The champagne bottles were out for two Japanese chefs who cooked at Hertog Jan in Zedelgem earlier this year. Both Zaiyu Hasegawa of restaurant Den in Tokyo and Hiroyasu Kawate, chef of Florilège in Tokyo clinched their second star earlier this week. The third chef to cook at Gert De Mangeleer's restaurant was Yusuke Takada from La Cime in Osaka whose restaurant also has 2 Michelin stars. It was the perfect accolade for these two talented chefs who have been traveling and working on collaboration dinners over the past year. We caught up with the three chefs who cooked at the three Michelin star restaurant in Zedelgem to get their views of their experience in Flanders cooking with Belgian chef Gert de Mangeleer. Hiroyasu Kawate When we caught up with Hiroyasu Kawate at Hertog Jan he told us his goal was to move ahead, to get better in what he does, to search for perfection and to enjoy himself. He did not know that he his restaurant would clinch a second star. “I want to … [Read more...]
Archives for November 2017
Ana Roš: “I believe we should be our own heroes and find a way to express ourselves”
Serendipity is probably the word that would best describe Ana Roš's story to date. An unlikely chef who never got any formal training in the kitchen, she would probably have imagined herself as more of a diplomat or even a European Commission official. Truth be said, she was actually offered a job in Brussels which she turned down on the spur of the moment. As fate had it her partner's father was retiring from the restaurant he owned, the Hiša Franko and there was no one to take over his work expect Victor who would become her husband. On the spot and against the will of her father she decided to stay in Slovenia and build her career in the restaurant. Having knowledge of 5 languages, she did not start in the kitchen but soon she realised that this would be necessary. Little did she know that this decision would make her one of the most recognisable figures in the world of gastronomy, sought after in food congresses and events worldwide. Together with her partner and husband … [Read more...]
First ever auction for Emidio Pepe includes wine vintages dating back to 1967
Emidio Pepe will be auctioning wine dating back to 1967 in a collaboration with Zachys Wine Auction. Some of the most iconic vintages that have not been released for a long time because of the tiny stock left will will released in small quantities. "It is a unique occasion and an extraordinary moment," says Emidio Pepe "to be able to tell the history of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo with bottles that are full of life and have a sense of place." He believes that every season is different and hence the wine is different. "It is the only way to let the wine tell the story of the place, letting it register climate conditions. This is the cultural and historical function of wine," he says. In total, 53 vintages will be auctioned with Zachys. The wines have all been hand destemmed and fermented in concrete. All the aging took plae in the bottle. Emidio was a pioneer in aging Montepulciano not only per se but also in the bottle. According to him, they could preserve their integrity, … [Read more...]
COLLECTIVfood aims to revolutionise food supply to restaurants
Delivery of restaurant meals has been revolutionised through platforms like Deliveroo and Uber Eats. Now COLLECTIVfood aims to revolutionise the supply to restaurants connecting food producers directly with food producers cutting out the middleman and thus passing savings to both the customer and supplier. COLLECTIVfood Founder, Jeremy Hibbert-Garibaldi (great great grandson of Italian revolutionary General Garibaldi who helped to unify Italy), says “ the way that food is supplied into restaurants is old-fashioned, inefficient and ready for a revolution. We have built an easy-to-use procurement platform that directly connects restaurants and food producers and we are already seeing massive traction. It’s a win-win scenario.” One of their first restaurant customers, Notting Hill based rotisserie restaurant Cocotte , has seen huge benefits. “Through COLLECTIVfood we have a better quality chicken for a lower price, and since this is our primary ingredient it is significantly … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #126
Is being a chef bad for your mental health? In October last year Andrew Clarke, head chef of the much-admired Brunswick House restaurant in Vauxhall, London, posted a picture of himself to Instagram. It’s in black and white. He is sitting at a table against a wall of distressed plaster, his straggly hair unsuccessfully tucked away beneath a ragged beanie hat, tattooed arms on show. In his hand is a teacup and before him, a bottle of spirits, the implication being that the contents of one are filling the other. It could have been the moody cover to one of the albums Clarke thought he would release when he was pursuing his first love, music. A culinary cruise from Dublin to Lisbon: super markets and caramel bottoms: To the opening chords of Hotel California, Calvin the Indian accommodation director walks onto the brightly lit stage. Then comes the ship’s Filipino doctor, to Bad Case of Loving You. The Ukrainian chief engineer joins them, somewhat disconcertingly, to the theme tune … [Read more...]
