The Willows Inn on Lummi Island, Washington, has been named the Opinionated About Dining (OAD) number one restaurant of the OAD Top 100+ North American Restaurants List. This is the third consecutive year that Blaine Wetzel’s progressive restaurant has topped the rankings. The restaurant is known for showcasing local seasonal ingredients ‘fished, foraged, and farmed daily’. Japanese-influenced restaurants have earned the number two and three spots with California’s Single Thread Farm maintaining its position for the second year running. Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare jumped five places into the number three spot. Two important additions to this year’s Top 10 include Smyth, which has ended Alinea’s more than decade run as the top performing restaurant in the Chicago market, and José Andrés and Aitor Zabala’s West Hollywood restaurant, Somni, which by landing in the sixth slot has been named the Best New Restaurant in North America for 2019. … [Read more...]
25 chefs from 4 continents cook in 3 Brussels restaurants for Isabelo charity dinners
On Saturday 16 February, 25 chefs from 4 continents around the world cooked in three different Brussels restaurants simultaneously for a unique charity dinner in aid of Isabelo, Feeding Hungry Minds, a charity set up by South Africa based chef Margot Janse with the aim of feeding young children. The three Belgian restaurants that hosted the 25 chefs were Le Chalet de La Foret, Bozar Restaurant and Bon Bon. All proceeds from the evening, including spontaneous donations after the dinner went towards Janse's charity which feeds poor school children nursery and primary school children. Each chef was asked to create one original dish inspired by a specific South African indigenous ingredient that was selected by Janse. The ingredients used Baleni salt used by Joris Bijdendijk, Isabelle Arpin and Ana Ros Buchu used by Pascal Barbot, Mauro Colagreco and Alain Passard Baobab powder used by Rodolfo Guzman, Heinz Reitbauer and Christophe Hardiquest Honeybush tea used by … [Read more...]
“I wish the team were here to celebrate this award with me” – Kobus Van Der Merwe
When Kobus Van Der Merwe, a former journalist was called onto the stage for the first time to receive the award of the Off-Map Destination he could barely believe it. For a few seconds he closed his eyes to let it sink in. But when he was called for a second time to pick up the Restaurant of the Year award he was left nearly speechless. He said he was already humbled to have been in the room with industry giants because making it to the short-list was already unexpected. But to pick up two plates at the first ever World Restaurant Awards that were held at the Palais Brongniart in Paris was completely unexpected. “I am really proud to bring something like this back to our continent and beautiful country,” he said. “It is a pity that the team were not here to celebrate this incredible award with me,” Kobus told Food and Wine Gazette during the after party that was held after the event. “But I’ve had a really great telephone conversation with them and it is great,” he said. He … [Read more...]
South African Wolfgat is Restaurant of the Year
Wolfgat, a restaurant run by Kobus Van der Merwe, a former food journalist turned chef was named as restaurant of the year in the first ever World Restaurant Awards that were unveiled in Paris at the Palais Brongniart, yesterday evening. The restaurant in Paternoster, South Africa also won the Off-Map Destination award. 160 kilometres away from Cape Town, this acclaimed restaurant draws on inspiration from the surrounding landscape and its dramatic season transformation. The chef serves his signature Standveld food menu which comprises of sustainable seafood, local lamb and venison as well as wild herbs and sea-weed among others. It is a restaurant that supports the community and is also particular because all the staff except for the chef and one other person are women. Most of the fish that is bought by the restaurant is caught by fishermen who are related to the staff of the restaurant), Wolfgat has made a name for itself and has often been mentioned as the ‘Noma’ of South … [Read more...]
Brand new interior for classic Milan restaurant
MILAN: Studio Vudafieri-Saverino Partners have restyled the renowned Milan restaurant Il Luogo di Aimo e Nadia. The two Michelin star restaurant has been given a new design concept that traces the past and opens to modern times. A fine line connects the desire for modernity and the attention to tradition, the expectation of something new and the warm sense of family comfort. This was the concept developed by the Milan-based Studio Vudafieri-Saverino Partners for "Il Luogo di Aimo e Nadia”, since 1962 a symbol of Italian culinary excellence throughout the world. The Milan’s 2-star restaurant presents restyled interiors and a new space dedicated to workshops and master classes. Tiziano Vudafieri and Claudio Saverino have designed a cosy and intimate place - enriched with erudite references and design details - where time seems to stand still and leave room to the real star of the restaurant: the kitchen. Vudafieri – Saverino Partners has interpreted the history and the … [Read more...]
