Born in Canada to Kiwi parents – her mother from
Danish stock, her father of Belgian-Swiss origins – she
was raised in New Zealand and (various culinary
sojourns around the world notwithstanding) has called
London her home since 1992.
The New Year Honours List drew wider attention to
the talents that have garnered wide critical praise since
Hansen opened The Modern Pantry in Clerkenwell late
in the summer of 2008. She’s cited by many as the
person who singlehandedly put ‘fusion’ cooking, which
had fallen from fashion in London, firmly back on the
map. Sitting down to eat in the coolly Scandinavian
interior of her restaurant, diners are treated to a skilful,
Born in Germany, Beck moved
to Italy to take over the kitchen
of La Pergola, in the Rome
Cavalieri hotel, in 1994
(
romecavalieri.it/lapergola
).
The
restaurant, which has a 53,000
bottle cellar and a 29-strong
mineral water list, has held
three Michelin stars since
2005
thanks to Beck’s refined
take on Italy’s larder. Since
2009
he has also overseen the
menu at Apsleys in The
Lanesborough Hotel, London.
FOR BRUNCH
“
In Rome, I rarely have
breakfast,” he says. “I normally
finish late at La Pergola and
don’t wake too early. So my
breakfast is usually lunch and
I like to stop at Antico Forno
Roscioli, one of the oldest
bakeries in Rome, located in
Via dei Chiavari, in the heart of
the city.”
salumeriaroscioli.com
FOR A CHEAP EAT
“
I like to go to Brò Porta in
Trastevere [in Rome],” says the
German kitchen wizard. “It’s a
great place that’s partly owned
by Emiliano Pascucci, one of
my sous chefs.”
broportaportese.it
FOR SOMETHING SPECIAL
“
I love ‘The Charleston’ in
Palermo for its architectural
beauty and its location near
the sea,” he says. “It’s very a
special place.”
ristorantecharleston.com
Heinz Beck
Head chef at Rome’s
La Pergola
playful blend of Asian and European ingredients,
recipes, influences and techniques.
This eclectic approach all starts to make sense when
you look at the chefs she’s worked with over the years.
She cut her teeth in the kitchen with Fergus Henderson,
in the days before he started the now Michelin-starred
St John, with its focus on modern British cooking and
nose-to-tail eating; she opened The Providores with
Peter Gordon of The Sugar Club fame, who’s often
described as the godfather of modern fusion cooking;
and she spent a year working for doyenne of Australian
cooking, Stefanie Alexander, in Melbourne.
Her success has come in what’s still a male-
dominated domain, so why does she think there aren’t
more female head chefs? “Mostly because women are too
smart to chose this for a career,” she says with a giggle.
“
It’s still a tough, dirty job at the end of the day and I
think that women are less inclined to put up with doing
that kind of work. You have to wear a clown’s outfit, get
dirty, burn yourself, work ridiculous hours and lug
heavy stuff around. It’s a job that you do because it’s a
lifestyle. You can’t just do your work, go home and get
on with your life – it
is
your life.”
Passion aside, she believes luck has played a large
part in her achievements. “A lot of it is down to whoever
you end up training with and their attitude. It’s changed
a lot, but there is still a definite preference towards men
in the industry, because it’s a tough job. I was really
lucky, because the main mentors in my professional life
were all nurturers,” she says. “I think if I’d trained in
more traditional restaurants or in the average hotel, I
maybe wouldn’t have lasted. I might have thought, ‘You
know what? I don’t have to do this’.”
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