KOBARID: When the first lockdown was announced in Slovenia, the team of Hisa Franko, Ana Ros and Valter Kramer's acclaimed restaurant, all stayed in the Slovenian countryside, some out of choice and others because the borders were closed and they were stuck there. Together, as a multinational team, they faced lockdown, helping each other and using the time to work on new projects, to train and prepare the restaurant for the reopening in summer. Now as winter approaches and another closure of restaurants has been enforced by the Slovenian government, the Slovenian chef has said she will unfortunately have to say goodbye to a part of the restaurant's team forever. "A few hours from the second lockdown, I am broken hearted because I have found no more jollies in my pocket to save the work positions of some colleagues. Who is next?" she asked adding it all depended on her, you and us. This has been a difficult year for restaurants worldwide but for Hisa Franko, which was riding … [Read more...]
Summer 2020: Odds and ends
Henry David Thoreau once wrote that one must maintain a little bit of summer even in the middle of winter. You cannot really fault him with that. But there is also the other side to summer, the one where all good intentions go to waste. Finding a writing routine is always a priority for me but summer has a way of disrupting that routine. Not that I am complaining. Writing therefore ended up on the back burner for various reasons. Loss of routine was one of them but also because without realising the previous months had taken their toll when it came to fatigue. Every summer starts with the intention of finding a routine during holidays. But despite all the good intentions, every summer that routine makes way for a certain amount of spontaneity that makes writing close to impossible. Working from home, the lockdown, stress, homeschooling and no break since pretty much Christmas meant there was a level of fatigue that had accumulated which I was not even aware of. How did I … [Read more...]
Nature Chic, a dining room under the trees in Brabant Wallon this summer
Nature Chic is the name of a new concept created during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four people have joined forces to create a culinary experience in the middle of nature. John Paquot, the proprietor of the Ferme d’Odenge, Alain Bianchin, chef of Michelin star restaurant Alain Blainchin and Andre Poes, a sommelier and owner of Nectars du Sommelier and Mickael Williquet have joined forces to create this experience where nature takes centre stage and forms the dining room. During the summer months in Orbais, in the Brabant Wallon region of Belgium, Nature Chic will welcome guests next to a river in the heart of the Belgian countryside. The 'dining room' is open from Thursday to Sunday Under the trees, guests are welcome from 7pm for an aperitif in the middle of the vegetable garden. Champagne and seasonal cocktails are served together with the latest creations prepared from the vegetable garden by the team at Brigitin. At around 8pm, guests will be taken to their table for dinner … [Read more...]
Venissa: A vineyard saved and a new wine launched
VENICE: Enrico Rossetti who was born and lives in Burano, Venice, has become a bit of a symbol of Venice's difficult few months. His photo, taken in front of Venissa, the restaurant he worked in, during the high tides went viral. Now, because of the COVID-19 crisis and Venissa closed, Enrico has started working in the vineyard of the winery that owns the restaurant. The vineyard is home to one of the unique grapes of the region, the Dorona of Venice which is used to make the Venissa wine. Enrico worked at Venissa since 2019 and the company gave him an indefinite contract. But with tourism coming to a complete halt, Enrico has been working in the winery in the winery instead. "I cannot complain. I am working in the 'countryside', in the tranquility of the lagoon and being in the contact with nature is something I really enjoy," he said. But it is not only Enrico's job that has been saved. The walled vineyard of Venissa was also saved from the November high tides that … [Read more...]
(30) Ana Ros calls for transparency, information
KOBARID: Ana Ros, chef of Hisa Franko in Kobarid was one of the first to take the risk of opening the booking system for her restaurant in Slovenia as from 1 June despite not knowing whether this would be possible or not. And customers responded. She has an almost fully booked restaurant despite the fact that they don’t know whether the restaurant can reopen or not or whether customer can fly in to Slovenia or not. But like many others around the world, she is now calling for some clarity as to the future. “We are not being given any information, we do not know anything regarding opening dates or plans. There is no transparency with regard to decisions,” she said on Instagram. After saying that “it was time to start singing ‘Bella ciao’ and fight for our rights and our businesses,” she had to take to Instagram again to clarify that it was sad that people misunderstood her post. “My post was not political. The post from yesterday is a wake-up call to all people who work in … [Read more...]
