21-02-2017
Christian Puglisi (34) and Jonathan Tam (30), patron-chef and head chef at restaurant Relæ in Copenhagen, Denmark, one Michelin star. They’ll hold a lesson on Sunday the 5th March in the Auditorium Hall at Identità Milano, at 2.15 pm
On Sunday the 5th March, Christian Puglisi will speak at Identità Milano for the third time. After opening Relæ (in 2010), the chef from Messina now in Copenhagen extended the claws in the Danish capital: wine bar Manfreds & Vin which serves small dishes, bakery (a reductive word) Mirabelle, pizzeria (even in this case it’s more than a pizzeria) Bæst and, more recently, Rudo, an aperitif bar launched inside the new-born Danish Eataly.
If in the past 7 years Puglisi has managed to alternate effectively the job of chef and entrepreneur it is thanks to having put the right people in the right place. Like Jonathan Tam, promoted head chef at Relae last June and co-speaker next to him in a few days’ time. He’s not the first Canadian chef elbowing his way through Denmark – like Ben Ing, current head chef at Noma, or Daniel Burns, pastry chef who opened (and has now closed) Luksus in New York. «I found Copenhagen a great place for Canadians to learn because our seasons and produce are very similar, so what we learn in Scandinavia can easily translate to Canada», confirms the guy, originally from Edmonton, Alberta.
Carrots and lemon thyme with a broth of grilled carrots (photo by Zanatta)
Seven years and a Michelin star later, the aim hasn’t changed a bit: «Now I’m head chef, I do not want to find a new way for Relæ but to continue building on what Christian created – to make this possible we both have to be on the same page all the time. Christian and I work even closer together than before. We are constantly evaluating Relæ to see how we can continue to evolve the cuisine but still hold on to the same philosophy as when we started back in 2010». Utter faith.
The entrance to Relæ, at 41 Jægersborggade, Copenhagen (Zanatta)
Mushroom, almonds and sourdough, a pasta-non-pasta dish (the tagliatelle are in fact mushrooms) inspired by Cacio e pepe (Zanatta)
Gabriele Zanatta’s opinion: on establishments, chefs and trends in Italy and the world
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born in Milan, 1973, freelance journalist, coordinator of Identità Golose World restaurant guidebook since 2007, he is a contributor for several magazines and teaches History of gastronomy and Culinary global trends into universities and institutes. twitter @gabrielezanatt instagram @gabrielezanatt