Every season when football players return back from a few weeks break and start their pre-season training with their club they are not in their finest form. There might be a new coach, new players, new tactics to assimilate. The first few matches can be excruciating not only for the coach and players themselves but also for the supporters and journalists. The latter have to write about those friendly matches as if they are the final of the Champions League to sate the interest of the supporters. The reality, however, is that it is way to early to form an opinion or to pass judgement. If you have to watch a team like Real Madrid or Barcelona perform during the pre-season, it will be impossible to assess how they will fare that season on the basis of those early summer friendly matches despite the fact that the teams are born to be great. The lunch at the new Noma on 23 February forms part of that same category. The food and the service were excellent but this was the start of the … [Read more...]
Archives for February 2018
André Chiang gets lifetime achievement award for Asia
André Chiang, the acclaimed chef-owner of Restaurant André in Singapore (which closed its doors for good on 14 February) and Raw in Taipei has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for Asia. Part of the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants Programme, the award is voted for by members of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy, comprising over 300 leaders in the restaurant and culinary industries throughout Asia. Acknowledging the honour, Chiang said: “While I was thrilled to be the first Chinese chef to appear on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, I am equally honoured to be the first Chinese chef to receive this prestigious award. My focus has always been to put Asia on the culinary world map and this recognition reinforces that goal. I will remember this moment forever.” William Drew, Group Editor of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants said: “André Chiang is among the world’s most respected, prominent and successful chefs, and the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award is an honour that … [Read more...]
Inside the new Noma where René Redzepi has reinvented the restaurant
Twenty builders were still working frantically a few minutes before the opening of the new Noma in Copenhagen on 16 February. For the past weeks, René Redzepi and his staff had to pull up their sleeves, buy safety hats and help the workers with the finishing touches. The creative process had been finalised by then, the menu was ready to serve the first customers but the building works were delayed. The stress was palpable but there was no time to relax because further delays would have meant bankruptcy as René Redzepi himself told Richard Vines on Bloomberg last month. Today, just a week after the restaurant opened you would barely notice that this was a construction site until a few days ago. Sure there are still signs as you walk in to the restaurant such as the green houses which are yet to be completed but inside that frantic rush to get the restaurant ready is not visible. Guests are greeted in the Noma style and the service and the kitchen works like clock-work despite … [Read more...]
Q&A with Nick Bril: ‘I get a good vibe in Antwerp. Being here is closer to my style of cooking’
Nick Bril runs The Jane in Antwerp considered by many to be one of the most stunning if not the most stunning restaurant in the world. We recently caught up with him to learn more about him, what drives him and how it feels to run a very busy restaurant. In this second part of our interview, we delve into what inspires him, who he considers to be his mentor, his move from the Dutch region of Zeeland to Antwerp and much more. You moved from Zeeland in the Netherlands to a city like Antwerp in Belgium, from nature to a buzzing city? How was the move? I am maybe more eclectic than Sergio (Herman) and Syrco (Bakker - Pure C). The latter is maybe following Sergio in the mindset of having Zeeland as a region. I am enjoying being able to go to Chinese supermarkets around me, to be able to buy Indian spices around me, having multicultural people around me. I can just go out of the place I live and by amazing merguez sausages from a Turkish butcher. Sergio and Syrco travel to get that … [Read more...]
Jose Avillez of Belcanto restaurant in Lisbon to cook at Brussels restaurant Bon Bon
José Avillez, the Portuguese chef of two Michelin star restaurant Belcanto in Lisbon will be the second chef to cook at the Bon Bon Origins collaborative dinner series which takes place on Thursday March 29. Christophe Hardiquest, chef of the two Michelin star restaurant Brussels restaurant Bon Bon launched Bon Bon Origins out of the desire to rediscover traditional Belgian recipes that have stood the test of time but deconstructing them and bringing them to life again in a contemporary way, he will be organising collaborative dinners with different chefs that are focused on their own terroirs. After the first dinner with Belgian chef Gert De Mangeleer of Hertog Jan, the Brussels based chef will be cooking with the acclaimed Portuguese chef. As a Portuguese chef, José Avillez’ main focus is to promote Portuguese gastronomy and to contribute to making Portugal a top gastronomic destination. He is considered as one of the great references of gastronomy in Portugal and has … [Read more...]
