30-06-2016
Il londinese Michael Zee ogni mattina prepara una colazione diversa, perfettamente simmetrica, per sé e per il suo compagno Mark van Beek. Le foto di Symmetry Breakfast sono diventate virali e i due hanno centinaia di migliaia di followers su Instagram
Colazione con spunti da tutt'Europa, contro la Brexit
Colazione cinese
Colazione tra Colombia e Venezuela
Colazione a base di firni, una specialità tra India, Pakistan e Iran
Colazione greca
Colazione indiana
Colazione marocchina
Colazione mediorientale
Colazione mediterranea
Colazione messicana
Colazione olandese
Colazione in onore del Pride
Altre colazioni
The idea is actually pretty simple and, like many genius ones, was born by chance. One morning some time ago, Michael made breakfast for his boyfriend Mark who had just moved in with him. He noticed the two plates were almost completely symmetrical and posted a photo of them on Instagram.
Quickly, the ‘likes’ grew and grew and so Symmetry Breakfast was born: every morning a different breakfast, but always precisely mirrored on two plates. Power of the social media, Michael Lee has in a short time attracted an impressive number of followers (600,000 and counting), and has become one of the influencer of the food scene.
Mark van Beek and Michael Zee
«It is not a matter of putting two croissants and cafe au lait on line and say ‘here is a french breakfast’ – he tells us – I love culinary history and I read a lot, in order to be able to prepare dishes that have tradition and culture behind them».
Inspiration comes not only from the past but also listening to family and friends, their anecdotes and stories, to create food that is often unusual but always full of character. «What I do is storytelling and that is my main aim; I don’t want to sell anything nor preach with long descriptions. Instagram is a specific medium, a channel for visual narrative».
So often we see strange combinations on plates which are nevertheless mouth-watering: scrambled eggs with salted anchovies on toast (a Victorian recipe), a Swedish Rågkaka (flatbread) with smoked salmon, eggs and caviar (for the Eurovision contest) or an occhio di bue (beef’s eye) pastry and a macchiato straight from Florence’s San Lorenzo Market during a holiday in Italy.
How long in advance does he plan what to cook? «I would rather not prepare too much and be free to be reactive to what goes on around me, especially during unexpected events». For the day of the EU Referendum, however, he had already designed his version of a ‘continental breakfast’: not the boring hotel version but a homage to a united Europe, never mind Brexit. Even on the plate, we’re better together.
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A British citizen from Naples, obsessive scuba diver, digital marketing manager Monday to Friday, foodie at any given time