Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #33

If there is one story you must find time to read this week, it is the story of Ben Shewry, the New Zealand-born public face of modern Australian cooking, running one of the world’s top 50 restaurants. Widely regarded as the best chef in Australia, he had to battle with depression. Allan Jenkins writes an inspirational portrait of this chef, who has also been featured in David Gelb’s Netflix documentary series Chef’s Table.

Hélène Darroze has been named the 2015 Veuve Clicquot World’s Best Female Chef. Here is an interesting interview with her in the Financial Times where she speaks about what drives her, her ambitions and personal life among others.

Andy Hayler is unique. In 2004, he managed to eat at every three Michelin starred restaurant in the world. In this interview he says that not all restaurants are the same and there are distinct differences between the way in which countries are assessed. Read what he has to say about the most consistent country (some may be surprised) and his favourite restaurants.

Many of the world’s top chefs have passed through the kitchen of Ferran Adria. Here Diego Jacquet, chef patron of the Malevo Group of Argentinian restaurants, speaks about the values he learnt while working at el Bulli.

Summer is fast approaching and with it maybe the possibility to read a bit more than usual. Here is a list of 10 new food books you might consider reading this summer.

Lists are always great but this is one you should save for your next trip to Italy. It is a list of italian restaurants that has been selected by famous chefs.

French chef Guy Savoy is moving his signature restaurant on May 19. For 28 years, he operated from a dark and starkly modern site close to the Arc de Triomphe. His new move is not only great for guests but also for his 35 chefs and kitchen assistants, since the kitchens are three times larger than at the old restaurant and have huge windows, some of which offer views of the Seine and the Louvre.

We have also come across an interesting interview with Joan Roca of El Celler de Can Roca. He is interviewed as one of the seven jury members for the San Pellegrino Young Chef 2015. He says young chefs should enjoy cooking and search for their happiness in cooking rather than success.

If you are heading to Cannes, this is a list of restaurants worth taking with you.

Champagne needs to address the problem of pressing grapes because this could be a barrier to optimum quality according to the oenologist of Dom Pérignon. He is of the view that 30 years ago, Champagne was in the lead but now it is falling behind other wine regions when it comes to the pressing process.

And to conclude, you will find a brilliant article by Beppe Severgnini on how to understand Italy. It is about the Milan Expo and gives you a unique insight into Italy.