The humorous and uplifting story of two ingenious Greek cousins and five village women, who tackle the world market with their homegrown tomatoes, premieres at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival (7-17 February 2019). The quirky and inspiring tale of how a village used organic farming to overcome the Greek financial crisis, screens at the Berlinale’s popular Culinary Cinema section, which offers food for thought with films about the pleasures and dark sides of food. This year, the 13th Berlinale Kulinarisches Kino under the title "A Taste for Balance" from February 10 to 15, features 10 documentaries and two fiction films about the relationship between food, culture and politics. Top chefs Angela Hartnett, Sebastian Frank, Haya Molcho, Kiko Moya, and The Duc Ngo will serve menus inspired by the films while Yotam Ottolenghi will present his new book. Filmmaker Mariana Economou’s documentary – whose last film, ‘The Longest Run’, was nominated by the European … [Read more...]
Richard Ekkebus embarks on global discovery tour during Amber’s refurbishment
Richard Ekkebus, chef of acclaimed Hong Kong restaurant Amber that closed temporarily for refurbishment on 10 December has embarked on a global three month discovery tour. Prior to Amber’s scheduled reopening in late spring 2019, Richard and his team will host a series of pop-ups across Europe, North Africa, Asia with stops in Amsterdam, Marrakech, Aachen, Tokyo and Taipei. The tour started in January with a series of dinner at Rijks. It was Richard’s first time cooking in the Netherlands after leaving the country. These experiences will help to shape Amber’s new menu. “Our intention is to visit local markets, discuss best practices and find inspiration in new ingredients,” said Richard. “We will be travelling to a variety of regions to broaden our exposure to new flavours, innovative cooking techniques and explore global culinary trends. Along the way, we will chronicle our journey and use these discoveries to shape the new Amber menu,” he said. Next week, Richard will … [Read more...]
Peck, classic Milanese establishment, opens venue in new high-rise district of Milan
Peck, a temple of classic cuisine that has been open in Milan since 1883 has opened its doors at the CityLife Shopping District, the largest urban shopping district in Italy, adding a new location to the historic shop and restaurant in the centre of Milan. The new Peck, is opening a new space to explore a new concept in food and beverage and merge all its historic distinctive features in a single place from deli shop, restaurant, wine bar and cocktail bar. A temple of haute cuisine, Milanwhich been open in Milan since 1883, has opened its doors at the CityLife Shopping District, the largest urban shopping district in Italy, adding a new location to the historic shop and restaurant in the centre of Milan. Peck brings to the new vertical city - under the skyscrapers designed by internationally renowned architects - all the flavours, aromas and expertise that have made it the benchmark for high-quality foods and a well-known brand all around the … [Read more...]
Line up for Fine Wines and Food Fair in Vila Vita Parc announced
The line-up for the Fine Wines & Food Fair, one of Europe’s biggest gastronomy events, which will take place at VILA VITA Parc from 5 to 13 May 2019, has just been unveiled. VILA VITA Parc, a resort in the Algarve, Portugal, will host a stellar repertoire of world-renowned chefs, wine makers and gourmet producers. The fair, which takes place every 2 years, puts guests face-to-face with the chefs and producers, providing a unique experience for a selection of privileged guests. Besides the already famous Kitchen Party, a series of exclusive dinners will be hosted by world renowned chefs at the Ocean and Atlântico Restaurants. While the full programme has not been announced, chef Jan Hartwig of Atelier in Germany, Dieter Koschina of Villa Joya in Portugal, Jacob-Jan Boerma of De Leest in the Netherlands, Christian Bau of Victor's Fine Dining in Germany, Annie Feolde of Enoteca Pinchiorri and Andreas Caminada of Schauenstein have all confirmed their participation and … [Read more...]
Crenn, Kornack, Bengtsson and Nakayama in New York for Steinbeisser vegan feast
On May 18 and 19, Steinbeisser will be partnering with the James Beard Foundation to bring renowned chefs Dominique Crenn, Elise Kornack, Emma Bengtsson and Niki Nakayama together for the New York City premiere of experimental gastronomy at 99 Scott in Brooklyn. Four of the best chefs in the United States will create a nine-course organic vegan tasting menu in collaboration with 15 artists who will craft custom cutlery and tableware especially for the occasion. Experimental gastronomy is a unique immersive experience that brings together acclaimed chefs and artists to create an exciting and radically different way of enjoying food. A portion of the proceeds form the dinners will support the James Beard Foundation Women's Leadership programmes. Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn is the first female chef in the US to earn three Michelin stars. Elise Kornack is the former chef and owner of one Michelin star Take Root in New York, Emma Bengtsson of Aquavit, New York is the only … [Read more...]