Less is more, make that your mantra – Nancy Singleton Hachisu
Isabel Gilbert Palmer interviews food writer Nancy Singleton Hachisu about food in Japan. Phaidon will be publishing her third book called Japan the Cookbook on 6 April. Nancy says that Japan the Cookbook is not an examination of regional cooking traditions, as much as a curated experience of Japan's culinary framework from a specific moment in time. Using both line and generous strokes, she said she has put together what she hopes is a broad and rich picture of the food of this island nation. Three years in the making, the book hs a collection of over 400 recipes of authentic and traditional Japanese dishes and explores every part of Japan home cooking through soups, noodles, rice, pickles, one pots, sweets and vegetable dishes. Nancy I was introduced to your work by a chef in Malibu, Los Angeles, last summer who on one of his free days, picked Japanese farm food off a friend’s bookshelf, not because he’s a cookbook reader, but because of the title. He had spent 14 years living in … [Read more...]
Formidable team cooking at new Valletta restaurant, Risette
If a bank manager had had his way Andrew Borg might be cooking fast food till this day. But the Maltese chef is persistent, contrarian and never gives up even when the going gets tough. His persistence meant that he successfully ran the Black Pig making a name for himself not only locally but also with international visitors to Malta. But it was not just the bank manager that he had to convince but also a local crowd that did not necessarily understand what he was doing. The chef patron of Black Pig Restaurant ended up closing the restaurant in September 2016 when he found a buyer but had a new project lined up. Together with the owners of Casa Ellul, a boutique hotel in Valletta, he set out to open a bistro though the project took longer to materialise than expected. He wanted to be able to work with a team and in the process he has assembled a team that can raise Malta’s bar when it comes to the fine dining scene. A few days before Christmas I received a WhatsApp from a friend … [Read more...]
Bee Satongun named Asia’s best female chef for 2018
Bongkoch ‘Bee’ Satongun, chef of Paste restaurant in Bangkok, has been named Asia’s Best Female Chef 2018. A self-taught chef, Satongun honed her culinary skills while working in her family’s local restaurant. Since opening the original Paste in 2013 with her Australia-born chef husband Jason Bailey, Satongun has committed herself to educating diners on the complexity, layers and refined flavours of Thai cuisine. The couple went on to open the current incarnation of the restaurant in Bangkok’s Gaysorn Village luxury mall in 2015. Dedicated to honouring culinary traditions, Satongun references centuries-old Thai cookbooks to revive long-forgotten recipes and rare ingredients. Drawing inspiration from royal Thai cuisine, Satongun brings an artisanal approach to her cooking. As well as sourcing fresh produce from local growers, curry pastes are made in-house and food is smoked with lychee wood, coconut husks and coconut meat. Renowned for her technical expertise and creative flair, … [Read more...]
Nick Bril: A chef and entrepreneur who knows exactly what he wants
Nick Bril is ambitious and driven. As a chef and entrepreneur he knows exactly what he wants though there is a certain inner struggle to determine when he will start to push the boundaries at The Jane, Antwerp. At 33, he has been cooking at the highest level for a long time having been the sous chef with his business partner Sergio Herman at Oud Sluis, a 3 Michelin star restaurant that closed at the end of 2013. He has experienced the trappings of the coveted three Michelin stars and is not in a hurry to get there though he aspires to get that accolade one day. “Ambition is one thing, money is another. The cost of running The Jane is high,” said Nick, the Dutch chef of The Jane, a two Michelin star restaurant created in a former military chapel and considered by many to be one of the most stunning and beautiful restaurants in the world. Having worked closely with Sergio he knows what it means to work at the top level day in day out. “When I speak to colleagues about the … [Read more...]
4 ways space design impacts restaurant and bar revenue
Most people eat with their eyes first. As such, food that look great on photos are really effective in enticing customers to order certain dishes. Bar and drinking establishment owners also use the same technique to encourage patrons to try new concoctions or beverages on their menu. Representatives from leading restaurant interior design companies say that you can also use this same principle on your restaurant or bar interior design to get more customers and ultimately, boost your income and profits. The interior design of a dining or drinking establishment is one of the key factors that influence customer satisfaction. And when guests like your interior, they tend to stay longer in your premises, order more, and you can count on them to return. These, in turn, translate to an increase in revenue. Here are some specific ways the interior design influences the income of restaurants, bars, and other drinking establishments: 1. Colors affect customer … [Read more...]