BARCELONA: Albert Adrià has decided to temporarily close all his restaurants in Barcelona due to COVID-19 which has proven to be lethal for the restaurant sector. Albert has a gastronomic empire in the city with five restaurants including four that have a Michelin star. These are Tickets, Enigma, Pakta and Hoja Santo. Albert, who rose to fame together with his brother Ferran at el Bulli created these group of restaurants in the same area of Barcelona and he called them “a gastronomic amusement park with differentiated concepts in the same neighbourhood.” The restaurants are highly sought after particularly by foodies who are curious to get a glimpse of the past el Bulli magic but have succumbed to lack of tourism. A small notice on the website says the restaurants will be closed until further notice. Catalan newspapers have reported that the absence of tourists have made a dent in this empire but while staff are concerned about their future Albert Adrià told Spanish media … [Read more...]
René Redzepi tops Best Chef awards 2020 list
René Redzepi, chef of Copenhagen restaurant Noma has won the Best Chef top 100 award that was announced in the first ever virtual show on September 23. The event, which had to take place in Rotterdam but was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic features chefs from 31 countries and includes 34 new names. Spain is the top performer with its 15 chefs in the list. Last year’s winner Bjorn Frantzen placed second while chef Dan Barber (who also won two additional awards) placed third. The full list can be found here. This annual awards gala has always been a global event with chefs from all over the world, travelling from far away to attend the hottest culinary gala. To guarantee everyone’s safety and taking the current COVID regulations into account, this year the world’s leading culinary platform decided to go back to their roots, presenting their Top100 through an online show and hosting hybrid conferences like Area Talks and Food Meet Science. “We decided not to … [Read more...]
El Celler de Can Roca to temporarily close as staff test positive for COVID-19
El Celler de Can Roca, the famous restaurant of the Roca brothers in Girona has announced that they will be closing the restaurant until further notice after some members of staff tested positive. This is not the first top restaurant in Spain that has been forced to close temporarily because of COVID-19 but goes to show the plight of restaurants as they try to resume their normal activities. Considered to be one of the top restaurants in the world, the restaurant announced in a statement that the closure was a voluntary decision taken in accordance with ethical responsibility and a commitment to the people of their team and the people who had made a reservation in the coming days. "During internal control procedures to track COVID-19, we have found positive cases that do not allow us to have the peace of mind to continue to offer work in appropriate conditions. The family is fine, the whole team is fine and the positives are mild asymptomatic," the restaurant said. They … [Read more...]
Puglisi announces closure of Relae, Manfreds: “Fighting for my freedom today means doing less”
COPENHAGEN: Christian Puglisi, chef and owner of Copenhagen restaurants Relae, Manfreds, Baest, Mirabelle Bakery and Mirabelle restaurant among other initiatives has announced he is closing two restaurants Reale and Manfreds at the end of the year. This is the second major announcement coming from the Danish capital in the past week. Last week Kristian Baumann and René Redzepi announced the closure of the highly acclaimed Restaurant 108. The chef of Italian origin who made a huge impact on the Danish scene with his sustainable approach announced the decision to close the two restaurants at the end of this year. “We came, we saw (we didn’t use tweezers) and we conquered,” he said. “In 10 years, Reale and Manfreds have changed a neighbourhood, made an impact on the global culinary scene and fought to take organic agriculture seriously. We created countless memories, emotions and unforgettable experiences for myself, visiting guests and staff alike,” he said. “I can … [Read more...]
20 year anniversary menu at Reale to continue in autumn and winter
CASTEL DI SANGRO: The 20Reale20 Menu, the star of Cristiana and Niko Romito's Reale restaurant will continue till the end of the year in its autumn and winter format. Cristiana and Niko have decided to continue the story of their gastronomic path which has been highly acclaimed over the past two months. From September 16 to November 1, the 20Reale20 Autumn menu will include 15 autumn dishes that have been served throughout the restaurant's 20 year history. It will then make way for the winter version which will be served from November 11 to the end of the year. In the first two months after lockdown, Reale has welcomed an extremely heterogeneous audience with not only previous customers but also many new customers including young people who seized a unique opportunity to take part in a gastronomic experience that tells an Italian story through the dishes that have formed part of Niko's unique cuisine. "We've never been as overwhelmed as in the past two months by booking … [Read more...]
