Category : Selection Process, Star Chefs
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David de JorgeMichelin Stars: none yet, but he’s a TV star David de Jorge is the right hand of Martín Berasategui and a genuine media beast. He tries to claim a natural and -in his words- “no-bullshit” cooking style for everyday’s life. He also hosts one of the most promising spanish cooking TV show these days, from behind Restaurant Martín Berasategui. More info: |
Yesterday we unveiled the first half of the jury that has judged the II Sammic BasqueStage winners.
The second half of the jury is made up of three more great chefs, plus one (unmistakable) media personality. Together, they have helped decide the two lucky winners that will be announced later today.
Hilario Arbelaitz
At Zuberoa Restaurant, Hilario Arbelaitz offers a flavoursome, imaginative cuisine with strong contrasts, using the finest local products. Hilario sets out to woo diners with his exquisite creamy dishes and his cuisine might be considered to mark the highest level of gastronomic craftsmanship.
Philippe Labbé
Philippe Labbé is a French chef that cooked at the two-Michelin-star Chevre d’Or before being recruited to Paris last year. He now oversees the dining at the luxurious Shangri-La Hotel, at the restaurants La Bauhinia and L’Abeille. He manages to unite tradition and modernity, respecting local techniques and adapting them in order to create new flavors.
Jean-François Piège
Jean-François Piège is a French chef who used to be at the helm of Les Ambassadeurs in Paris, a two-star Michelin in Hotel Crillon. He has recently opened a 20-seat restaurant to showcase his simple and elegant French cooking above his other eatery, La Brasserie Thoumieux. Michelin awarded his new venture 2 stars within months of his opening.
David de Jorge
David de Jorge is the right hand man of Martín Berasategui and a genuine media beast. He promotes a natural and -in his words- “no-bullshit” cooking style for everyday’s life. He also hosts one of today’s most promising Spanish cooking TV shows, from right behind the Berasategui restaurant.
Also on the jury are Sammic’s Managing and Marketing directors Jon Markina and Amaia Altuna.
Come back later today for the announcement…
It was a busy week for Tracy and Athena, both in the kitchen and out. Kicking off their ‘weekend’, which for much of the hospitality industry here consists of Monday and Tuesday, they watched San Sebastián’s Real Sociedad play Pamplona’s Osasuna in soccer. Even though the games are always on in the kitchen at Restaurant Martín Berasategui, seeing the game from the Sammic season ticket seats was quite a different experience…
…then it was back to the kitchen on Wednesday, for what is typically the busiest day of prep of the whole week. As of late, Tracy has been allowed to show what she’s made of, on the line! No small feat after just a month in the kitchen. “The greatest challenge is mind control. It’s the greatest asset I can have here. Whether I’m prepping, plating or conversing with fellow stages or chefs, I can’t help but think of how ‘zen’ I should be,” says Tracy. Check out more of her account as the heat gets turned up in the Berasategui kitchen.
Then, Thursday, it was lights, camera, action. A film crew invaded the kitchen and the studio of David de Jorge to get some footage of Tracy and Athena cooking a regional specialty, patatas con chorizo ( or a la riojana).
The videos will soon be edited and ready for viewing, and you can cook along with Tracy and Athena as they learn their way around typical local ingredients, like chorizo, jamón and the almighty potato. It’s all in the little hints, such as the one Chef Martín gave the girls when making the Patatas A La Riojana–varying sizes of potato dice are okay, because the smaller pieces will fall apart, binding the sauce, while the larger pieces continue to cook to doneness. Stay tuned as Tracy and Athena continue working and unearthing pearls of wisdom!
After another week hard at work in the kitchen, and hard at play in the green hills outside of Getaria, the girls spent Thursday afternoon filming some special videos that will premiere soon on the BasqueStage website. Chef Martín even made an appearance in the studio behind his restaurant to inspire and motivate the stages.
The theme of filming: potatoes. The recipe recommended for execution: can you tell by the ingredients below?
Patatas con chorizo, a la riojana.
Tracy and Athena also filmed the making of french fries using Sammic cryovac machine, potato peeler, and potato cutter. Fresh, unfrozen French fries in minutes-it was kind of amazing.
How did the potatoes and chorizo go? After much chopping and cooking, allowing the smaller pieces of potato break down and thicken the sauce, the result was delicious. The video remains to be seen, but let’s just say there was fist-pumping all around and Chef Berasategui proclaimed Athena and Tracy “champions of patatas con chorizo”.
Stay tuned for the video!
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David de JorgeMichelin Stars: none yet, but he’s a TV star David de Jorge is the right hand of Martín Berasategui and a genuine media beast. He tries to claim a natural and -in his words- “no-bullshit” cooking style for everyday’s life. He also hosts one of the most promising spanish cooking TV show these days. More info: |
We are happy today. Why? Because Chef Martín Berasategui has been throwing compliments at us on EiTB, the Basque Television Channel. He has mentioned his friends in Sammic and has been talking about our next trip together to NYC.
David de Jorge presents a daily cooking show on EiTB and once a week he is accompanied by Chef Martín Berasategui.
