My personal highlight: The uniqueness of this event unites excellent international Chefs, creative minds and curious foodies in one special spot up in the Swiss Alps. Chef Nicolai Nørregaard from Denmark was my discovery this year.
Every year in January the Gourmet world of Switzerland points the eyes to St. Moritz. Together with chefs of a variety of prestigious local hotels, nine top-class star chefs from Europe and Asia join for culinary delights.
This year the following gourmet chefs participated at the festival 2019:
- Guillaume Galliot – Restaurant Caprice, Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong, 3 Michelin Stars
- Sergio Herman – head of four restaurants in Belgium & Netherlands: The Jane in Antwerp (2 Michelin stars), Pure C (1 Michelin Star), AIRrepublic (1 Michelin star) and Blueness in Cadzand-Bad
- Philippe Mille – Chef at Restaurant Le Parc, in France, 2 Michelin Stars
- Manish Mehrotra – Chef at Indian Accent, India. Recognized as one of the best chefs in India.
- Sven Wassmer – Chef at Grand Hotel Quellenhof in Bad Ragaz (CH)
- Nicolai Nørregaard – Chef at Restaurant Kadeau, Copenhagen, 2 Michelin Stars and Kadeau Bornholm, (DK) 1 Michelin Star
- Sang-Hoon Degeimbre – L’Air du Temps, 2 Michelin stars
in Belgium - Thomas & Mathias Sühring – Restaurant Sühring, Thailand, 2 Michelin Stars
- Mingoo Kang – Restaurant Mingles, South Korea, 2 Michelin Stars
What to choose out of the variety of gourmet Food Events when visiting the the St. Moritz Gourmet Festival – a useful guide
Gourmet Safari Event: For those who love to experience different Chefs in different hotel locations in St. Moritz. This event allows best to interact with other gourmands. Taste a variation of menu in one night in an unforgettable surrounding. Get more inspiration here.
Legendary Kitchen Party at Badrutt’s Palace Hotel: The place to live the most vibrant and authentic vibes of the Chefs preparing the dishes directly in the kitchen. Together with 300 other guests you enjoy culinary highlights standing close to each other, the live music is the cherry on the top! Get some highlights of this year’s kitchen party here.
Side events: Wine & Cheese celebration in the legendary wine cellar of the Hotel Steffani, St. Moritz?
Go for this intimate evening in the Hotel Steffani, St. Moritz. Taste international rarities of wines paired with the amazing French cheese selection that Maître Antony, the world’s best “éleveur de fromages” offersorregarNNroregagararrdstivivalmon
Gourmet dinner with your favorite Chef!
My choice this year: Chef Nicolai Nørregaard from Copenhagen and I am absolutely happy about this selection, since the cuisine from Denmark was a novum to me.
The Gourmet dinners offer a relaxed atmosphere where to dive into a culinary journey. It’s the best way to experience the real food philosophy of a Chef. The dinner comes as a more course menu with signature dishes of the Chefs. Mostly there is the chance to talk in person to the Chefs during the dinner and get detailed explanations about the menu.
About my Gourmet dinner at Grand Hotel Kronenhof with Chef Nicolai Nørregaard
This dinner was an excursion to the Island of Bornholm, where the 1 Michelin Star Restaurant Kadeau Bornholm is located and run by Rasmus, Magnus & Nicolai. Beside Bornholm Nicolai and his partners run the 2 Michelin Stars restaurant Kadeau in Copenhagen.
Bornholm is a small island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the east of Denmark, on the south of Sweden. Here the neighbors are the forest, the beach and the sea. The flavors of Bornholm were reflected 100% in the dishes prepared from Chef Nicolai. He knows the island best, since he grew up there. Years ago, when he was a kid he says during the interview, he used to spend a lot of time with is mother and his grandfather exploring the nature. That is where he got plenty of the knowledge on how to prepare, process and preserve the precious ingredients that grow on the island.
A lovely story I like to share with you that Nicolai revealed at our interview: back in time, when he was a teenager and he was dating a girl at his house it was absolutely normal, that girls got invited to help out in the garden. Some girls may have found that awkward back in time. The house of his mother was located in full nature.
My question about the food philosophy that they follow at Kadeau was answered on the one hand by tasting the extremely balanced and delicate dishes during my dinner. My palate experimented different layers of sour, sweet or salty flavors, perfectly balanced and aromatized.
On the other hand, in the interview Nicolai explained, that on the island of Bornholm they follow the rhythm of the cycle of the seasons by observing nature. In Summer everything grows fast, so it’s a lot of work in a short period of time to absolve. Winter instead is his favorite season, because there is time to experience nature slowly. What I also understood, is that at Kadeau a big part of the work goes to fermenting, pickling and drying. They do also make syrups, oils or vinegars as for example the rhubarb root oil used in the soured cream berry dessert. Several tons of items were preserved this year, this to put Bornholm also on the plates in Copenhagen, when the restaurant Kadeau Bornholm closes its doors.
Another secret I love to share with you here, Cooking and experimenting the way Chef Nicolai works, he says, is like a Jazz composition, “sometime you improvise, but at the same time your instinct and experience create a composition that feels harmonic”. This explains to me, why he has chosen to go for a autodidactic education to get there where he is today.
Nicolai’s curiosity for cooking has always been there. He comes from a family with a high gastronomic interest. His granddad’s family owns a smokery, which is common in Bornholm. I was very happy to try a smoked Bornholm Salmon during our dinner with an excellent taste, of course balanced with a fermented tomato sauce, rosehip and fig leafs. On Bornholm the climate is so special, that figs grow, too!
The menu consisted of a variety of seafood as Oyster, salmon or scallops from the , vegetables and reindeer.
You can not imagine, how delicate and intense in the same time Scots pine taste with dried tomatoes & scallops. What about the unique nutty taste of Limfjord Oysters?
Our 7 course menu at a glance:
- Limfjord Oyster, fermented gooseberry, kale & oyster emulsion.
- Young potatoes, codroe, lovage, eldercapers, blue mussel
- Bornholm smoked salmon, fermented tomato sauce, rosehip, fig leaf
- Raw scallop, horseradish cream, scots pine, semi dry tomatoes
- Celeriac, woodruff, oscietra caviar, oxalis, fermented white asparagus
- Reindeer, Barbecue jelly, currant, rehydrated carrot & beetroot, chicken wing sauce
- Soured cream, currant, raspberry, gooseberry, blueberry, rhubarb root oil, seaweed oil
The absolute highlight of my dinner was not only the visual presentation, more than that, it’s the different preparation techniques and the perfectly balanced flavor and taste of every ingredient that fascinated me. The dishes connected mind and soul, it was a surprise with every bite.
A big thank you to Chef Nicolai Nørregaard and his team for introducing me to the food from Bornholm. A very warm thank you to the Grand hotel Kronenhof and St. Moritz Gourmet Festival for the flawless organization.
Curious to read about other St. Moritz Gourmet Festival experiences, check my stories here.
