BOGOTA: When Alvaro Clavijo returned to open El Chato in Bogota, Colombia after gaining experience in places like Noma, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Atera and Per Se it was a bit of a risk. With that CV, Alvaro could have not only have worked anywhere, he could also have opened a project in any part of the world and the odds would have been stacked in his favour for the venture to be successful. Returning to Colombia was, however, what he really wanted because it was here that he could showcase what he had learned in his travels around the world. He knew that the country offered lots of possibilities from ingredients that needed to be discovered to constraints of getting produce in a city that stands 1,600 metres above sea-level. Neither when things were not going as planned did Alvaro lose hope. Despite difficulties to get recognition particularly in the local press, he persevered taking on a lot of debt to finally make the restaurant one of the best restaurants in Latin America. … [Read more...]
‘Good and better things are coming’ – the Torres twins behind Cocina Hermanos Torres
BARCELONA: Twin brothers Javier and Sergio Torres have known from a very young age that they would cook and work together. Even when they were training to become chefs and getting experiences in some of the world's best restaurants, the two had everything planned to the last detail. They knew that four hands were better than two and that if they set their mind to learning different things, they would end up with a sum that is greater than its parts. Today, just four years after opening their dream restaurant Cocina Hermanos Torres; an industrial factory turned into a sleak, modern “kitchen with tables” they are ready to take the world by storm. They've been known in the Spanish food world for very long. When they opened their new restaurant in 2018 to great acclaim they directly clinched two Michelin stars and recently were awarded a green Michelin Star for their sustainable approach to fine dining. Many chefs say they have been inspired by their grandmother. It is a bit … [Read more...]
If it is dark enough you can see the stars
Go back some years and no one would have bet a dime on Eric Vildgaard. Maybe neither Eric believed that if it got dark enough he would be able to see the stars. Except Tina Kragh Vildgaard. She saw potential and she believed they could not just create a family together but also a restaurant. She had fallen in love with Eric despite his troubled past. "The most attractive part about Eric is that he is so passionate," she said as she looked him in the eyes. "He does everything at 100 per cent. That is what I fell in love with and I am still in love with. It is his passion and never being one to compromise." The minute Tina took Eric to the room which would end up being the highly acclaimed Jordanaer restaurant on the outskirts of Copenhagen, he thought it was a joke. He had other ideas and it certainly was not a restaurant outside the centre of the Danish city. She had walked home from a business meeting and told him that they were going for a drive. "We arrived in this place and she … [Read more...]
Da Gorini: A highly personal interpretation of the terroir
SAN PIERO IN BAGNO: In an unspoilt part of Emilia Romagna there a small village called San Piero in Bagno. The whole commune has just around 6,000 inhabitants. It's just over 100 kilometres away from Bologna and Modena where we've spent a few days and the contrast is astonishing. There are no Ferrari's or Maserati's driving past in this sleepy village despite the fact that this is Italy's region that is known for its fast cars and its slow food. What there is instead, is this sense of peace, of time standing still, of authenticity, stunning landscape and exceptional produce. Just outside the village, as you exit the motorway there is a small bar and trattoria were truckers normally stop called Alto e Savio. It is mentioned in many Italian guides including Osterie d'Italia. There are absolutely no frills here but the service is not only fast, it is also welcoming and for very little you eat excellent regional cuisine. It's as if this is a prelude to what one can expect in the centre … [Read more...]
‘The quality of the fish and seafood in Malta has been outstanding’ – Alex Dilling
VALLETTA: Chef Alex Dilling was probably at the peak of his career at The Greenhouse when the pandemic hit and the restaurant ended up closing for good. The Greenhouse was the talk of the town in London and in global food circles because of Dilling’s cuisine and precise focus on quality ingredients. During the lockdown, he was working on creating new dishes and was focused on getting back to the kitchen as soon as possible but it was not to be as news of the closure of one of the most famous restaurants in London spread like wild fire in the ‘small food world’. While that was extremely bad news for Alex and his London team, it was very good for Malta. For the past two months, the talented British chef has been cooking at Ion - The Harbour, one of five Maltese restaurants to clinch a Michelin star. He is the highest calibre chef to ever cook in Malta for a long stretch. “I had a lot of opportunities. I love to travel, cook and meet new chefs. When I filtered through the … [Read more...]
