At the age of 11, Afton Halloran decided to become vegetarian. A year later, at school, she had to learn to cook during a home economics class. The class started with how to make a proper English tea but as weeks went by things became more sophisticated and the pupils learnt to make cookies, soup etc. One day, they had to learn how to make a proper roast beef dinner. “When I heard this, I went to the teacher and told her that I had no reason to learn this recipe because I had become a vegetarian. At first the teacher looked in shock, then she became angry and asked and just how do you think that you will ever find a husband.” Afton Halloran was speaking at the European Food Summit organised in Ljubljana last month. Dr Halloran has over the past 12 years built up a robust background in the field of sustainable food systems and she is also consultant to the Nordic Council of Ministers working on a project called the Nordic Food Policy Lab. Although she is no longer vegetarian … [Read more...]
Playfood 2 at L’Air du Temps: Andreas Caminada cooks for the first time in Belgium
Sang Hoon Degeimbre of L'Air du Temps (left) welcomes Andreas Caminada (Schloss Schauenstein) in Liernu, Belgium. Andreas Caminada, chef and owner of three Michelin star Swiss restaurant Schloss Schauenstein was recently in Liernu, Belgium to cook at L' Air du Temps, the restaurant of chef Sang Hoon Degeimbre. Under the theme PLAYFOOD, the Belgian chef is inviting a number of international top chefs to cook at the restaurant following the refurbishment of the restaurant last year. The first guest of Sang-Hoon was Swedish chef Magnus Ek who visited the newly refurbished restaurant with its impressive dining room overlooking the extensive vegetable garden and the countryside of Liernu. Caminada was the second chef to visit the restaurant and he will be followed by Dominique Crenn from the United States and Mauro Colagreco later this year. For the dinner, Caminada and San presented a harmonious menu which featured a number of their signature dishes. Andreas Caminada … [Read more...]
Falling in love with Uruguay: Discovering La Barra and Borneo Coffee
Isabel walking to the shops in La Barra Wedged between Brazil in the north and Argentina to the west, Uruguay has become Isabel Gilbert Palmer’s latest “I’ve fallen deeply in love with” part of the world. On the road during the month of January she travelled along the Uruguay coast, from Montevideo to Punte Del Esta tracing the coastal Ruta Gastromica from the seaside villages of Puente La Barra to Jose Ignaico and on the dusty ribboned backroads to Pueblo Garzon. Isabel shares some of her southern hemisphere summer finds and later stories during the same month, of travelling further afield to Argentina, the city Buenos Aires, her drive across the Pampas to Mendoza and the wine fields at the foot of the Andes. People, places, art, food, wine, where to stay and sunshine. An unforgettable Latin American experience and fortune willing she’s doing it all over again, and more next year. In the meantime memories are made of this . La Barra La Barra is one … [Read more...]
Odprta Kuhna: Bringing a taste of Slovenia to Ljubljana and the world
In his own words, Lior Kochavy did not know how to crack an egg and make an omelette for himself. If he knew how to cook, Open Kitchen or Odprta Kuhna as it is known in Slovenia would not exist. Earlier this month it opened for the European Food Summit. This year will be the seventh edition of the project, the brainchild of Lior and his wife Alma. This one of a kind food market attracts around 50 restaurants to Slovenia’s capital to showcase what the country has to offer. Every Friday from March to October, hungry visitors flock to the market to savour food from some of the city’s best establishments as well as restaurants from other parts of Slovenia. They serve sample and cheaper portions of their restaurant dishes with a number of beer and wine stalls to add to the atmosphere. Lior arrived in Slovenia in 2006 from Israel. “It was all different for me when I arrived here,” he said at the European Food Summit which was organised in Ljubljana earlier this month. “I was used … [Read more...]
‘There will be a crash point if we don’t act now’ – Roberto Flore
The future will happen whether we like it or not and it is therefore essential to take action. “People are afraid of the future because they feel that they are not in control,” Roberto Flore who runs the DTU Skylab Foodlab in Copenhagen said at the European Food Summit. “We should design utopias or positive futures rather than speak of dystopia,” he said. Technologies, he said, need to be human centric. “We need to find people who can help to create and design machines. We do not have this concept at the moment. Machines are toady designed with efficiency but they are not efficient. They are only driven by numbers. There will be a crash point if we do not act now. The question is how can we design machines with social efficiency in mind, a machine that benefits society. Maybe we will fish less but we may be able to have fish available for more people,” he said. The former Italian chef who took over the DTU Skylab Foodlab last year after having headed the Nordic Food Lab (run … [Read more...]
