BRUSSELS: The large raviolo stuffed with a whole burrata and a tartare of red prawns flown in from Sicily is cooked for just 52 seconds in boiling water. Chef Ugo Federico of Brussels restaurant Racines wants the burrata to melt but remain inside the pasta and the tartare of prawns to be served as a tartare, i.e. still cold. The end result is not only spectacular to see but also to eat. It is one of the signature dishes at Racines but it is not the only spectacular pasta dish. Soon after, there is a tortellino ‘carbonara’. For purists, it is not exactly carbonara because Ugo is using Parmiggiano Reggiano that has been aged by Belgian cheese affineur Van Tricht instead of Pecorino Romano for the filling and there is truffle instead of guanciale to top it up. There is a pasta with nduja and provolone Silano from the same region that hits all the right notes. It is on the right side of spiceness and the creaminess from the melted cheese combined to perfection with the acidity given to … [Read more...]
Slovenia brings innovative thinkers for second edition of European Food Summit
The European Food Summit has taken its place as one of Europe’s most important gastronomy-oriented events. The event, in its second edition took place in Ljubljana in November. It was not just a forum for discussion offering delightful food for thought but also served to showcase some of the country’s most notable places also offering delightful food for thought. “The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or touched, they are felt with the heart”. Saint-Exupéry’s inspirational quote from “Le Petit Prince” was the first thing to read on the “reincarnation” menu of Hiša Franko, in picturesque Kobarid, helmed by Ana Roš. This was the location of a warm welcome on our first day in Slovenia, at the flagship restaurant of the country which is fast becoming the ‘green star’ of the culinary world. Chef Ana Ros is a champion of sustainability, and as Slovenia's leading chef and the one most internationally recognised, she has helped to pave the way for young Slovenian chefs to … [Read more...]
Green Revolution: A morning with Michael Vrijmoed and Stephanie Le Quellec
It is a crisp autumn morning. The fourth session of the Saint Pellegrino Young Chef Academy is taking place in a new spot created by chef and entrepreneur David Martin. It is in an idyllic spot, perfect to transmit knowledge. For this session, six chefs have been invited to work with mentor chefs Stephanie Le Quellec of La Scene in Paris, France and Michael Vrijmoed of restaurant Vrijmoed in Gent, Belgium. The focus is on the green revolution. Michael Vrijmoed has been serving a vegetable based menu since he opened his acclaimed restaurant Vrijmoed in Gent. And it is well known because he leaves no stone unturned in making sure that what he serves is just as delicious. “What’s important for me is that a dish tastes excellent. My main focus has always been that of getting the best taste out of ingredients. Making a dish look nice only comes second in importance,” he said. Stephanie Le Quellec explained that while it is still hard in Paris to offer a fine-dining vegetarian menu … [Read more...]
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants is back: a look back at the events in Antwerp
ANTWERP: When the number two restaurant was announced in the Flanders Meeting and Convention Centre in Antwerp last week René Redzepi, chef and face of restaurant Noma knew that this would be a special moment, one that had to be savoured because it would be the last time he would step on the podium of the World’s 50 Best as number one restaurant in the world. Rasmus Kofoed, chef of restaurant Geranium, also in Copenhagen had just been called as the second restaurant in the world meaning the top spot would end up going to the 79-strong team at Noma. Redzepi admitted to being anxious because of COVID-19 when he entered the auditorium and saw all those present. He came prepared with a speech. “I promise I didn’t have a clue we would come first. But finishing second last time, there was always going to be the possibility that we would be number one,” he said. The title has a special meaning because Noma will become the only restaurant in the world to equal el Bulli’s feat of … [Read more...]
All good things take time: GELINAZ Silent Voices returns with a bang
The sun was setting at Tenuta di Valgiano on the rolling hills above Lucca. GELINAZ! Stay in Tour Silent Voices was about to come to life. Months of hard work, stress all came together to create what turned out to be a magical evening. All good things take time. The first Silent Voices Chapter 1 took place in November 2020 with restaurants mainly in Asia since restaurants there were not facing any lockdown restructions. In other places, however, the event had to be postponed not once but twice because of the pandemic. Originally pencilled for the end of January, it was later pencilled in for spring before it finally took place in a number of locations around the globe on Sunday 29 August. We were at Tenuta di Valgiano where the event organised by the 3 chefs of Ristorante Giglio, Stefano Terigi, Lorenzo Stefanini and Benedetto Rullo, was taking place. In total, 13 chefs and their teams had been busy for over a day preparing a dinner for 140 people. They were given matrixes (or … [Read more...]
