Six of Brussels top chefs will leave their kitchens on Saturday 3 November to cook for the Brussels homeless and raise awareness on the winter Red Cross campaign. David Martin of La Paix, Alexander Dionisio of Villa in the Sky, Karen Torosyan of Bozar Restaurant, Lionel Rigolet of Comme chez Soi, Mathieu Jacri (La Villa Emily) and Giovanni Bruno (Senza Nome) will prepare soups and desserts that will be distributed by volunteers to homeless on 3 November at Place de la Monnaie in central Brussels. The event is aimed to raise awareness on the winter campaign that is aimed to help families in need in Belgium. Red Cross will be inviting people to discover their new eshop where people will be able to buy virtual products that will help to fill the shopping baskets fo families in need. All the support is aimed at helping these families or individuals to eat. Red Cross said that 20 per cent of the Belgian population or around 2.3 million people are at risk of poverty or of social … [Read more...]
Magnus Ek is first guest for Play Food at L’Air du Temps
Magnus Ek, the chef of 2 Michelin star restaurant Oaxen Krog in Stockholm, Sweden will be the first guest of Sang Hoon Degeimbre at L'Air du Temps in Liernu, Belgium. The first Play Food event will take place on 8 November at 7.30pm. This is not the first time that the Swedish chef will be cooking in Belgium since he will return after the GELINAZ! Brussels Headquarters experience which took place in 2017 at Brussels restaurant Bon Bon. The Swedish chef is a pioneer in many ways. He started using edible plants and foraging for food more than 20 years ago when it was still unheard of at the time. He did it without much fanfare and you could say that he is one of the early pioneers of the new Nordic cuisine. Magnus opened his restaurant Oaxen Krog in Sweden more than 20 years ago at a time when foraging what not what restaurants did. Today, he still forages almost every day. The chef runs his restaurant, the Oaxen Krog and Slip at Djurgården with his wife Agneta Green. The … [Read more...]
New Belgian winery Valke Vleug knows ‘cool things happen on the edge’
After studying engineering Pieter Raeymaekers went to New Zealand to work with winemakers because he did not want to start work immediately. That was in 2005 and the experience had a huge impact on his professional and personal life. Today, 13 years later, he is fulfilling his dream as he is the winemaker of a new winery Valke Vleug that is set to fully open next year in time for the 2019 vintage. On land that was used to grow asparagus, Pieter, Johan Stoffels and Jan Van Lancker are betting that they can produce quality Belgian wine at their Valke Vleug estate in Liezele near Puurs in Little Brabant. The three have joined forces to pursue their passion for wine and introduce a new concept that aims to not only produce around 23,000 bottles of Belgian wine but also to introduce wines from cold climates. With the motto Cool Things Happen on the Edge they say that this is the first such project in Belgium since they will not only produce wine but also sell wines from … [Read more...]
Influential wine writer James Suckling opens wine bar in Hong Kong
James Suckling, one of the top wine writers in the world has fulfilled his dream of opening a wine bar. The wine bar on the second floor of Staunton Suites in Staunton Street, Soho, Hong Kong has softly opened its doors and is welcoming people for a glass or bottle of wine. The brand new wine bar and restaurant is called James Suckling Wine Central and includes a personal selection of wines which have scored between 90 and 100 points by him or his team. "It’s been a dream of mine for many years to open a wine bar. I want to share my lifelong passion for wine with every single one of you in Hong Kong. I want you to know that whether you purchase a rare old bottle or a good-value wine by the glass at my restaurant, you can be assured of a great experience," he told readers of his newsletter. Opening James Suckling Wine Central has taken many months of preparation and careful planning. "But I felt it was something I had to do as a natural extension of the large-scale consumer … [Read more...]
CostardiBros in Amsterdam for one off pop-up dinner at Peroni Risotteria
Christian and Manuel Costardi, also known as the CostardiBros, rose to fame for their risotto. Two brothers that are often considered as twins despite an age difference of 9 years where in Ristorante Hangar in Amsterdam on 9 October for a one evening pop up with Peroni Nastro Azzuro. They brought with them a number of iconic dishes that have made them famous not just in Italy over the past few years. Their focus was on rice, serving two main dishes as well as a dessert using rice that is so popular in their region. They presented Diversamente Tonnato by CostardiBros, a dish that is their interpretation of Vitello Tonnato, one of the most famous dishes of Italian and piedmont cuisine. “This dish came about during the opening of our new restaurant in Torino inside EDIT. It is impossible to open a restaurant in Torino without serving vitello tonnato. However, the meat that is served in this dish never appealed to us so we decided to work on the meat and the sauce using a fillet … [Read more...]