Jimmy Lim’s restaurant in Taiwan chosen by Asia’s 50 Best restaurants as rising star
Jimmy Lim, photo by Shinichiro Fujii Jimmy Lim's JL Studio in Taichung, Taiwan has been announced as the One to Watch in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. The One to Watch title is presented to a restaurant that is outside the Asia's 50 Best list but is identified as a rising star in the region. Opened in 2017, JL Studio reflects the upbringing and cultural influences of chef-owner Jimmy Lim. Born in Singapore, Lim presents modern interpretations of classic dishes from his home city. Combining traditional Singapore flavours and refined cooking techniques, Lim’s “Mod-Sin” menu translates and elevates much-loved Singaporean dishes with creative flair and a progressive approach. Chef Jimmy Lim said: “Having JL Studio named this year’s One To Watch is a huge validation for myself and the team. Although we are a very young restaurant, this honour encourages us to continue challenging ourselves, striving for excellence and discovering new ways to reinterpret Singapore cuisine.” … [Read more...]
Rodolfo Guzman’s surprise relocation of Borago
Chef Rodolfo Guzman, has announced that Borago, the renowned Chilean restaurant has relocated. He had been secretly working on the move without publicising it. The new restaurant is at the foot of Cerro Manquehue (Place of Condors in Mapudungun Mankewe), the most important natural landmark of the city and one which demarcates the seasonality in Santiago. Borago is considered to be one of Latin America's best restaurants with Rodolfo introducing many Chilean ingredients, products and techniques to the world for the first time while rewriting his country's culinary rulebook in the process. The restaurant opened in 2006 and like many of today's successful restaurants struggled to survive in the early years particularly since it had to deal with a conservative clientele. Rodolfo Guzman said that 12 years ago he and this team had embarked on a road that seemed crazy at the time. "The place where Boragó was housed and which has been our home for all this time seemed huge. It looked … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman’s Frites Atelier Brussels to open on 2 March
Sergio Herman's third Belgian branch of Frites Atelier in Belgium will open in Brussels on 2 March. This will be the third Belgian branch of the famous fries shop that the Dutch chef opened in Amsterdam first. Frites Atelier in Brussels will be opened in Rue Saint Catherine in central Brussels close to Dierendonck's meat shop. Just like the Frites Atelier in Gent, the one in Brussels is expected to have more seats and offer a more extensive menu compared to the current Ateliers in the Netherlands and Antwerp. The opening in Brussels is expected to be followed by more openings in the Belgian capital including one at the Brussels Airport. Sergio is looking into expanding the concept to Germany and France. He has commissioned research into big cities to find busy streets that could welcome such a food concept. Sergio is also developing the concept so that it can work not just in permanent locations but also for private events and festivals. This should be launched by the … [Read more...]
South African Wolfgat is Restaurant of the Year
Wolfgat, a restaurant run by Kobus Van der Merwe, a former food journalist turned chef was named as restaurant of the year in the first ever World Restaurant Awards that were unveiled in Paris at the Palais Brongniart, yesterday evening. The restaurant in Paternoster, South Africa also won the Off-Map Destination award. 160 kilometres away from Cape Town, this acclaimed restaurant draws on inspiration from the surrounding landscape and its dramatic season transformation. The chef serves his signature Standveld food menu which comprises of sustainable seafood, local lamb and venison as well as wild herbs and sea-weed among others. It is a restaurant that supports the community and is also particular because all the staff except for the chef and one other person are women. Most of the fish that is bought by the restaurant is caught by fishermen who are related to the staff of the restaurant), Wolfgat has made a name for itself and has often been mentioned as the ‘Noma’ of South … [Read more...]
When tomatoes met Wagner premieres at Berlinale
The humorous and uplifting story of two ingenious Greek cousins and five village women, who tackle the world market with their homegrown tomatoes, premieres at the prestigious Berlin International Film Festival (7-17 February 2019). The quirky and inspiring tale of how a village used organic farming to overcome the Greek financial crisis, screens at the Berlinale’s popular Culinary Cinema section, which offers food for thought with films about the pleasures and dark sides of food. This year, the 13th Berlinale Kulinarisches Kino under the title "A Taste for Balance" from February 10 to 15, features 10 documentaries and two fiction films about the relationship between food, culture and politics. Top chefs Angela Hartnett, Sebastian Frank, Haya Molcho, Kiko Moya, and The Duc Ngo will serve menus inspired by the films while Yotam Ottolenghi will present his new book. Filmmaker Mariana Economou’s documentary – whose last film, ‘The Longest Run’, was nominated by the European … [Read more...]