Italian restaurants outside Italy can sometimes be hit and miss. While many tend to be good, they are not exceptional. Italian restaurants, especially those outside Italy tend to adapt to the culture of the country they are based in making them far less authentic. Senzanome is the flagship Italian restaurant in Belgium and especially in the Belgian capital Brussels. Giovanni Bruno, of Sicilian origin, has been cooking since the 1980s and has taken over from his parents who opened the restaurant in 1991. Since 1997, he has been at the helm of the restaurant and achieved an unexpected Michelin star in 2004. It has since then gone from strength to strength and was voted the best Italian restaurant outside Italy in 2011 and 2012. That is no easy feat given the number of Italian restaurants that exist worldwide. I've been wanting to try this restaurant for a very long time despite the fact that I had heard mixed reviews about the restaurant. Some really raved about the restaurant … [Read more...]
Archives for February 2016
A woman’s definition of success is different – Maria Canabal of Parabere Forum
Maria Canabal, president of Parabere Forum is on a mission to raise awareness about women in the food and wine business. She tells me that the definition of success for women is different to that for a man. "That was also the conclusion of last year's forum. A women's career and definition of success is not measured by whether she has three stars. Success is not the same as for a man," Ms Canabal says. The Forum will meet in Bari next month, on 6th and 7th March to discuss and showcase women in the food and wine world. The theme for this year's forum, the second edition, is entrepreneurship. "We believe that there are three ingredients to empower women: training, mentorship and role-models. This year, we are bringing influential women who are extremely successful in the field to inspire women," Ms Canabal tells Food and Wine Gazette. Unfortunately, the top of the gastronomy world still remains 'a bit of a boy's club'. She does not mince her words when it comes to Michelin and … [Read more...]
25,000 attend the Salon du Chocolat in Brussels
Nearly 25,000 visitors made it to the Salon du Chocolat which took place over the past weekend at the Brussels Expo in the Belgian capital. The event, in its third anniversary brought together nearly 110 participants to showcase and honour Belgian chocolate craftsmanship in all its forms. In addition to the exhibitors, there were also conferences, demonstrations as well as workshops providing opportunities to visitors to learn more about chocolate and also how to use it. Among the Belgian brands taking part were the iconic Neuhaus, Godiva, Galler and Leonidas as well as the artisanal chocolatiers like Laurent Gerbaud, Joost Arijs, Jean-Philippe Darcis, Benoît Nihant, Didier Smeets and Herman Van Dender, who also shared their expertise and showed off their new creations. Among the newcomers to look out for were Euphrasie Mbamba from Sigoji, Lexane Madessis from L'Arbre a Bilous and Tom Vanthemsche from The Cacao Tree. The event kicked off on Thursday evening with the traditional … [Read more...]
Weekly round-up of great reads on food and wine #66
The price of olive oil is set to rise by around 20% following bad weather and disease that hit Europe's olive harvest. According to research group IRI, shoppers spent an additional €231m in 2015 on olive oil after the retail price of the oil rose by an average of 19.8 per cent across Europe in the first 11 months of last year. Truffle used to be considered as pig food in China before it became a treasure. Farmers now subsidize their income by truffle hunting. They do this not by using dogs as is common in Europe but rather using only their instinct and experience. Read the story here. Don't miss the story of how one tweet may change Cuban cuisine. One world-renowned chef challenged another to collaborate on a new restaurant in Cuba. Enrique Olvera and Andoni Aduriz take to Havana without a plan. But with the help of a third chef, Massimo Bottura, they come to realize their dream in a changing city. Cheap and easy food? Think about the true cost: EasyJet founder Stelios … [Read more...]
The Gelinaz! band is back with another unique event
The Gelinaz! gang, a collective of chefs that was formed by Italian food journalist Andrea Petrini, is back with another unique event after the successful organisation of Gelinaz shuffle last year. 14 chefs will be teaming up in pairs in an event called Walk with Us London. The event, which has been a sell out, takes place on 28 February. The chefs will be randomly teamed-up. Each Gelinaz! chef-duo will create four dishes (two starters, a main-course and a dessert). They will interpret and remix two original four-course menus specially created for the event by Isaac Mchale of The Clove Club and James Lowe of Lyle's. The restaurant in which each chef-duo is placed will only be revealed on the evening of the event. The organisers have promised the service will be 'a little shaken-up'. "Expect the evening to be interrupted, to leave the premises and....Walk with Us!" Gelinaz have said. The organisers have said that because of the concept, they are unable to cater for dietary … [Read more...]
Spectacular start to Brussels Salon du Chocolat
The 2016 edition of the Salon du Chocolat took off to a spectacular start yesterday evening with the now traditional chocolate fashion show. Belgian designers joined forces with chocolatiers to create spectacular outfits which were paraded by television and radio personalities from Bel RTL. Among the chocolatiers that created the outfits were Didier Smeets, Ducobu, Leonidas, Van Dender, Valentino, Jean Philippe Darcis, Philippe Close, alderman for tourism for the City of Brussels said this was the third edition of the Chocolat du Salon and it was great that French living in Switzerland had created such an event. "Brussels and Belgium needed an event like this particularly when the country is known for waffles, beer and chocolate," he said. Mr Close added that chocolate and patisserie have become very important for the Belgian economy. "Chocolate is Belgium's caviar," he said. Sylie Douce, one of the two organisers and founders of the event said that this promised to be a … [Read more...]
Barone Ricasoli: A visit to the oldest winery in Italy and the one which created the Chianti Classico
The Brolio Castle in the heart of Chianti Classico between the communes of Gaiole in Chianti and Castelnuovo Berardenga is an imposing castle dating back to the middle ages. It houses the oldest winery in Italy, Barone Ricasoli and the second oldest in the world. Although I had already visited the castle some years back, the children on a recent trip to the area wanted to visit the castle given we were in the area. The largest winery in the Chianti Classico area, it was in this castle that the Baron Bettino Ricasoli invented the Chianti Formula in 1872. Francesco Ricasoli, Bettino's great-grandson who has been at the helm of the family business since 1993 says that 'the research we do today has almost one thousand years behind it'. You get a sense of history the minute you step in the grounds of the castle. This is one of the oldest standing family businesses in the world. The first stones of Brolio Castle date back to the middle ages. The castle passed into the … [Read more...]
Salon du Chocolat taking place in Brussels this weekend
The third Salon du Chocolat in Brussels will take place this weekend from Friday 5th to Sunday 7th February in Hall 1 of the Brussels Expo. The event promises to be a celebration of Belgian chocolate. Two Belgian chocolate makers have prepared something special for the salon. Joost Arijs and Didier Smeets are considered to be two of the rising stars in the world of Belgian chocolate. Over 30 chocolatiers from the commercial to boutique shops will be present for what promises to be a great gastronomic event. Arijs, who has recently opened a second shop in Antwerp (the first one can be found in the city of Gent) has created a matcha tea macaroon. "For the Salon du Chocolat, I wanted to create an amazing macaroon which was totally out of the ordinary," he said. Didier Smeets, who represented Belgium at the Milan Expo in August last year created a praline that he will be offering until Valentine's Day. It is ironically called 'Le Solitaire'. This year, the Salon du Chocolat in … [Read more...]