As cities came to a standstill, as airports closed, as streets become deserted and as people hibernated for the longest spring in our living history, many thought we were going to experience a revolution that would change the world we live in. There would be the pre COVID-19 world and the post COVID-19 world. The restaurants emptied, the kitchens became colder, the hustle and bustle of a busy kitchen came to an immediate halt. Now, as more and more countries start to reopen for business, the more things change, they more they have stayed the same. In the darkest moments of the COVID-19 crisis many thought that there would be considerable and even radical changes to the world of food and restaurants in particular. A few days ago while speaking with Andrea Petrini, one of the most influential food writers in the world, founder of GELINAZ!, an avant-garde chef’s collective he asked me “Where are the new ideas?” How are you is how the conversation started and he told me that he … [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...]
L’Air du Temps launches Le Bar a Quilles, an open-air wine bar for summer
LIERNU: On 1 July, L'Air du Temps, a two Michelin star restaurant in the heart of the Belgian countryside will open an open-air wine bar, Le Bar a Quilles between 3pm and 7pm. In the lush garden of the restaurant, some 50 kilometres away from Brussels, guests will be able to walk in without a reservation and choose from a selection of drinks by sommelier Michel de Muynck. The bar will be open throughout the summer months from Wednesday to Sunday from 3pm to 7pm. The bar will be accessible from the restaurant's parking area. Earlier this week, Sang Hoon Degeimbre, chef of the restaurant L'Air du Temps, one of the top Belgian restaurants announced the opening of a sustainable restaurant called VerTige in Brussels under the guidance of young talented chef Kevin Perlot. The SAN Group of restaurants also include San Sablon, San Gent, Toshiro and Rizom. For lunch, all restaurants are offering a take-out possibility while they are open for lunch and dinner. … [Read more...]
Casse-Croûte by Karen Torosyan here to stay
BRUSSELS: When chef Karen Torosyan of Restaurant Bozar in Brussels had to close the restaurant because of the lockdown, he decided to venture into what he called Casse-Croûte. This was an initiative to serve some of his signature dishes in the form of a takeaway. On offer during the lockdown were a selection of his patés, fois gras, rilettes, ham with parsley (jambon persillé) as well as his famous pâté croûte with pork, duck and goose liver served with pickled vegetables. He also served a number of hot dishes including some of the pies that have made him world famous (he was world pie champion after all) as well as desserts. Now, with the lockdown over and the restaurant open, Karen Torosyan has kept his Casse-Croûte open and intends to eventually open a Brussels boutique. For the time being, he continues to serve his artisanal creations from his restaurant in central Brussels. "Casse-croûte was born out of the crisis and I've been working on it for three months. The response … [Read more...]
VerTige, a new restaurant by San Degeimbre and Kevin Perlot opens in Brussels
BRUSSELS: The first time Sang Hoon Degeimbre ventured to Brussels, it was to open San Brussels in Rue de Flandre in the centre of the city. After five years, that restaurant will make way for VerTige, a new sustainable concept that brings to Brussels the talented Kevin Perlot. San Brussels was the first urban restaurant that took the lunch time concept at L'Air du Temps of serving dishes in bowls and brought it to the city. Since then he has followed with two other San restaurants, one in the Sablon area of Brussels and another in Ghent. In five years, the SAN family of restaurants has also grown to include Toshiro and Rizom. Now the young talented chef Kevin Perlot is taking over San Bruxelles and turning it over into VerTige. The 25-year-old chef has worked in various renowned restaurants in Belgium including three years at L’Air du Temps and most recently he developed his culinary identity at Pepite, a famous culinary cellar in Namur. His ambition at the new … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman’s Le Pristine to open on 14 July
ANTWERP: Le Pristine restaurant and Le Pristine Café, Sergio Herman’s newest restaurants will open their doors in the fashion district of Antwerp on Tuesday 14 July. Reservations to this new hotspot will open from Tuesday 23 June on the restaurant’s website. Over the last few months, Le Pristine's core team has used the time of the pandemic to carefully prepare for the opening of Sergio Herman’s latest restaurant. The restaurant will offer a taste of the Zeeland terroir, from where Herman hails together with Italian flair. The concept promises to be very different from everything he has done before. Le Pristine is contemporary and classy, but above all has an impressive interior that exudes an exceptional international quality. Sergio Herman is familiar with the Antwerp scene. Together with Nick Bril, he launched The Jane, one of the top restaurants in Belgium and the city is also home to Frites Atelier. The Dutch chef rose to fame with Oud Sluis which he closed a few … [Read more...]
