Just a few hours remain before many will uncork their champagne bottles to bid farewell to 2015 and welcome the New Year, here at Food and Wine Gazette we would like to wish our loyal readers, followers and supporters all the very best for the coming year. We would like to share with you what our readers have enjoyed reading most in 2015. The following is the list of most read articles for 2015. Interview with Peter Goossens: 'Belgium has one of the best cuisines in the world but no one has said it yet' 10 things we learnt from Sergio Herman 10 Sicilian producers to look out for A review of Massimo Bottura's great book Never Trust a Skinny Italian chef Sang-Hoon Degeimbre of L'Air du Temps to open restaurant in Brussels on 5 October Kobe Desramaults announces closure of In De Wulf in December 2016 Massimo Bottura's soup kitchen needs your help Gert de Mangeleer (Hertog Jan): Simplicity is not so simple Francis Mallmann 'Get out of your chair and go out' Fulvio … [Read more...]
Archives for December 2015
Sergio Herman announces new project in Cadzand for next year
Sergio Herman, one of the world's most talented chefs who decided to stop cooking full time in 2013, has announced a new project in Cadzand that is set to open next year. After the success of The Jane in Antwerp and Pure C in Cadzand, Sergio Herman is opening a new harbour restaurant, pavillion and takeaway in Cadzand. The restaurant is set to open on 16 September 2016. The seaside resort in the Netherlands has been made popular by his restaurant Pure C. It will now welcome the new harbour restaurant, pavillion and takeaway for boats as can be seen by the architects' impression published on Herman's Instagram feed. Sergio Herman is the former 3 Michelin star chef of Oud Sluis. He decided to close his world famous restaurant in 2013 to seek more balance in his life and to pursue other projects. Since closing his restaurant in this small village close to Cadzand he has focused on his two restaurants The Jane in Antwerp and Pure C in Cadzand but had told Food and Wine Gazette … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #60
Times are changing and as people have less time to cook the Italian tradition of the aperitivo is slowly changing to the 'apericena'. It is a new student supper and combines the old aperitivo (an old Italian custom in the north) with a buffet. Students are flocking to bars which have started to offer a buffet of homemade hot and cold dishes with evening drinks. They are substantial enough to constitute a light dinner at a relatively low price - often starting at around €10 for one drink and the buffet. Magnus Nilsson has been in the news because of the publication of his book on Nordic cuisine. Here is an interesting article which gives some personal insights into this talented chef. If you are lacking ideas for your Christmas lunch here are four alternative recipes from UK master chefs. We are tempted to try the espresso panna cotta. Are you still looking for the last Christmas presents? Here is a list the 25 best food books of 2015 compiled by The Guardian. Did you know … [Read more...]
Two Swiss restaurants in Top 5 of La Liste, Hof Van Cleve is highest Belgian entry
La Liste, a new collective of 1,000 top restaurants in the world was launched for the first time in Paris on 17 December and there are a few surprises. Two out of the top 5 restaurants are Swiss with one of the top 5 restaurants being French. The top restaurant on the list is Swiss Restaurant de l'Hôtel de Ville. It is followed by US based Per Se, Japanese Kyo Aji, French restaurant Guy Savoy and Swiss restaurant Schauenstein Considered to be the French answer to the World's 50 Best Restaurants, La Liste is being called the guide of guides as it compiles the results from 200 gastronomic guides such as (Michelin, Gault&Millau, Zagat), websites like TripAdvisor and Open Table as well as lists like the 50 Best and the Daily Meal apart from reviews of press critics. A quick look at the top 3 restaurants in the World's 50 Best Restaurants list reveals some remarkable differences particularly for the third restaurant on the list Noma. While Cellar de Can Roca is placed in sixth … [Read more...]
The inspiring work of René Redzepi, one of the world’s greatest chefs – Noma: My Perfect Storm reviewed
When you are on top of the game, whether it is in sport, art or in any other field, it is easy to rest on your laurels and bask in the glory of success. René Redzepi's restaurant Noma has been voted as the World's best restaurant in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. When he lost the top position in the year the restaurant was hit with an outbreak of norovirus, he worked harder and focused to get back to the top position. He is considered by many to be one of the most influential chefs if not the most influential chef that came after the Spanish star Ferran Adria who reinvented modern cuisine in the 1990s. It is therefore no coincidence that a documentary film would be released about this talented chef who has put Copenhagen on the worldwide gastronomic map and has been hitting the headlines with incredible ease for his ground-breaking dishes and concepts in his restaurant. And that documentary becomes all the more topical as we learned just some months ago that Noma would close … [Read more...]
