CHEF
(^) +
VISIT
067
The brilliant hue of indigo, almost florescent,
strikes my eyes. It is in fact a sauce made from
blue fermented cabbage, as a garnish for a dish of
white chocolate soufflé with black caviar. Created
by a former sculptor, the dish truly piques
one’s curiosity. Let’s discover the
journey that Ukrainian chef Iurii
Kovryzhenko has taken, and
his philosophy towards
his cuisine.
O
riginally from Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, Chef
Iurii Kovryzhenko’s first job in a restaurant was
as a waiter, at seventeen. Later, he spent six years
in a large Ukrainian restaurant chain, but always in
the front of house. For a while, he made sculptures
made from gold, silver, or bronze, but when the
financial crisis hit in 2008, the orders stopped
coming. While staying in a Zen Buddhism temple,
meditating, the schoolmaster introduced him to
friends from the restaurant scene in Aquitaine, in
southwestern France. There he started as a scullery
helper, and after a year, stayed on as a rotissier.
Upon returning to Ukraine, the realisation that
he lacked a sound culinary foundation propelled
him to enroll in intensive half-year or three-month
courses in culinary schools in France, Italy, and
Spain (Ferrandi, Le Cordon Bleu, Ritz Escoffier,
Italian Food Style Education, Academy Of Italian
Cuisine, and Basque Culinary Center).
stewed duck with celeriac,
carrot & beetroot cream
crayfi sh^ carp
accio
wit
h^ a
pp
le^
ch
ut
ne
y^ &
d
ill
sa
uc
e
I want to give people more than
they expect – a dish that satisfies
the eyes, the nose, and
the taste buds.
Iurii Kovryzhenko