50 Top Pizza Europe: 50 Kalo in London takes first place
50 Kalo, a pizzeria by Ciro Salvo in London has remained at the top of the 50 Top Pizza Europe when the list was unveiled in an online event organised by Barbara Guerra, Albert Sapere and journalist Luciano Pignataro. The event had to take place on 28 April in Milan but the event had to be cancelled because of the pandemic. The list awards the best pizzeria in Europe outside of Italy. Ciro Salvo, who made a name for himself with 50 Kalo in Naples, Italy thanked his team for their work which made this award possible. “I want to thank all the 30 members of staff who work in London who are really fulfilling our concept of a pizzeria that focuses on everything from the product to the service. We try to do better and better,” he said. He is the third generation of a family of master pizza makers in Italy. Enopizzeria Via Toledo by Francesco Calo in Vienna placed second (a new entry), while Bijou in Partis by Gennaro Nasti placed third. Baest in Copenhagen and La … [Read more...]
Noma opens reservations for Game and Forest season but warns of travel disruptions
COPENHAGEN: The first two months of the Game and Forest season have been opened for reservations at Noma. The website is accepting reservations for tables in October and November. But the announcement comes with an important caveat and one which shows how difficult it still is for ‘destination’ restaurants that mainly depend on international travellers to fill their seats at the restaurant. The restaurant warned guests that they expect travel restrictions for people travelling outside of Denmark to continue. The Game season will run from 13 October to 19 December. The restaurant is taking reservations only up to the end of November. “As we are expecting significant travel restrictions in the coming months we will be making frequent use of our waiting list when we reopen.” Most of the bookings and availability are for tables of 4 or larger. Currently Noma is open for the summer season which runs until 3 October. Last week the chef of Noma, René Redzepi, who also … [Read more...]
Cabernet Sauvignon day marked by release of Director’s Reserve from De Toren Private Cellar
Stellenbosch winery De Toren Private Cellar, one of the first South African estates to produce high-end Bordeaux style red wines has released the Director's Reserve on the occasion of the International Cabernet Sauvignon Day which falls on 3 September. De Toren Private Cellar is a boutique winery specialising in Bordeaux-style wines and is situated on the Polkadraai Hills, overlooking the picturesque Stellenbosch in the Cape, South Africa. De Toren was one of the first-ever South African wineries to produce Bordeaux-style wines and the very first to ever make use of a gravity-fed cellar. The farm is renowned for meticulous attention to detail when it comes to nurturing its vineyards to grow the perfect berries, and for making wine through the softest and gentlest of processes. Cabernet Sauvignon features prominently in the first signature blend, the De Toren Fusion V, that the estate ever produced and continues to craft to this day. With an initial release in 1999, De Toren … [Read more...]
Dinner in the Sky in Brussels goes 2.0
BRUSSELS: Dinner in the Sky goes 2.0 for 2020 with the new generation platform. This is the first time that the new platform for Dinner in the Sky is being used in Brussels. The new platform has been called Dinner in the Sky 2.0 and is certainly more 'COVID-19 proof'. Instead of a communal table, the 'hanging' platform will host 32 people sitting at tables of 4. They will be served a 'Michelin starred' dinner 50 metres above the ground. Tables are separated by at least 3 metres ensuring there is enough distance and they are set around a large central kitchen. Chefs and their teams have more space to move around and mingle with guests. Dinner in the sky is a considered to be one of the most surrealist events in the international gastronomy scene. The Brussels edition will be organised in the second part of September. It takes place in the heart of the Belgian capital in Place de Brouckere, just opposite the Hotel Metropole. The hotel, an icon of the city, closed its doors earlier … [Read more...]
Pandemic and lack of tourists forces closure of Restaurant 108 in Copenhagen
COPENHAGEN: Kristian Baumann, chef of Restaurant 108, has announced the closure of the restaurant 108 because of the global COVID-19 pandemic. The restaurant is co-owned with René Redzepi among others. "It is with great sadness that we announce the closure of Restaurant 108. Due to the negative consequences of the global pandemic and in particular the drastic reduction in the number of international tourists visiting Copenhagen, we have concluded that it is no longer economically sustainable to operate 108 in the current location." "I wish to thank every member – past and present – of our incredible team, for helping make 108 a truly special place. I would not have come so far or achieved so much without you. I also wish to thank our guests and our friends within local and international food media, as well as those at The White Guide, Michelin and World’s 50 Best Restaurants, for their many years of support - I am forever grateful to you all," said Kristian Baumann, Headchef and … [Read more...]