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 … [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 … [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, … [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 … [Read more...]
Valeria Piccini: ‘It is a good moment for Italian cuisine’
Chef Valeria Piccini from Da Caino restaurant in Montemerano, Tuscany had never been to Asia when she got a call from Angelo Agliano to be the first of five female Italian chefs to cook at Tosca di Angelo at the Ritz Carlton Hong Kong. She immediately accepted because she is always of the view that she can always learn something from such events. But the shock of the … [Read more...]
