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The Brain Food forum curated by Fine Dining Lovers arrived in Copenhagen for the North Europe regional final of S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition 2022-23, for an in-depth discussion on ‘Taste and Creativity’.
First staged at the Competition Grand Finale in Milan in 2023, the Brain Food forum aims to stimulate inspiring conversations around gastronomy, with the help of jurors and special guests.
In Copenhagen, the forum - which took place after the judging of the dishes, when the competing young chefs were finally able to sit back and relax, at least a little - saw the local jury of chefs Tommy Myllymäki, Kamilla Seidler, Heidi Pinnak, Jacob Jan Boerma and Mark Moriarty take to the stage to tackle issues such as creativity in a crisis, creating better working environments, and the benefits of competition cooking in an engaging roundtable discussion.
Before that, however, local hero Rasmus Munk of restaurant Alchemist, also a mentor in the competition, delivered a keynote speech that took the assembled audience of young chefs, media and other influential names in gastronomy on a journey into the innovative world of his Copenhagen restaurant, widely regarded as one of the best and most creative in the world.
Munk on stage.
Munk, who had to head back to service later in the afternoon, discussed the evolution of his creative ideas and the social causes that are close to his heart, which inform many of the dishes at Alchemist, such as blood donation and environmental sustainability.
In a Q&A session following his speech, Munk conceded the difficulties of preaching sustainability when guests are “arriving by private jet,” as well as how he negotiates the need for constant innovation while ensuring his food always tastes great, a balance some chefs don’t achieve.
Following Munk’s appearance, and with the audience still buzzing, the local jury arrived on stage for a roundtable discussion focused on some of the biggest issues facing local and international gastronomy. For one of those judges, S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competiton 2015 winner Moriarty, it was his first time on the other side of the judging table, a role he said was “much easier” than having to cook his way to the title.
After the panel had discussed creativity in a crisis, and how the pandemic had inspired new innovations in their daily work, Moriarty was questioned on the issue of reducing kitchen burnout, a fundamentally important issue for today’s chefs, as revealed in our recent Better Business Survey. He described how work-life balance was now more important to him than ever, as the other jurors nodded in agreement.
The panel also discussed the need for the industry to sell itself as a rewarding, creative place to work,in order to tempt staff back post-pandemic, something Boerma was especially forthright about. Also debated was the possibility of giving restaurant workers equity in their businesses as a way to make careers in hospitality more appealing. This was another issue to arise from a recent Fine Dining Lovers survey, targeting front of house. “This is something that already happens in Sweden,” said Myllymäki, in support of the idea.
The Swedish chef, and his Estonian counterpart Pinnak, also talked about the merits of competition cooking, having both competed at the Bocuse d’Or. Meanwhile, Seidler talked about her work to promote gender balance in professional kitchens and her experience of the issue, comparatively, in Latin America, having lived in Bolivia for five years, and Europe.
There followed another audience Q&A to round off a great day of cooking, and ideas-sharing on stage.
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