At 4,000 to 4,500 euros per kilo, saying Beluga caviar does not come cheap is an understatement. But there is a reason why this sought-after and rare caviar costs so much. It is the result of a risky investment. The huso huso sturgeon needs to be grown for 18 years in perfect conditions for the caviar to be produced. A Belgian company has been producing Beluga caviar since 2016. Royal Belgian Caviar has been making 100% Belgian caviar since 2002 but it was only in 2016 that it managed to produce Beluga caviar. Belgium’s top chefs from Peter Goossens to Gert De Mangeleer, Roger Van Damme, Bert Meewis, Nick Bril and Tim Boury among others have been using this Belgian ‘black gold’. Caviar and sustainability are not often mentioned together but the Beluga caviar is made from huso huso sturgeon. Threatened with extinction, this caviar, which is naturally low in calories and has exceptional quality can only be offered on the market only if it comes from aquaculture. This measure allows the … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2018
Intentional minimalism at Spazio Niko Romito Roma
Why do restaurants only use their space for lunch or dinner other than to give the owners and their staff time to rest? Is there a more efficient way to utilise a space by offering more than just lunch or dinner? That’s what Niko Romito set out to test with Spazio Niko Romito Roma. His vision was that of creating a space that could serve as a restaurant, a cafeteria, a bakery and a place where Romans could convene in the evenings for an aperitivo or a glass of wine. You can say that vision has materialised. Located in a square in the Parioli district of Rome just two and a half kilometres away from Piazza Di Spagna and the Fontana Di Trevi you can find this space (spazio) which reflects Niko Romito’s vision to offer a space for the young students of his cooking school Niko Romito Formazione to gain experience in a real life restaurant. Today, the restaurant is welcoming Italians and tourists alike to this elegant residential area that became popular in Rome during the Fascist … [Read more...]
Sergio Herman opens Frites Atelier in Ghent, to open first one in Brussels in November
Sergio Herman will open the second branch of Frites Atelier in Belgium in the city of Ghent on 25 October (tomorrow). The Dutch chef said he was excited to open a Frites Atelier in Ghent. "Every time I come to this city, I taste the creativity and discover new things every time. In view of these developments and the growth of Frites Atelier, the choice of Ghent as the second branch in Belgium was obvious. The food scene in the city has changed a lot and Ghent and the city has a tendency to embrace new food concepts. I am really looking forward to it and hope that we can make a positive contribution to this cool city," said Sergio on the occasion of the opening in Ghent. The branch at the Groentemarkt, 20 in Ghent has more seats and offers a more extensive menu compared to the current Ateliers in the Netherlands and Antwerp. The building has 22 seats on the ground floor, 48 on the first floor and also a terrace with at least 35 seats. Frites Atelier Gent offers more than just … [Read more...]
Fernand Obb Delicatessen makes best shrimp croquettes in Brussels
There is nothing more quintessentially Belgian than the croquette de crevette or shrimp croquette. Any traditional Belgian restaurant including even gastronomic restaurants is likely to have it on its menu with a good ‘american’ or steak tartare and mussels with fries. Now, lovers of this Belgian delicacy which is made with small shrimps that are common in the North Sea have a reference point. In a bid to find the best prawn croquette in Brussels, Belgium’s capital, Visit Brussels has organised the first ever contest to find the best prawn croquette in the city. The winner of the first ever event was Fernand Obb Delicatessen, a small restaurant in St Gilles, one of the 19 communes of Brussels. Visit.Brussels held the first ever context at Comme Chez Soi, a two Michelin star restaurant that is considered to be one of the ‘mainstays’ of Brussels gastronomy. And the panel made up of culinary journalists was headed by Pierre Wynants, for many years rewarded with 3 Michelin stars … [Read more...]
Six Brussels chefs to cook for homeless to raise awareness for Red Cross campaign
Six of Brussels top chefs will leave their kitchens on Saturday 3 November to cook for the Brussels homeless and raise awareness on the winter Red Cross campaign. David Martin of La Paix, Alexander Dionisio of Villa in the Sky, Karen Torosyan of Bozar Restaurant, Lionel Rigolet of Comme chez Soi, Mathieu Jacri (La Villa Emily) and Giovanni Bruno (Senza Nome) will prepare soups and desserts that will be distributed by volunteers to homeless on 3 November at Place de la Monnaie in central Brussels. The event is aimed to raise awareness on the winter campaign that is aimed to help families in need in Belgium. Red Cross will be inviting people to discover their new eshop where people will be able to buy virtual products that will help to fill the shopping baskets fo families in need. All the support is aimed at helping these families or individuals to eat. Red Cross said that 20 per cent of the Belgian population or around 2.3 million people are at risk of poverty or of social … [Read more...]