Two Belgian restaurants The Jane and La Villa in the Sky jump to 2 stars in 2 years
Two Belgian restaurants, The Jane in Antwerp and La Villa in the Sky in Brussels were awarded 2 Michelin stars when the new results for Belgium and Luxembourg were announced on Monday 14 December. Both restaurants have been open for less than 2 years and got their first star within less than a year of their opening. The Jane, by former 3 Michelin star chef Sergio Herman and chef Nick Bril, has been winning accolades for its stunning food and design since it opened last year in a former church in Antwerp. It is considered to be one of the most stunning restaurants in the world and has also made it to the front cover of a book called Let's Go Out Again which features interiors of restaurants, bars and unique food places. La Villa in the Sky by chef Alexandre Dionisio in Brussels was in the news last year because it was awarded a star despite only having been open for a few weeks when the guide was issued. The reason for this was that the chef had moved together with his team from … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #59
Michelin in Italy was in the news last week following the decision to remove a star from Davide Scabin. It has been a controversial decision among Italian foodies given they consider this chef to be one of the most inventive in Italy. Social media was all the rage after designer Bob Noto created a graphic called Je Suis Scabin to show support to the Italian chef. If you missed it, we have written about it here. Brussels is the New Berlin according to this article in the New York Times. The article says that Brussels has quietly emerged as one of Europe's most exciting creative hubs. Nicholas Lander reviews what is considered to be one of the best restaurants in France, the Maison Troisgros. It has held three Michelin stars since 1968. We have written about Nuno Mendes and his attempt to crowd-fund a restaurant recently. Here you will find some Portuguese Christmas recipes from this talented chef. Jay Rayner takes a look at the world of Instagram and does not necessarily … [Read more...]
‘Freedom is better’ – Scabin’s response to Michelin after losing a star
Social media in Italy is all the rage following Combal.Zero's loss of a Michelin star yesterday when the new Italian Michelin Guide was announced. Thousands of people have shared a design created by Torino based designer Bob Noto with the words Je Suis Scabin. Davide Scabin, one of the most inventive Italian chefs was surprised by the decision. The chef said he does not want to associate his situation to events that are considerably more tragic. "But it is not far from a form of terrorism in which they break your legs without telling you why," Scabin told Italian website Identita Golose. Considered to be one of the top chefs in Italy, Scabin said he has been humbled by hundreds of messages he received from followers and friends. "I did not expect such a reaction. These words of support give me the courage to push ahead with more freedom and independence. It is time for us chefs to get away from old and incomprehensible system," Scabin said. The Italian chef said he has not … [Read more...]
Third edition of Salon du Chocolat to be held in Brussels in February
The third edition of the Salon du Chocolat will take place in Brussels between the 5th and 7th February 2016. The event will bring together over 80 participants including chocolatiers, patissiers, confectioners, chefs, pastry chefs, designers and cocoa experts. It will be held at the Palais 1 of Brussels Expo. This year's theme is 'Cocoa Expressions, Chocolate Impressions' and will focus on current trends in the world of chocolate and pastry. It will put to the fore what is avant grade and creative in the field of chocolate. There will be recipe demonstrations by some of Belgium's best chefs, pastry chefs and master chocolatiers. These include among others Brussels based Christophe Hardiquest (Bon Bon), Maxime Collin (Villa Lorraine), Alexandre Dionisio (la Villa in the Sky), Sang-Hoon Degeimbre (L'Air du Temps and San) and Benoit Dewitte (Benoit et Bernard de Witte) among others. They will be teaming up with the likes of Van Dender, Fabrice Collignon, Joost Arijs, Paul Wittamer … [Read more...]
Turning waste into food that is ethical and delicious – Massimo Bottura
"Imagine a school where young chefs are taught to be resourceful with ingredients as they are with ideas. Imagine chefs embracing imperfect, discarded food and treating it with the same reverence they would a rack of lamb or ripe tomato. Imagine changing the perceptions about what is beautiful, nutritious and worthy of being shared." This is what Italian chef Massimo Bottura penned in an article on Wall Street Journal earlier today. The chef of one of the world's best restaurants, Osteria Francescana, has been one of the main advocates against food waste this year. Bottura has walked the talk by raising awareness about the subject wherever he goes. On the 20th anniversary of his restaurant, he also collaborated with the Catholic charity Caritas Ambrosiana to turn a renovated theatre in Milan into the Refettorio Ambrosiano. The refectory which feeds Milan's poor runs on salvaged waste and volunteers and has welcomed some of the world's best chefs. Over the past months, chefs … [Read more...]