When wine and food are in perfect symbiosis
Jonathan K. Berntsen is not just a chef but also a sommelier. Hit by the terrible year his Michelin-starred restaurant CLOU had to close but he has now returned with The Samuel, a restaurant located in an old historical villa from 1891 north of Copenhagen in Hellerup. What makes Jonathan special is that for him food and wine are in symbiosis and hence they need to be precisely equally weighted. These means that he often selects the wines before creating the dishes. This devotion to pairing has been acknowledged with numerous awards such as winning the Copa Jerez 2013 and again at the Copa Jerez 2019; the most prestigious international competition in food and wine pairing. His passion for wine is so big, that he actually uses it as a starting point for almost every dish he creates for The Samuel. Like the ‘Squid Pollock’, a dish born out of the notes from a very special Oloroso Sherry from Sacrastía AB from Antonio Barbadillo – a type of wine that isn’t traditionally consumed … [Read more...]
Gelinaz! returns louder, bigger and ‘hopefully bolder’ on August 29 with 150 chefs in 25 cities worldwide
Over 150 chefs in 25 cities worldwide will join forces to conclude the last chapter of the Grand GELINAZ! Shuffle Stay in Tour. What started on 3 December will be finalised on 29 August when some of the world's greatest chefs pay tribute to chefs that have suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic either because their restaurant was forced to close or because they were in between projects. GELINAZ! curator Andrea Petrini, a food writer par excellence told Food and Wine Gazette that this event has been the most complicated to organise. "The second chapter had to be held in January. We then moved it to February and then to May but most places were in lockdown. We have now scheduled it for 29 August and hope that we manage because the reality is that no one believed that this could be done," Andrea said. Earlier this month, three Austrian chefs (known as the Healthy Boy Band) played solo in Vienna as a way to prepare for the final second chapter. Restaurants in many cities around … [Read more...]
Ta’ Betta Winery: ‘The ride of a lifetime’
What makes two professionals, highly respected in their fields put all their life savings into a project to create a boutique winery in Malta making top quality wines? How do they find the time to manage a wine business despite their professional commitments? That’s the story of Dr Astrid Camilleri, a gynaecologist and Prof. Juanito Camilleri a former University rector and former CEO of a mobile operator who have set up the Ta’ Betta Winery in Malta with the aim of making fine wines with personality that have ageing potential. “It’s a long story,” Astrid tells me. It is not a problem for me. It is a beautiful albeit windy summer evening at Ta’ Betta winery, a gem of a place the two have created over many years of hard work. You could call it their life or passion project but it has turned out to be much more than that. “We met in Cambridge while we were studying. I had started working there and Juanito was reading for his PhD. We got to know each other and we got married within 2 … [Read more...]
The Maltese ftira (flatbread) and how it made it to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list
MALTA: As the sun sets on the horizon children come out of the sea and asks her parents for something to eat. It is the middle of summer and nothing is more appetising that a local flatbread known as ftira with tomatoes, tuna, olives, capers, basil and olive oil. You could say that’s the taste of Malta, the taste of an island in the middle of the Mediterranean. This must be the most common ‘sandwich’ on the Mediterranean island and more often than not it is not the hobza tal-Malti (Maltese loaf) but rather the ftira typical of Malta that is used to quench the appetite after a summer swim. Now, that sourdough flatbread or ftira has been classified as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. Local historian Noel Buttigieg, who took the lead in presenting the case to UNESCO knows the importance bread has held in local history. He has taken it upon himself to raise awareness and also help raise the quality of this Maltese bread. “We choose the Maltese ftira and … [Read more...]
The Douro Boys in the time of the pandemic
When the Douro Boys group was created, the aim behind the idea was not to work together commercially but rather to put the Douro on the wine map. That required a lot of travel both from Portugal and the Douro valley where the wineries are but also into the region. Today, 17 years later and as the group approaches its 20 years since its existence with a pandemic in between, the five wineries which have put the Douro on the wine spotlight are reflecting as to what the future holds. The Douro Boys was set up by the owners of five wineries, Quinta do Vallado, Quinta do Crasto, Quinta Vale D. Maria, Quinta do Vale Meão and the port wine house Niepoort to raise awareness for the Douro region worldwide. Over the past weeks, I sat down (albeit via Zoom) to speak with a representative of each of the wineries to discuss the impact that the Douro Boys have had on Portuguese wine in particular but more importantly what changes they are considering particularly given the COVID-19 pandemic … [Read more...]