Commotie: A pop-up restaurant in Ghent causing a ‘commotion’
Thomas Gellynck is still 23 but has the maturity and the cooking skills of a more experienced chef. Together with his partner Lara De Vliegher, they manage a pop-up restaurant which will cause a commotion when it closes in November 2019 because it has become the talk of the town in the Belgian city of Ghent. The pop-up restaurant is called Commotie (translated into commotion in English). The food scene in Ghent has been very vibrant over the past few years and this pop-up restaurant adds to the number of interesting food spots that are on offer in this vibrant city including recent openings like Taxi, Souvenir and Aroy Aroy to mention a few names. You could say that Thomas and Lara have returned back home after running a 40-cover pop-up restaurant in Kortrijk. ““We started in Kortrijk because we thought that nobody knew us there so if we managed to make a restaurant work there it could work anywhere,” Thomas said. "While we had people working with us at Kortriijk, we decided … [Read more...]
Magnus Ek is first guest for Play Food at L’Air du Temps
Magnus Ek, the chef of 2 Michelin star restaurant Oaxen Krog in Stockholm, Sweden will be the first guest of Sang Hoon Degeimbre at L'Air du Temps in Liernu, Belgium. The first Play Food event will take place on 8 November at 7.30pm. This is not the first time that the Swedish chef will be cooking in Belgium since he will return after the GELINAZ! Brussels Headquarters experience which took place in 2017 at Brussels restaurant Bon Bon. The Swedish chef is a pioneer in many ways. He started using edible plants and foraging for food more than 20 years ago when it was still unheard of at the time. He did it without much fanfare and you could say that he is one of the early pioneers of the new Nordic cuisine. Magnus opened his restaurant Oaxen Krog in Sweden more than 20 years ago at a time when foraging what not what restaurants did. Today, he still forages almost every day. The chef runs his restaurant, the Oaxen Krog and Slip at Djurgården with his wife Agneta Green. The … [Read more...]
In my blood: The book, the cook and the reviewer
The Oxford Dictionary defines a cookbook as “a book containing recipes and other information about the preparation and cooking of food. Danish Chef Bo Bech’s latest cookbook In my Blood - itself a curious and suggestive title - surpasses this definition, posing an inquiry into what a cookbook and its role in contemporary culture has become. The Book With this beautifully designed artist's art book Bech has created a new genre, one which slips between traditional and contemporary cookbook presentations. This is not simply a cookbook with clever plating, sharp photographs, recipes, chef-loud comments and a wealth of creative inspiration. It is more. It is an original collaboration of images and ideas that go beyond the kitchen shelf and bypasses a world saturated with coffee table cookbooks. It's innate style assures it a place in any Art Book collection. The book is a memory project, a contemporary autobiography, (lest Bech forget and we too) and compared to his “first … [Read more...]
New Belgian winery Valke Vleug knows ‘cool things happen on the edge’
After studying engineering Pieter Raeymaekers went to New Zealand to work with winemakers because he did not want to start work immediately. That was in 2005 and the experience had a huge impact on his professional and personal life. Today, 13 years later, he is fulfilling his dream as he is the winemaker of a new winery Valke Vleug that is set to fully open next year in time for the 2019 vintage. On land that was used to grow asparagus, Pieter, Johan Stoffels and Jan Van Lancker are betting that they can produce quality Belgian wine at their Valke Vleug estate in Liezele near Puurs in Little Brabant. The three have joined forces to pursue their passion for wine and introduce a new concept that aims to not only produce around 23,000 bottles of Belgian wine but also to introduce wines from cold climates. With the motto Cool Things Happen on the Edge they say that this is the first such project in Belgium since they will not only produce wine but also sell wines from … [Read more...]
Retro Bottega: Modern Italian cuisine in the heart of Rome
The dessert spoon has already been placed on the table at Retro Bottega in Rome. I've been chatting to one of the two chefs Giuseppe Lo Iudice who owns this place in the centre of Rome together with another chef Alessandro Miocchi. He leaves and soon after returns to replace the spoon with a fork and knife. "We've changed plans he tells me. We want you to try another dish before dessert," he tells me. The dish that follows is pigeon cooked in a Peking Duck style. "My business partner and chef Alessandro Miocchi was in China and he got inspired by this dish which you can find everywhere. We love to work with pigeon and thought we could use the method to prepare pigeon this way," he said. It is cooked to perfection. The pigeon is perfectly seasoned, crisp on the outside and perfectly cooked on the inside and is served with spinach and savory. In the space of a year I’ve eaten the best pigeon dishes I've ever eaten at Reale in Castel di Sangro and Le Chalet de La Forêt in … [Read more...]