Butcher, restauranteur, chef team up to open Maven in Antwerp
ANTWERP: At a time when many restaurants are struggling with the after effects of COVID-19, a new restaurant will open in Antwerp called Maven. The restaurant will open in Liegestraat on the bustling South side of the city. It is a concept that brings together the expertise of renowned butcher Luc De Laet, the passion of catering entrepreneur Win Van der Borght and the talent of Jules Koninckx. Starting a meat restaurant at a time when eating meat is under pressure may be considered politically incorrect but the three are just ‘daredevils’. “There is nothing wrong with eating meat,” says butcher De Laet. We eat too much meat. So we have to eat less but above all better meat.” The name Maven has been chosen because in Hebrew it refers to ‘the girl who knows everything’ while in old English it means ‘one who understands’. Maven therefore stands for knowledge and skills, someone who knows how to work. That is what De laet, Van der Borght and Konickx are promising. “Creativity, … [Read more...]
Reale celebrates 20 year anniversary with special ‘low-cost’ menu
Cristiana Romito and Niko Romito CASTEL DI SANGRO: Reale, one of the most magical restaurants in the world will reopen on 2 July following the lockdown in Italy. And it will be a special reopening because it will coincide with the 20th anniversary since they took over the restaurant after their father had passed away. For the month of July only, Cristiana and Niko will propose a unique menu which will be exclusive and never to be repeated again. “2020 is not an ordinary year for us not just because of the pandemic but also because it is 20 years since Cristiana and I took over the restaurant and opened Reale. These past months have allowed us to reflect on our gastronomic and entrepreneurial paths. It has given us the time to return back to the core motivations of why we took this path and how our passion for this work came about,” Niko said. “Travelling back in time has brought back ideas, choices, experiments and research. With this reflection we have decided to restart … [Read more...]
Hisa Franko clinches two stars as Slovenian Michelin Guide is unveiled
The sun shines after the storm. Hisa Franko, the restaurant of Ana Ros and Valter Kramar has clinched two Michelin stars for the first ever time when the tyre company unveiled its first ever guide to Slovenia. Delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic which stopped the publication of the Guide earlier this year, this was exceptional news for Ana, Valter and the team of Hisa Franko who have suffered more than others the lockdowns because of the location of their restaurant in Kobarid in the Slovenian countryside. The wine bottles will be opened this evening in celebration of this achievement particularly given the experience of the team who stayed together throughout the lockdown because the borders were closed pretty much instantly as the pandemic hit Italy and neighbouring countries. Five other restaurants in Slovenia clinched one Michelin star while nine restaurants received a Bib Gourmand. Michelin said "A self-taught chef with extraordinary creativity, she demonstrates … [Read more...]
Pastorale: the 10 corona commandments
REET: Pastorale, a two Michelin star restaurant in Reet, Belgium reopened earlier this week with 10 corona commandments, taking inspiration from the fact that the restaurant is housed in a former presbytery. The restaurant also has as an ozone generator in the cloakroom after 12 weeks closed due to COVID-19. "As chefs, we are often challenged, but today we are being challenged in a way that we have never been before. I have a million questions: How will our sommelier present the bottles of wine? What about the live preparations in front of our customers? And will customers now have to get their own coat in the cloakroom? Those aspects used to be obvious, but suddenly they aren’t so obvious anymore and require a creative solution", says chef Bart De Pooter. The answer to the last question led to a solution, an ozone generator in the cloakroom. This generator disinfects the air and fights bacteria and viruses among other things. Apart from that the restaurant will have a personal … [Read more...]