Australian entrepreneur Jason Renwick came to Copenhagen in 2005, travelling in and out of the country before opening vegan cafe Souls in 2016. He then teamed up with British chef Brett Lavender, who had spent much of his career cooking in luxury hotels and Michelin-starred restaurants in Australia, New Zealand and Japan, to open Ark restaurant, in central Copenhagen, in 2020. The seasonal plant-based menu is a surprise for diners on the day, but might include signature dishes such as barbecued blue oyster mushrooms or deceptively complex combinations like turnip with apple and macadamia.
The business grew and evolved, and today, Ark Collection comprises three plant-based restaurants — Ark, Bistro Lupa (both of which hold Michelin Green stars) and Beyla — as well as urban mushroom-growing operation Funga Farm, which supplies restaurants in the Danish capital.
Brett: How to get flavour, depth, umami out of very few ingredients was a massive learning curve for me. I started to approach it in the way I would cook a piece of meat: do I want to marinate, sous vide or let it rest? Vegan cooks don’t think like this. And I’m not a vegan. It’s about cooking vegetables in the best way possible and making sure they’re the star of the dish.
Brett: We work with a number of farms [close to] Copenhagen, and also a little bit further afield. I’m not a magician, so some things come from Sweden and elsewhere in Northern Europe. In winter, nothing grows, but in summer we have an abundance, so we preserve and ferment. You might see elderflower that we’ve pickled or last season’s strawberry trimmings that we’ve turned into vinegar.
Jason: Mushrooms are the most important ingredient by far. We were producing 250kg a week out of this tiny basement at Funga Farm, but in spring 2023 I invested, and we moved into in a bigger space. Now we can do about 1,500kg a week. All our reviews [of the restaurant] focus on the mushrooms, thanks to dishes like blue oyster mushroom cooked on the yakitori grill and brushed with sake and mirin. I also go foraging for 20 hours a week. Christina Rasmussen [previously a forager at Noma] came to us and taught me what to pick. It really changes with the seasons, but I pick rosehip, elderflower, meadowsweet, mulberry, blueberry and wild garlic in bulk. I try to gather enough of the flowers so that we can start to make aged vinegars.
Brett: We always have the blue oyster mushroom on the menu. They have a great taste, great texture and the structure of the mushroom gives me the ability to play with it a lot in terms of cooking. Lion’s mane mushrooms also play a part; they can really resemble meat. This isn’t something I try to do intentionally — it’s just showing the mushroom at its best.
The website maxtravelz.com is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
I consider myself a foodie. Apart from beautiful scenery, food is what excites me the most when I travel. After I visited the 48 contiguous United States, one of the most frequent questions my friends and family asked me was how the food was. America's large portion sizes are well-known in the UK, but I was happy to tell them that every state has its own unique food culture and dishes.
An Airbnb customer was told there was nothing the company could do after a host mixed up their leaving dates and dumped all of their belongings out on the street, The Guardian reported.
Did you know that there are European countries that don't use the euro? Of the 27 nations that make up the European Union (EU), 20 use the euro as their official currency, in the region known as the Eurozone. While most countries that join the EU are required to adopt the euro as part of their membership, there are seven member states that have yet to adopt the currency.
After seven years and three lead actresses, the great saga of Elizabeth II's reign ends. Over the years, it’s won both acclaim and controversy, showered with awards and, in the case of Season 5, the subject of statements by two former Prime Ministers. It has sustained its hit status, each season as eagerly awaited as the first and, with the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, becoming a focus for a mourning nation.
Not all Buddhist temples are Zen-like experiences with manicured gardens and meditative art. In countries like Thailand and Singapore, travelers can visit Buddhist “hell parks.” Once used to warn parishioners about the punishments that awaited them after a life of sin, hell gardens are now more like B-movie horror theme parks.
What makes a good city is subjective, but a good indication that a place might be worth visiting is when it's voted for by thousands of people. Time Out and Condé Nast Traveler recently asked their readers about the coolest neighborhoods and best cities in the world right now, respectively.
What makes a good city is subjective but a good indication that a place might be worth visiting is when it's voted for by thousands of people. Both Time Out and CN Traveler recently conducted a poll of the coolest neighborhoods/best cities in the world right now and thousands of people can't be wrong.
The Khaite designer Catherine Holstein was newly pregnant in the fall of 2022 when the French children’s wear brand Bonpoint reached out to her about collaborating on a capsule collection. Now, the 11 new designs, intended to fit babies and children up to 10 years old and made with materials that are gentle against sensitive skin, are launching on Oct. 25 with a campaign featuring Holstein’s now-seven-month-old son, Calder. Standout pieces include a billowy white cotton top with a ruffled collar, a whimsical red-and-white botanical print skirt and miniature versions of two Khaite mainstays: a double-breasted Tanner blazer and a wool version of the brand’s flare-sleeved Scarlet cardigan. “I’m just amazed at the conversations you can have with kids after the age of three, and what their perspective is,” says Holstein. “I wanted the collection to give them the option to really home in on their individuality.” The pieces most dear to the designer are those inspired by her 1980s childhood. “I had black corduroy overalls that I would wear with suspenders with cars on them and a Fair Isle cardigan. … I really wanted to capture that nostalgia.”
For the last five decades, the Sydney Opera House has been a global spectacle: with its whimsical rooftop sails and prime location on the Sydney Harbour, it has become not only the city's most recognizable symbol, but that of all of Australia. While presiding over the building's October 20, 1973, opening, the late Queen Elizabeth II called it “unique”—and while its architecture certainly remains a standout feature, what makes the structure truly forward-thinking is the degree to which Danish architect Jørn Utzon drafted it with sustainability in mind.
Organised by IFEMA MADRID, the 44th edition of FITUR is set to take place from 24 to 28 January 2024 at Madrid’s trade fair centre. According to FITUR’s director, María Valcarce, the outlook for the next edition is looking bright and everything points to the trade fair expanding to occupy more than 140,000 m2 of space across 9 halls, bringing together more than 9,000 companies and over 150,000 professional visitors from the world tourism industry from 145 countries. It is also estimated that around 100,000 people will visit FITUR over the weekend. Figures that already placed FITUR at the forefront of the major international tourism fairs at the last edition.
The pandemic can be blamed for a lot of things, but one positive outcome are some of the changes in the way we now travel. One growing trend – as a result of having been grounded for so long, no doubt – is the fact that many of us want to travel deeper and stay longer in a given destination. Dubbed ‘slow travel’, this way of traveling allows us to get under the skin of a place and connect properly with a locale. Not only does this benefit local communities, as travelers tap into small businesses and local tour companies, but it also has an abundantly positive effect on travelers, who come away feeling enriched and enlightened by their authentic experiences.