(29) Gennaro Esposito on how we will dine in the coming months: “A dinner should not be a Russian Roulette”
Italian top chef Gennaro Esposito has warned that when restaurants reopen after the COVID-19 lockdowns, changes will be significant to the point that it will require a lot of goodwill from customers to go to restaurants. “It is only right to ensure that a restaurant reduces the risk for its staff and customers. A dinner should not become a Russian Roulette,” he said. The Italian chef was interviewed on Il Mattino after he came up with a proposal on how to reduce the risks of diffusion of COVID-19 in restaurants. He set up BrotherinFood with colleagues in his region to propose ways of how eating out can be as safe as possible when lockdowns are removed. He has faced criticism from some colleagues for his proposals. In the interview with journalist Luciano Pignataro, he said “Many of my colleagues have not understood that this is a global pandemic and reopening restaurants is not an act of courage. It is, of course, important on a commercial and entrepreneurial level, but also … [Read more...]
‘This crisis is making us focus on the way we consume, the way we travel, how we treat earth’
BRUSSELS/LYON: What does the future hold for restaurants and guides like Michelin or the World’s 50 Best Restaurants? I’ve always thought that we were living a time that I liked to call ‘peak food’. Everywhere you looked, food, restaurants, chefs were part of our daily life. Then came COVID-19, lockdowns, closed borders and everything has been put into question. Over a virtual coffee, I sat down with Florent Bonnefoy, an entrepreneur who is currently working with clients across China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and France on new food-related venture development, restaurants brand building and customer experience maximisation to speak about the challenges that COVID-19 has brought to the restaurant world. In this wide-ranging conversation with the French entrepreneur, we discuss the future of fine dining, the restaurant business, deliveries and the acceleration of trends that this crisis has brought about. IB: The world of fine dining as we know it is changing. Rene Redzepi … [Read more...]
(9) Italia keeps on cooking: in aid of Luigi Sacco hospital in Milan
MILAN: A campaign in aid of the Luigi Sacco hospital in Milan has been launched. Proceeds from aprons sold during a digital campaign "Italia Keeps on Cooking" will be donated to the hospital, which is one of the organisations where the intensive therapy department is actively involved in the fight against COVID-19. The campaign is called Italia Keeps on Cooking and is an evolution of a campaign called Milano Keeps on Cooking. It is a digital campaign that was created by Alessia Rizzetto PR & Communication team, a Milan based PR agency specialized in food & beverage. The campaign has now been extended to the whole of Italy following the lockdown caused by the health emergency that has impacted Italy really badly. “Feeling very close to those working in the food and hospitality industry, we thought of creating a digital campaign which, while sharing social media posts portraying the representatives of these categories wearing aprons with the claim ‘MILANO KEEPS ON … [Read more...]
The Michelin Guide is a big deal for Malta. Here’s why
VALLETTA: The news that Malta has three one Michelin star restaurants will change the gastronomy landscape on this small Mediterranean island for ever. This is a big deal for Malta and its culinary sphere. Whether you love or hate Michelin and what it stands for, there is no question that to date this remains the most authoritative guide for restaurants worldwide. Before Michelin, there was one restaurant guide in Malta but this was survey driven and therefore did not carry the weight that Michelin or any of the other established world guides has. Restaurants, chefs and owners were more focused on getting a high ranking on Tripadvisor, also important, but by no stretch of imagination as important in terms of driving food enthusiasts to the island. Malta relies heavily on tourism and food over the past years has become a very important driver of tourism destinations. There are many people who centre their travel experience around food experiences worldwide and competition … [Read more...]
Puglisi hits out at Michelin for greenwashing
COPENHAGEN: The Michelin Guide has introduced a new emblem that aims to showcase sustainable restaurants. But chef Christian F. Puglisi, of restaurant Relae, in Copenhagen, is not impressed. The Italian chef has accused the guide of just picking the phone to determine whether a restaurant is sustainable or not. "It is disrespectful towards the ones in this industry taking the current issues seriously. It is hurting the credibility of our restaurant scene to announce leaders to be 'setting the standard for the rest of the world to follow". "There is one word for this practice and this is greenwashing," he said. Michelin has introduced the Green emblem from the announcement of the Michelin stars in France. Over 50 restaurants in France have received the Green clover. In the Nordic countries, 26 restaurants have made the grade. Puglisi said that at first he thought that this initiative was very interesting. But then he asked himself, how did we end there? "I tried to rewind to … [Read more...]