That sense of lost liberty – Valentino Cassanelli
If there is one thing that has been taken from many of us over the past year, it is the feeling of liberty. That feeling of being able to take the car, train or aeroplane and visit places that are a bit further away than your place of residence. Valentino Cassanelli, chef of Lux Lucis is no exception. He is dreaming of that day, some time soon, when he will be able to just take the car and discover those parts of Italy he has not really explored yet, like Sicily for example. “I would like to regain that sense of liberty. I want to be able to discover some places or rediscover others. All this lockdown has made me think of the places that I don’t know really well. I know Italy but I want to delve deeper,” he tells me. The Italian 37-year-old chef, who grew up in Spilamberto, a small town in the countryside outside Modena also relishes a trip to London to see how the city has changed during this pandemic, what has happened to certain neighbourhoods and what new restaurants will … [Read more...]
Learning from the lockdown: “The most important value is being human” – San Degeimbre
LIERNU: When Sang Hoon Degeimbre was forced to close the restaurant, the first time and the Belgian government announced a lockdown amid the pandemic way back in March he did not hesitate to move to the countryside. He took one of rooms that normally welcomes guests and which would remain empty throughout the course of the lockdown in the Belgian countryside in Liernu and spent most of his time there. Returning to Brussels from time to time, where he normally lives, some 45 minutes by car away from the restaurant felt surreal to him. In the countryside, there was not much sign of the pandemic. He worked together with his farming team to prepare the garden for spring. At L'Air du Temps, the Korean born Belgian chef has a garden where he grows his own vegetables, herbs and fruits which serves not just his restaurant but also some of his other restaurants in Belgium. “Nature does not stop because of the pandemic. Life just goes on,” he told me he told me in an interview in … [Read more...]
Small is beautiful: What we learned after closing Hertog Jan and how we plan to start again
ANTWERP: When Gert de Mangeleer and Joachim Boudens announced the closure of Hertog Jan at the end of 2018 it was a shock to the Belgian gastronomy scene. At the helm of a three Michelin star restaurant, one of just two in the country, they were at the top of their game. Many could not understand how two relatively young entrepreneurs, a chef and host, could quit at the peak. But the two had very clear ideas and over the past years they have emerged as two exceptional entrepreneurs that have created a unique L.E.S.S. Eatery in Bruges (the concept has been copied by others since) and Bar Bulot. Today, they have announced the return to fine dining with a restaurant that will create a new chapter for Hertog Jan. Gone is the 70 cover restaurant. It will also move to Antwerp from Zedelgem on the outskirts of Bruges. Instead they will create a new restaurant with just 12 seats. Ivan Brincat sat down with Gert de Mangeleer and Joachim Boudens to learn more and also to delve deeper … [Read more...]
Alberto Landgraf: ‘It is still too early to start taking life changing decisions’
The situation with COVID-19 evolves very rapidly. When I spoke to Alberto Landgraf a few weeks ago, the pandemic situation in Brazil was not as bad as it is today. They say a week is a long time in politics, you could say the same thing about the evolution of this pandemic. Alberto is the chef of Oteque, in Rio de Janeiro, one of the top restaurants in Brazil. Like many, Alberto is finding he has got much more time than usual which means that he has the time to think, to read and to re-examine everything. Personally he is not too concerned, he feels fine. And he is not afraid for his business and his fine-dining restaurant. He has more concerns for others in the industry and for the world in general because this pandemic is the biggest crisis we have had to handle for a very long time. “We are used to economic crisis from the past. In this case, it is not just an economic crisis but also a health crisis. But, we are seeing that despite all the shit that’s going on, there is … [Read more...]
‘Restaurants, gastronomy are going to be completely different after this crisis’ – Christophe Hardiquest
BRUSSELS: If one thing is certain for Christophe Hardiquest, it is the fact that restaurants will be completely different to what we know them when they reopen after the lockdown. “Gastronomy is going to change completely for different things and different reasons. Chefs will need to be creative and rethink what they do completely. At the moment we have a coronavirus crisis but after this there is going to be an economic crisis and we need to think things differently,” he told Food and Wine Gazette in a phone interview. Hardiquest is chef of two Michelin star restaurant Bon-Bon in Brussels and one of the most internationally recognised chefs in Belgium but he does not see a return to two or three Michelin star experiences anytime soon. For two weeks after the Belgian government announced a lockdown and the closure of restaurants, the Belgian chef took a break. “I needed to take a rest for a couple of days. It was necessary. I've now been back in the kitchen trying out new … [Read more...]