Some years are better than others, and for Chef Mauro Colagreco, 2019 was certainly one to remember. First of all, his acclaimed restaurant, Mirazur, in Menton in Southern France, was awarded 3 Michelin stars in the MICHELIN Guide France 2019. Then in June, it was crowned the ‘World’s Best Restaurant’ by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants. And then, to top it all off, Chef Mauro was named the ‘World’s Most Influential Chef’ by Le Chef magazine, based on a vote among chefs from two- and three-Michelin-starred restaurants in all of the countries where Michelin publishes its famous guides.
“This year, I’m not sure what we’ll do,” he laughs when we meet him at his Macau restaurant Grill 58 at MGM Cotai. “Our goal is not the awards. Our goal is to make people happy and be happy with what we do. The awards is not the real achievement…it is the love for food that is our achievement.”
But of course, all the accolades are nice to receive, although Chef Mauro is not one to rest on his laurels.
“I felt extremely happy for my team, my family. We are really busy, it’s a big responsibility. We believe in our work and we know Mirazur is one of the best restaurants in the world, it’s in a fantastic unique place and the whole experience makes it very unique,” he notes. “But I think we can improve more. I think we are currently at 50 percent potential for the restaurant.”
There are many influences that have inspired Chef Mauro’s journey over the years, from both his grandmothers’ cooking – one from Italy and one from Spain – to his years growing up in Argentina and his time spent honing his skills in Burgundy and Paris. Yet when he started Mirazur in April 2006, he admittedly wasn’t particularly familiar with the local regional cuisine there.
“I really discovered a more Mediterranean style when I opened Mirazur. In the beginning, I didn’t know the culture, I didn’t know the food, I was starting from zero… but that gave me a lot of freedom with my creations. I started going to the markets, every day I was discovering new things, so it was very exciting,” he recalls. “My style there now is very personal Mediterranean.”
Continuing to describe his particular cooking style, Chef Mauro adds: “I’m from Argentina with Italian roots, I live in France and I have a restaurant in Macau China, but I don’t make Argentinean cuisine, nor French, nor Italian or Chinese. Of course all these influences in my background help with my inspiration and creativity, but for me, the food is about emotions, I try to give an emotional experience to my guests… it’s not about a particular nationality’s style of cooking.”
Chef Mauro’s first foray into Asia began with Grill 58 at MGM Cotai, which opened around two years ago, specializing in exceptional grilled steak and seafood.
“It’s a very exciting location and it’s great to have a partner like MGM, because with MGM you can dream,” Chef Mauro notes when we chat to him after our meal.
The special menu was designed exclusively to celebrate his many successes over 2019, and included amazing creations like Hokkaido bay scallops, goma-sio, rice cream, and seaweed; Char-grilled Carabineros, chicken supreme, ‘Beurre blanc’, combawa, and trout eggs; and finally, Aveyron lamb rack, eggplants, black garlic, anchovies, and lemon.
“We have started to really make Grill 58 something according to our vision and philosophy for a grill in Asia. We continue to learn and we want to continue to develop.”
While visiting Macau, Chef Mauro often tries to meetwith up-and-coming chef talent, particular at institutions like the Macau University of Science and Technology and the Institute for Tourism Studies, which both have highly regarded culinary arts programs.
“It’s extremely important to make this kind of project. We need people with a good skills base to build on. It’s a very good initiative to promote the industry to local people. It can generate big revenue and it’s good to develop industries other than gaming,” notes Chef Mauro.
“We need to motivate them, but also be realistic about their expectations. It’s a hard job, you need to work hard, don’t be afraid to take risks or to feel emotions, and at the same time you have to have a strong character. But it’s a fantastic job. For me it has opened all the doors to the whole world. You have contact with fishermen and farmers, and also with presidents and superstars and artists… and the connection is always through the food.”
Despite his hugely successful 2019, Chef Mauro has a new task ahead of him this year, with plans to open a new restaurant in Thailand at the brand new Capella Bangkok.
“Every restaurant is a challenge because we are not a chain, we don’t repeat the concepts, because we love to explore and to take a little risk.”
And for his new restaurant, Cote, Chef Mauro has taken on the very interesting approach of infusing new life into some very old recipes and cooking styles. During the Middle Ages, the Duchy of Savoy was a state that extended from Nice in France and Genova in Italy, and it is from this area and time period that he has found his latest inspirations.
“It was a very large area, a very rich kingdom with a lot of recipes…We have used the old recipes from this region and adapted them to our vision and added some Thai ingredients. It’s something I’ve never done before. I like the idea of revisiting old recipes in a new way.”
Cote at Capella Bangkok is set to open early 2020.