Rodolfo Guzman to cook with Hans Neuner at Ocean Restaurant
A trip that Hans Neuner took to Chilean chef Rodolfo Guzman led him to discover how he could use cactus from the prickly pear for one of his dishes. It was an eye opener for Hans and led to the creation of an exceptional octopus dish. The Chilean chef will now be reciprocating that visit spending a few days in the Algarve discovering the produce, the fishermen and what the region has to offer. He will cook with Hans Neuner at the 2 Michelin-star Ocean Restaurant, located at VILA VITA Parc Resort & Spa, in Porches, Algarve and the dinner will take place on 17 November. Guzman is chef of Chile's Borago restaurant which was considered to be the second best restaurant in Latin America in 2015 and one of the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2018. This is the second event that is taking place at the Portuguese restaurant this year following the visit of Christian Bau, from the 3 Michelin Star restaurant “Victor’s Fine Dining by Christian Bau”. Chef Hans Neuner will be welcoming … [Read more...]
The search for tattoo-free chef and tweezer-free kitchen is on as World Restaurant Awards categories are announced
The World Restaurant Awards which will be held for the first time in Paris on 18 February will have 12 big plate awards and 6 small plate awards that will change on a yearly basis in consultation with the judging panel. The awards, the brainchild of Joe Warwick who is the creative director and Andrea Petrini, the chair of the judging panel has a list of 100 judges which include some of the top names in the restaurant world as well as top international food writers from around the world. Joe Warwick is an editor, writer, broadcaster and co-founder of the World's 50 Best Restaurants. The third edition of his bestselling international restaurant guide ‘Where Chefs Eat’ has just been published. He says we should ‘Expect The World Restaurant Awards to be conducted with complete integrity and make everyone think about the full gamut of the world’s great restaurants – old and new, from luxury destinations to humble institutions – and what makes them so special.’ Andrea Petrini is … [Read more...]
Joan Roca tops list of The Best Chef Awards 2018
In Milan, Joan Roca came top of the Top300 list of the Best Chef Awards 2018, an event that started in 2015. The Spanish chef of restaurant El Celler de Can Roca placed in front of René Redzepi and David Munoz. The results were announced during a gala evening at the Teatro Vetra in Milan. In the presence of more than 300 chefs and industry professionals. Fourth place went to Bjorn Frantzen and 5th to Jonnie Boer. Niko Romito followed in 6th place, Alex Atala in 7th, Massimo Bottura in 8th, Yannick Alleno in 9th and Vladimir Mukhin in 10th place. Nick Bril, of Belgian restaurant The Jane placed 15th in front of Peter Goossens of Hof Van Cleve in 20th place and Gert de Mangeleer of Hertog Jan and Benoit Dewitte in 45th place. The category rankings look totally different from last year, with winners from Italy, Dubai, Puerto Rico, Sweden and the US. The 2018 list includes chefs from 41 countries worldwide. The full ranking of The Best Chef Awards 2018 is available via the … [Read more...]
Riccardo Camanini joins the ‘seven wonders’ of Italian cuisine
Riccardo Camanini, chef of Lido 84 has been working under the radar since he joined his brother at Gardone Riviera. In the latest publication of the Guida Espresso, one of the most influential food guides in Italy, if not the most influential he has won 'five hats' together with the new three Michelin star restaurant St Hubertus del Rosa Alpina of chef Norbert Niederkofler. They join the top five chefs of Italian cuisine, recognised by many guides including the Michelin Guide as well as World's 50 Best Restaurants among others. These are Casadonna Reale of chef Niko Romito in Castel di Sangro, Le Calandre of chef Massimiliano Ajamo in Rubano, Osteria Francescana of chef Massimo Bottura in Modena, Piazza Duomo of chef Enrico Crippa in Alba and Uliassi of chef Mauro Uliassi in Senigallia. While the promotion of St Hubertus del Rosa Alpina was to be expected given the restaurant was recognised with 3 Michelin stars, the recognition for Lido 84 came a bit as a surprise for a chef who has … [Read more...]
Pepe Nero Lebanese fusion and the chef who came out of retirement
I am acutely aware of my softer, self-indulgent attitude to dieting now. After a summer spent on the water or beside it, invariably ending the day in a good restaurant, I decided to give it a bit of a break. This does not mean swapping to a diet of dust and greens. Indeed, I have been in the company of too many good men who started out that way and then dined on wine, leaving their plate looking like a garden in autumn: strewn with basil leaves. No, I only resolved to refrain from going to restaurants for about six weeks. This seemed reasonable and manageable......two weeks ago. Tonight I decided to follow Oscar Wilde’s (rather than my wife’s) advice on dealing with temptation, and yielded to it. Off I went, protestant spouse in tow, to Pepe Nero’s latest addition to a fast growing chain of restaurants. It is the Lebanese place in Tal-Ibragg on the premises of the historic Jessie’s bar, which opened here in 1921. Jesse stayed in the family business and her long years as a kind … [Read more...]