Season 8 of Villa Louise announced
The eighth season of Villa Louise, probably the World's most exclusive kitchen has been announced. It will welcome the likes of Tim Raue, Richard Ekkebus, Nick Bril, Syrco Bakker, Julien Royer, David Kinchand Arnaud Lallement to mention just a few names. Villa Louise started in 2012 as an offshoot of asset manager Creutz and Partners. Since that year, they have been inviting some of the world's best chefs into its private kitchen to collaborate, cook and share their creativity with their clients. Started through the passion for food of Yves Creutz, executive member of the board of directors of Creutz and Partners, it is slowly approaching 100 stars which was the target set by Yves when we interviewed him. To date a total of 93 Michelin stars have been accumulated. The first dinner for season 8 will take place in February and features German chef Tim Raue of restaurant Tim Raue in Berlin. The lunch will be also accompanied by a keynote speech of author Bas Kast about … [Read more...]
Daniel Humm and Will Guidara to open restaurant in London
Chef Daniel Humm and restauranteur Will Guidara have today announced that they will open Davies and Brook, a restaurant at the Claridge's Hotel in London. The co-owners of the hospitality group Make it Nice that was established in 2011 and which owns and operates Eleven Madison Park, NoMad New York, NoMad Los Angeles, NoMad Bar and Made Nice said they were excited to finally share the news that they will open Davies and Brook this summer at the Claridges Hotel. "Having the opportunity to bring our cuisine and hospitality is such a remarkable feeling and a dream come true. It is the first time that I am opening a restaurant in Europe after leaving for the states so many years ago. When I was 15 years old. I evel had a job at Claridge's - it was a place I looked up to with awe and never in a million years thought I'd be opening a restaurant within those walls," said Daniel Humm. He said being able to go back is really emotional and feels like coming home. Will Guidara said … [Read more...]
Island Social Club to open at Curio Cabal showcasing British Caribbean culture
Island Social Club, a contemporary social space that shares modern British Caribbean culture through food and drink, founded by two Caribbean Londoners, Marie Mitchell and Joseph Pilgrim, is set to launch on 7 February. With a menu inspired by previous Island Social Club projects, Rumshop and Rotishop, a nightly combination of Rum and Roti sits alongside a curated events programme, which together re-roots British Caribbean culture in Hackney. Island Social Club will become a hub not just for Marie and Joseph’s individual and combined projects, (Pop’s Kitchen, Rumshop, and Rotishop), but a hub for exploring and engaging with today’s British Caribbean culture. In the evenings, from Tuesday to Saturday, Curio Cabal will transform into a social club with a simple modern British Caribbean restaurant and Rum bar, inspired by Marie and Joseph’s shared curiosity for the complex history of Caribbean Brits. Marie heads the kitchen serving a menu centred on … [Read more...]
Richard Ekkebus to cook in the Netherlands at Rijks after 33 years
Dutch chef Richard Ekkebus will be returning to cook in the Netherlands at Rijks Restaurant on 26 and 27 January with Joris Bijdendijk. The restaurant is housed in the Rijks Museum. Ekkebus is chef of the world acclaimed Hong Kong restaurant Amber which is housed in the Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hotel. The Dutch chef from Vlissingen has trained with some of the greatest three- star chefs in France including Pierre Gagnaire, Alain Passard and Guy Savoy. After an impressive career he became executive chef of Amber. The restaurant, which ranked 56th in the World's 50 Best restaurants list 2018 and 7th in Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2019 list is currently closed for refurbishment. At Amber, Ekkebus strives to use the best and freshest ingredients that mainly come from Japan and Europe. For the last weekend of January, chef Ekkebus and Bijdendijk will create a special four-hands menu for lunch and dinner. Richard said that it was inspiring for him and his team to cook in the … [Read more...]
Surprises abound as shortlist of World Restaurant Awards announced
There were a number of surprises when the first ever shortlist of the World Restaurant Awards, an award created by IMG in partnership with Joe Warwick, Creative Director and Andrea Petrini, chair of the Judging Panel was announced. The awards, the first of their kind in the restaurant world will be announced in Paris at the Palais Brongniart on 18 February. Female chefs continue to make their mark with the ‘Arrival of the Year’ shortlist for new restaurants including Pía León’s Kjolle in Lima; and Chiho Kanzaki’s Virtus in Paris. Historic destinations such as La Mère Brazier and Restaurant Paul Bocuse, both in Lyon, and the long-running Peter Luger Steakhouse in New York feature on the ‘Enduring Classic’ shortlist, which recognises restaurants open for at least 50 years Restaurants celebrated for a particular dish featureon the ‘House Special’ shortlist which includes roast goose from Yat Lok in Hong Kong, a ‘hot dog’ from Porto’s Cervejaria Gazela, and grilled unagi … [Read more...]