World’s 50 Best Restaurants to be held in Singapore on 25 June
The 2019 ceremony of the World's 50 Best Restaurants will be held at the Sands Theatre within the iconic Marina Bay Sands in Singapore on Tuesday 25 June. The event will be preceded by a full programme of associated events and activities for international culinary professionals and food lovers alike. Singapore will be the first city in Asia to host the world’s biggest annual gathering of chefs, restaurateurs, producers, media and VIPS, reflecting the city-state’s global reputation as an exciting and diverse foodie hotspot. William Drew, Group Editor of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, said: “We couldn’t be more excited to host our upcoming edition of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants programme in Singapore, culminating in the gala awards in the iconic Marina Bay Sands integrated resort on Tuesday 25th June. The venue, and the host location as a whole, offers everything from street food and heritage dining to upscale celebrity chef establishments. The rich diversity of cuisine … [Read more...]
Vicky Lau to organise series of charity events for International Women’s Day
HONG KONG: Vicky Lau, one of Hong Kong’s leading female chefs and chef of Michelin starred TATE Dining Room, as well as best female chef of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2015, has unveiled a series of culinary events that will take place on Friday 8 March 2019 to coincide with the International Women’s Day. Proceeds from the events will be donated to the Women’s Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to improving the lives of women and girls in Hong Kong through groundbreaking research, impactful community programs and education and advocacy of the empowerment of the female voice. Vicky Lau uses visual artistry from her previous life as a graphic designer and is considered one of the top chefs of Innovative French Chinese fine dining in Hong Kong, Her innate creativity is evident in the seasonally-evolving tasting menu of “Edible Stories”, each course designed by the chef to evoke emotions and stir the imagination with an intriguing play on flavours and textures. Her … [Read more...]
Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore to open a 12 room Italian inn this spring
Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore of Osteria Francescana fame will be opening a 12 room inn in Modena called Casa Maria Luigia. The house, in the middle of the Reggio Emilia countryside, is just 20 minutes away from the Osteria Francescana, one of the world’s most famous restaurants and currently no 1 on the World's 50 Best Restaurants list So far, Massimo and Lara have welcomed a few hosts for private evenings but the inn is set to welcome the first guests in spring and will offer Lambrusco, Parmiggiano Reggiano and the hospitality that the couple with their team is famous for at the Osteria Francescana. The inn is being designed according to their tastes. The house, named after Massimo’s mother will have a tennis court, a swimming pool, a music room and will serve breakfast and a light lunch. What will make the place special is the collection of art books and records that will be made available for guests. Massimo and Lara will showcase their passions for contemporary art, classic … [Read more...]
Nick Bril’s new Antwerp restaurant to open in April
Nick Bril, chef of award winning restaurant The Jane in Antwerp will be opening a new restaurant in the Belgian city of Antwerp in April. The restaurant will be housed in a new hotel that is set to open on the site of the former military hospital right across The Jane. The hotel called August Antwerp is operated by the owners of Antwerp hotel Julien. The former Augustinian convent will become a modern retreat with a bar and restaurant, wellness with swimming pool. hidden gardens, a shop and 44 hotel rooms. The Dutch chef who partnered with Sergio Herman to open The Jane after working with him at Oud Sluis for many years told Food and Wine Gazette last year that he would be working together with a new hotel which is opening its doors just 100 metres away from The Jane. The new restaurant will be more simple and more accessible than the cuisine of The Jane, a two Michelin star restaurant. “The hoteliers of Hotel Julien, a renowned boutique hotel in Antwerp … [Read more...]
Some of the world’s best chefs are heading to Montpellier this weekend and most will not be cooking
Some of the world’s best chefs aged 50 and below are convening in Montpellier this weekend for Cookbook, the first exhibition of works by artists and chefs. Curated by Nicholas Bourriaud and Andrea Petrini, Cookbook 19 brings together chefs and artists as they explore the creative . The curators hope that the exhibition shows new relations between the food and art world, born of shared recent cultural revolutions. The chefs and artists taking part in Cookbook 19 are Inaki Aizpirarte of Le Chateaubriand, Maksut Askar of Neolokal, Davide Balula, Esben Holmboe Bang of Maaemo, Dorian Bauer, Nicolas Boulard, Dannie Bowien of Mission Chinese Food, Manoella Buffara of Manu, Tiphaine Calmettes, Riccardo Camanini of Lido 84, Elise Carron, Jeremy Chan of Ikoyi, May Chow of Little Bao and Happy Paradise, Amanda Cohen of Dirty Candy, Mauro and Laura Colagreco of Mirazur, Cozinha Radicante with Roberto Cabot, Nicolas Daubanes, Thomas Frebel of Inua, Beth Galton, Tania Gheerbrant and Mahalia … [Read more...]