Sergio Herman is an inspirational figure for chefs and foodies alike. His work ethic and determination led him to the top of the culinary world making him one of the most recognised and talented chefs in the world. For his story, you may want to take a look at our more in-depth interview. When we meet chefs we like to ask a series of similar questions to try and get insight into what they look for when they eat out, what they like to eat, their mentors and their view on an issue on which we like to raise awareness - food waste. So we started this set of questions seeking Sergio's view of food waste. "Here at The Jane, we try to waste as little as possible. Trimmings which we don't use are turned into stews, served in the bar or to staff. We try to work with everything, maybe making chips with the trimmings from vegetables." "Sometimes I look around and see all the fish being used in restaurants around the world, I ask where is this all coming from. I worry because I think … [Read more...]
A unique look at stunning bars and restaurants
Let's Go Out Again is the name of a book published last month by Gestalten. It's a stunning book about architecture and restaurants, bars and unusual food places. The cover caught our attention because it features the restaurant The Jane by Sergio Herman and Nick Bril in Antwerp (Read our interview with Sergio Herman here). The book is edited by Robert Klanten, Sven Ehmann and Michelle Galindo. It looks at how interior designers and architects worldwide are working together with chefs and restaurateurs to create new concepts to make going to a restaurant a multisensory experience. In the interview with Food and Wine Gazette, Sergio Herman spoke about the detail they had gone into to make The Jane an eclectic experience for diners, making it simpler than his former restaurant Oud Sluis, but without compromising on quality or presentation. The location is all the more stunning and Sergio Herman defined it as a 'once in a lifetime project'. The dining experience has been changing … [Read more...]
Two Sicilian recipe books to make your mouth water
It is perhaps difficult to pinpoint an episode that really triggered my interest and passion in food and wine. Like every passion, it developed over time. But nothing has left its mark on my philosophy of eating and cooking more than an island neighbouring the island where I was born. Memories of Sicilian food do not just trigger a sense of nostalgia but in a way they mark my culinary roots. My love of cooking started with Sicilian food, and the philosophy I appreciate most in cooking, which is to showcase exceptional ingredients, comes from there. What strikes you most when you visit Sicily and eat Sicilian food is the simplicity of the cuisine. Here, most chefs will let the ingredients do the talking without intervening to complicate matters or enhance flavours. But its also a cuisine that can be complicated mixing sweet and sour flavours in one dish. Whenever I meet a chef, I like to ask what their best meal has been. While this question may sound simple, I'm not sure I … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #24
Yesterday we came across a quote on Twitter which went something like this: If your ingredient list reads like a novel it is best to stay away. It may sound obvious but whether we like it or not we end up succumbing to the convenience of supermarket food. However, author and journalist Joanna Blythman is on a mission to change this and she is clearly raising awareness on the horrors that go into convenience food. Her book Swallow This: Serving up the Food Industry's Darkest Secrets promises to be a shocking read. Blythman has also been able to promote her book and raise awareness through articles in newspapers. This one really turns your stomach. You've been warned. Wasting food is becoming unfashionable. It is great given that we lose about 31 per cent of our food to waste on a daily basis. While San Francisco, in the United States was the first city to make its citizens compost food, Seattle is the first to punish people with a fine if they don't. Running an efficient kitchen is … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman: Seeing light at the end of the tunnel
When Sergio Herman stunned the culinary world in 2013 by announcing that he would close his famous restaurant Oud Sluis, few people could understand his decision. But, as he told Food and Wine Gazette, once he had achieved all his objectives he no longer felt motivated. "I could have gone on for another five or 10 more years but would it have been fun? For me the answer was no. I also wanted to find balance in life." He still works extremely hard and opening The Jane, a stunning restaurant in an old church in Antwerp with chef Nick Bril was no walk in the park. "It was very hard to set this up. I was here every day before its opening. But now I can say that after nearly a year open, I have more balance and I am seeing light at the end of the tunnel." Sergio is still present in his two restaurants The Jane and Pure C. "I quit Oud Sluis but I did not stop. It's still a hectic life but its completely different. This week for example, I am at The Jane three days, at Pure C on Friday … [Read more...]
