Fortunately, I am always early to appointments, it is part of the character , since I do not like to collect bad figures and today it is essential to avoid them, as I have the opportunity to ask a few questions to the youngest starred chef in Italy, Lorenzo Cogo, whom I reach in Rinascente in Milan, where he will hold the presentation of a new line of designer pans. We are on the seventh floor of the megastore, where I find him flanked by the girls from the press office with whom I have made an appointment. I don't know what to expect, since I have only ever read and heard about Lorenzo but never met him; I hearten myself, however, hoping that he will reserve for me the same kindness that his collaborators have always shown me: I am not wrong.
Already at the first approach I realize that Lorenzo is a very normal guy, who behaves exactly for the age he is (class of 1986) and does not suffer from the omnipotence syndrome of many colleagues who, calling themselves 'chefs,' puff up their chests and parade their experiences as if they were weapons. And it is precisely from here that I start, from his background, which despite his young age he has already collected in large quantities.
Much has been said about your experiences around the world, but what I would like to do today is to go through the individual steps of your professional growth, to understand what each one has left you.
I would start from Renato Rizzardi's 'Locanda di Piero'. We're practically at the beginning, but I think it's still important, since almost everyone forgets about your Italian interlude before flying to Australia.
Yes, let's say that at the Locanda I acquired the basics on pasta and bread, but it was an important experience above all because it gave me back the stimulus to continue on the road of cooking, since my potential was valued.
After Italy there was Melbourne, at Shannon Bennett's Vue de Monde, but also Sidney with Mark Best at his Marque Restaurant, and finally Tetsuya's and Quay.
With them I had my first real approach to international cuisine. They were very interesting experiences, they opened my horizons, as the level of internationality of their cuisine was not yet present here in Italy. In Australia the development was very fast but at the same time the level of preparation of the chefs very high.
After Australia, you moved to England, to Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck.
Here I understood what molecular was: a cuisine that is based on play and discovery, an expression that entertains and amazes.
Since we've stumbled upon molecular cuisine, I can't help but ask him what he thinks about it.
There was really a time when it was all anyone talked about, it was abused, but I think if done with the right knowledge and moderation it's interesting and fun. I remember a time when I was presented with a plate with two jellies, an orange orange jelly and a yellow beet jelly: along with the plate I was offered directions on how to taste them, starting with the yellow. Initially you only perceive the color, and once you taste you realize the taste and the fact that what you expected does not match the actual flavor. In that sense it's a very different experience and, as I said, game-based, but my cooking is much more concrete.
So after England, you went back to the East, but this time to Japan, to Seji Yamamoto, which some say was the turning point.
Indeed it was! The need to go to the East and get to know it I've always cultivated, ever since I was a child, as something unconscious: it was like a second home for me right away. As for the cuisine, I was fascinated by it, it's really resounding, and Yamamoto managed to convey to me the rigor and passion for this work.
We finally come to Victor Arguinzoniz, in Axpe, and his restaurant Extebarri. It is no longer news that you have deep admiration for him.
Victor is like a father to me, there is a deep mutual esteem between us. I have had the good fortune that in all the places where I have worked they have always given me a lot of room to express myself, they have believed in me and I have reciprocated this possibility with a lot of effort, but never have I been able to have a relationship of affection like with him, that atmosphere of familiarity in the work that I lacked from my previous experiences. Victor is a simple person who runs a great restaurant, he made me understand the importance of raw materials, and his technique, that of barbecuing, became the path I wanted to continue to pursue.
It seems like he's talked about it a thousand times, but from the way he does it, I sense that he never tires of repeating it because the respect and affection are absolutely felt.
After a few trips you then arrive at René Redzepi's Noma in Copenhagen.
Actually the one at Noma was a rather short experience, but it helped me to learn more about aspects of Nordic cuisine and, as at Fat Duck, the different way of running a restaurant compared to other parts of the world.
Of course they are strong and very different experiences! A truly innovative choice yours compared to that of your Italian colleagues, since many here are children of the school of Marchesi and therefore of the French masters. Can one speak of yours as a challenge?
The choice was completely mine and I am proud of it. The cuisine I encountered while traveling is very different from the French cuisine we are used to. Of course, it is impossible to disregard his teachings, but outside Italy and France there is a more professional approach to cooking: here rigor is more for etiquette, for appearance, while in the rest of the world rigor is needed to do well and improve.
Theopening of your restaurant, El Coq, is more the beginning of a journey than the end. Perhaps you have now also started teaching yourself and are pursuing your own personal path of growth. What do you think about that?
Every day is a challenge for me to do better, to attempt even the impossible if it serves to find the right balance to continue growing. I aim for quality above all, and it is something that cannot be disregarded. In addition to this daily work, we are also thinking about an experimentation laboratory within the restaurant for the birth of private courses.
You are often called upon to attend industry fairs: today you will present here at Rinascente a new line of pans in collaboration with designer Angelo Di Porto. Does being around events often take away space from your work at the restaurant, or do you manage to handle it all without any problems?
Today is a bit of a special event, since we are in a shopping mall, but it will be interesting, and then it reminds me of the times when I worked with Aldo Coppola: it's strange to be here now that he is no longer here. As for being around all the time, there are obviously pros and cons. The most important thing is to have the right staff to support your work. Participating in events serves to make yourself known, it is a stimulus to improve, but unfortunately it prevents me from always being present at the restaurant, and it is not always easy to manage this absence.
How important is it to be supported by competent staff in the kitchen?
It is all too difficult to find a good team, and I think it is a sore point somewhat for all restaurateurs right now. It's not like that abroad: if a restaurant is good and gets recognition it can grow, people are motivated to stay and improve, instead in Italy this doesn't matter, you can't convey unity and all this creates difficulties in work but also in management, since investing in the wrong people is a big waste of time as well as resources.
Is the Michelin star for you a burden with which you are labeled or an advantage?
Receiving the star was a real blessing, an extremely positive recognition, since it allowed us to survive and still invest. Unfortunately, Italy is an area that now lives more on labels than on real growth, we always talk about culture but ours is a facade culture and there is not enough belief in those who work hard trying to improve themselves. El Coq doesn't want to get in the way of my area, we don't want to be a nuisance as many people believe, but rather help the area to become known and progress.
Investing in the Vicenza area, far from big reference cities, could have been a risk.
I am proud of my choice and I am aware that it was not the easiest one but I have always believed in it. The name of the restaurant will grow with time, which is always necessary to do well, but it is crucial that people believe in us.
Your decision was to set up your own business, but not everyone eventually does.
It is extremely subjective as a choice and depends on the disposition. Some people continue, fortunately, to be employees all their lives, others take paths that are not their own, opening restaurants they cannot handle, and still others are strong enough even to drive. The important thing is that everyone understands what is the best decision to make.
... and it sure seems to me that Lorenzo has taken the right path. Photo by Rodolfo Hernandez