Richard Ekkebus: ‘I have not changed. The people of Hong Kong have changed’
For an avid book reader like Richard Ekkebus it must have been a source of both pride and a sense of worry that the restaurant in Hong Kong was called the one with the ‘Da Vinci’ code menu. Was the restaurant Amber, which he created at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong so ahead of its time? And would he manage to find the ‘Grail'? Today, the Dutch chef of the acclaimed restaurant has guests telling him how happy they are that he is the chef of the restaurant because the previous one was not good. They don't realise that it was he who created Amber. "But I have not changed, it is the people who have changed. Hong Kong has evolved. Today there is a big surge of restaurants, new cool concepts being opened and we have grown within this environment and gained acceptance to the point where everybody loves us which means we need to push a bit further again, to make our customers feel a little uncomfortable again.”" he said. He has been proven right but that has taken a long … [Read more...]
‘Results benefit the whole of Belgium’ – Sang Hoon Degeimbre after Michelin Guide publication exposes regional differences
The publication of the results of the Michelin Guide for Belgium have been the subject of intense debate on social media and also in the Belgian media with critics hitting out for the difference in treatment of the different regions in Belgium. But Sang Hoon Degeimbre, chef of two Michelin star restaurant L'Air du Temps and the most representative chef of the Wallonia region in Belgium has said that he feels saddened by comments claiming injustice, differences, lobbying and even 'favouritism' for the Flemish region. "This saddens me. Instead of celebrating our culinary heritage and dynamism in our country, we focus on the differences between regions. Of course I believe in Wallonia and its talents, in the work of chefs and producers which I work to promote on a daily basis." While 14 new restaurants received a Michelin star in the new 2018 guide, 12 were in Flanders, 1 in the Brussels region and 1 in Wallonia. The three restaurants that were promoted to 2 stars all hail from … [Read more...]
10 lessons we learnt from Enrico Crippa
Enrico Crippa is a perfectionist chef working his magic in the town of Alba at the world renowned restaurant Piazza Duomo. Together with Massimo Bottura, Niko Romito and Massimiliano Alajmo he is a leading light in Italian gastronomy today. The chef draws a lot of inspiration from art and also a garden which he visits each morning. Before summer we had the opportunity to spend time with this talented Italian chef and interview him. Here are the lessons we have distilled from the time we spent in Alba. Think outside the box: The best dish that Enrico has ever created does not require any cooking or preparation. It is his world famous insulate which comes directly from the restaurant garden a few kilometres outside Alba. He created it upon a request by some women who wanted a salad at the restaurant. He went out of his way to create something out of the ordinary. The salad does not have any dressing or preparation but requires time to grow the leaves, to clean and assemble them. A … [Read more...]
Boury, Vrijmoed and La Source clinch 2 Michelin stars in Belgium
Michelin today released its guide for Belgium and Luxembourg and upgraded three restaurants to the 2 Michelin star category in Belgium. The Belgian city of Gent was in the spotlight with Vrijmoed of chef Michael Vrijmoed clinching two stars while Oak and Chambre Separee, the restaurant by Kobe Desramaults both getting 1 Michelin star. The other two restaurants that were promoted to two Michelin stars were Boury of Tim Boury in Roeselaere and La Source of Ralf Berendsen in Lanaken. Restaurant critics in Wallonia expressed their disappointment that their region seemed to have been forgotten by the red guide. In fact there was only one new Michelin star in Wallonia, the Bistro Racine in Braine-le- Château. The young chef of Altermezzo, Jo Grootaers, crowned a superb year. After winning the Flanders young chef of the year by Gault & Millau, he was also given the title by Michelin and his restaurant in Tongeren won its first star. The female chef of the year went to Kathleen … [Read more...]
Weekly roundup of great reads on food and wine #125
Why mushrooms may be the best food to fight aging: New research reveals that mushrooms are “without a doubt” the highest known single source of the antioxidants ergothioneine and glutathione, which are both associated with anti-aging properties. A team of researchers from Pennsylvania State University found that mushrooms are surprisingly full of both compounds, and that some of the 13 species they tested contained vastly higher levels than others. Common white button mushrooms, for instance, had low levels of the two antioxidants compared to some other mushrooms but still higher levels than your average non-mushroom food. The winner “by far” was the wild porcini mushroom, which is convenient since it’s also delicious. And even though some foods lose their health benefits when you cook them, the antioxidants in the mushrooms appear heat-stable and thus unaffected. The research was recently published in the journal Food Chemistry. Jeremiah Tower Is Done With These Gimmicky Food … [Read more...]