Ten reasons why food critics in newspapers may disappear sooner than we think
Elisia Menduni, a journalist we follow on Twitter tweeted on Monday that editor of Observer Food Monthly Allan Jenkins had said that the food critic in newspapers will no longer exist in 10 years time. She was participating in the Parabere Forum organised for the first time in Bilbao. The forum aims to bring a collective of women from across the gastronomic industry. We replied saying we thought that this will happen much earlier. Twitter is a great tool for engagement but it is not necessarily the best platform to delve deeper into why we think so. So here are a few points on why we think that food critics (as we know them today) will disappear in newspapers sooner than 10 years. 1. Go back 10 years and think of what did not exist back then. When we look back, it is amazing to see how quick the pace of change has been. Few would have realised that such major disruptions in many industries were around the corner. 2. The newspaper (and media organisations as we … [Read more...]
Joachim Boudens (Hertog Jan): Time is one of today’s luxuries
Time is one of today's greatest luxuries, Joachim Boudens, co-owner of Hertog Jan, the three-Michelin stared restaurant in Zedelgem (Bruges) tells me as he gives me a tour of the restaurant. He takes me for a walk in the garden of Hertog Jan and although it is winter and therefore bare, you realise that this is really an integral part, if not essential, to the restaurant. "When people have finished lunch we tell our guests to take a walk in the garden. For dinner, some people come to the restaurant and you can see that they are a bit stressed because they have arrived a bit late or were stuck in traffic. You can feel this as soon as they walk into the restaurant. We normally tell them that it is a good idea to go for a walk in the garden. Sometimes they start to worry because they have arrived 30 minutes late. We tell them its fine, just go for a walk. After 10 minutes, they walk back in and look like completely different people. They are ready to relax and enjoy their dinner. One … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #23
This is a milestone post as it is the 200th one on Food and Wine Gazette. It's been an incredible journey so far. In a way it's great that this coincides with our weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine. It is a post we look forward to writing each week. It is also one which keeps us in contact with our readers who send us interesting posts from time to time. And it is a great way to share great content which we come across during the week in one post. Fellow blogger Fine Food Dude, an Englishman who is based in Hong Kong has a great post on Bagatelle, Oslo. It is a great review of a restaurant in Norway which closed its doors last year. By sheer coincidence, the blogger was the last diner to eat in this restaurant. It's a very interesting read, not only for the food, but it also shows the professionalism of the staff till the very end. Great resources are always useful to come across. Wine Turtle has compiled a list of 103 best wine blogs that you can't miss. We must … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman Fucking Perfect: A stunning portrait of perfection and hard work
There is one constant of chefs that have made it to the very top of the culinary world. It is hard work, dedication and incredibly long hours of work. Reaching the top is extremely hard but staying there is no walk in the park either as chefs know that one mistake or bad review could shatter all their dreams. Few chefs have had the courage to give it all up and move on to do other things. The restaurant business is considered glamorous for many and the very best chefs may be considered to be stars in their own right appearing on television programmes, publishing their own books and becoming household names, even if few people can ever go to their restaurants. They have thousands of people following them on social media and huge recognition. Sergio Herman was at the top of the game when he decided to close his 3 Michelin star restaurant Oud Sluis on 22 December 2013 after 25 years working to put it at the top of the World's culinary map. Sergio Herman, Fucking Perfect is a … [Read more...]
Interview with Jack O’Shea: Chophouse essential for nose to tail cooking
There is no question that Jack O'Shea knows what he wants. And he is determined to get it. With the Brussels Jack O'Shea Chophouse finally open, he is now focusing on growing the business to turn it truly global. A long-time proponent of nose to tail cooking and with the intention of wasting nothing, he is now leading by example having opened his first restaurant. "I have always loved cutting and selling meat. But ultimately you never have control of what happens to the meat when it leaves your butcher shop. The ultimate position would be to have your own restaurant and control how the meat is served, to make sure that it is cooked to perfection or as good as it can be," Jack tells me when I met him at the Chophouse in Brussels recently. But the restaurant has also given him the economies of scale he needs to not only follow his philosophy of wasting nothing from the animals but also to grow the business. "What the Chophouse will do is help me to centralise and stabilise my … [Read more...]