held in June, the food festival created by Italian chef Massimo Botttura will be held from 25 to 27 September this year. Disrupted by a storm last year, which forced the closure of the street market on the first day of the festival, this year's edition had to be postponed because of the COVID-19 crisis. Massimo Bottura came up with the idea to create a food festival which has as its centre, the world famous 8 1/2 circus tent that inspired Fellini. The festival had grown to bring young chefs from Italy and around the world for a feast of gastronomy that celebrates the cuisine and produce from Emilia Romagna with the spontaneous atmosphere of a street party. It was developed into an event by the Municipality of Rimini, together with the passion and knowledge of the Chef to Chef Emilia Romagna Cuochi Association on the … [Read more...]
50 Best releases first ever e-cookbook to raise funds in support of global hospitality
The organisation behind The World’s 50 Best Restaurants has released its first ever e-cookbook, entitled Home Comforts: simple lockdown recipes from the world’s best chefs and bartenders, featuring the meals that the world’s most revered chefs are cooking for their families at home. Available for a $10/£8 minimum donation through the 50 Best Bid for Recovery donation site with immediate effect, the cookbook will raise funds to support the global hospitality community. The cookbook contains 50 unique recipes from an equal number of female and male chefs who have featured on recent 50 Best lists, alongside 25 cocktail pairings from bartenders behind The World’s 50 Best Bars. The result is a collection of simple and delicious comfort food creations, from Tokyo to San Francisco, split into categories of vegetarian, fish and seafood, meat and dessert. Whether it’s Alain Passard’s inspired vegtable based … [Read more...]
Osteria Francescana goes al fresco this summer at Casa Maria Luigia; Massimo Bottura to also open Gucci Osteria in Tokyo
MODENA: There has never been a better time to eat at Massimo Bottura's Osteria Francescana. The restaurant has been full since its reopening after the three months lockdown but the Italian chef has never experienced so much volatility in restaurant bookings in his professional life. From his home kitchen in Modena, Italian chef Massimo Bottura announced he was taking Osteria Francescana al fresco at the family's boutique hotel Casa Maria Luigia. He also announced an April opening of Gucci Osteria, in Ginza, Tokyo and a new restaurant in collaboration with Ferrari in front of the company's factory in Maranello. The COVID-19 crisis may have hit the restaurant industry hard but Massimo Bottura was in fine form passionately explaining his new projects and speaking about the difficulties of reopening Osteria Francescana despite a highly acclaimed menu 'With a little help from my friends'. "We closed the restaurant before the lockdown because we wanted to ensure that the team was … [Read more...]
Kray Treadwell announces plan to open first restaurant in Digbeth
DIGBETH: Great British Menu finalist, Kray Treadwell has announced plans to open his first restaurant in Digbeth, Birmingham. Named after the weight of his daughter when she was born four months prematurely, 670 Grams will offer a set 10 course tasting menu at £60 per head. Ever evolving, the handwritten menu will be available to view 48 hours earlier on the restaurant’s website, and take in a mix of European influences and Asian-inspired flavours. Playful elements such as dishes inspired by takeaway food and a ‘Tesco cheese and onion sandwich’ will also feature, as well as the peach dessert that saw Kray reach the finals of The Great British Menu. The 16-cover restaurant, designed by 2G Design & Build, will operate over two floors and showcase an open kitchen upstairs, overlooking a two-person chef’s table and a table of four with the remaining covers downstairs. Kray, who’s CV also takes in the Hand and Flowers and Purnell’s, said, “670 Grams will be a unique … [Read more...]