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Month: May 2020

A fine dining virtual dinner party guide

by: Staff Writer
05/05/2020

While we are waiting anxiously for our favourite restaurants to open, why not host a virtual dinner party with friends and family. Let Monaco’s award-winning chefs from the finest SBM establishments guide you for the perfect night in.  
The Principality’s award-winning collection of chefs have come together to design a five-star, fine dining experience for those at home. With personal tips on setting the right ambiance, to signature recipes including canapés and cocktails and a world-renowned dessert, Société des Bains de Mer offers those at home a step by step guide in hosting the most exquisite dinner party.
 

THE AMBIANCE

Just like holding an ordinary dinner party, setting the right tone is an essential first step in hosting a memorable evening. Chef Philippe Joannes, “Meilleur Ouvrier de France” since 2000 (a personal Holy Grail for French chefs) and Culinary Events Director for Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer, has the following advice:
“Be sure to think about where to host your virtual dinner party – an open kitchen is ideal – especially if the lighting is good, to make sure the meal and your table setting look their best on camera. Also, being near the stove means you won’t have to keep running off to the kitchen to check on the cooking.

Chef Philippe Joannes

As far as the food goes, if you are all creating the same menu, it should be something that each ‘guest’ can cope with – avoid anything too complicated (even when it comes to fine dining). As in our restaurants, it is all about the best ingredients – vegetables are in the spotlight at this time of year, think about their colours and how they will look on screen.
For the table setting, a runner on a beautiful wooden table with stylish plates of food, are always a good combination. If available, now is the time to get out your best tablecloth – plain linen is best – complemented by white candles and white plates, which will serve as the perfect background to the dishes you are serving. You can put flowers on the table, to inject colour, but only if they a discretely scented as you don’t want anything too overpowering.”
 

THE WELCOME: MUSIC & COCKTAILS 

Where else to turn to but the pros at the exotic Buddha Bar Monte-Carlo on the Place du Casino de Monte-Carlo for musical inspiration and a welcome cocktail to kick start the virtual celebrations.

Buddha Bar Monte-Carlo

The Buddha Bar stands on the site of the original theatre and concert hall, the Cabaret de Monte-Carlo. Here, Papadia Donato, aka DJ Papa, watches over the Lounge Bar from behind his decks, distilling minimalist musical treats in a subtle fusion of lounge, chill-out and world music, all delicately seasoned with a handful of ethnic beats and electro. Music available here.
The accompanying cocktail is the stylish champagne-based ‘Monte-Carlo Bubble Wrap’, which pays homage, through its colour, not only to the décor of the old theatre, but also to the warm, present day décor of the lounge bar, recipe here.
 

WINE PAIRINGS 

Home to the largest hotel wine cellar in the world, Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo stores around 350,000 bottles with some of the most remarkable wine. Impress your guests by recommending a wine pairing for each course courtesy of Gennaro Lorio, Head Cellar Manager, the gentleman who will help you look like a wine connoisseur. Pairings below.

Caves de l’Hôtel de Paris, S.B.M. Monaco

THE CANAPÉ
Monte-Carlo Beach ELSA’s Bagna Cauda 

As its name would imply, for pure beachside glamour, the Monte-Carlo Beach Hotel ticks all the boxes. Elsa is the hotel’s 100% organic Michelin-starred restaurant headed up by Chef Benoit Witz – who recommends getting the party started with a peppy Bagna Cauda, a signature dish, with crispy fresh vegetables and flowers. Everyone loves a dip – and the garlic and anchovies are bound to get everyone’s taste buds going and the conversation flowing.

Monte-Carlo Beach – Restaurant Elsa

Accompaniments: This is not just any virtual dinner party; this is a fine dining virtual dinner party therefore the bread must be homemade. With seven simple steps and only four ingredients, award-winning Chef Thomas Subrin, Monte-Carlo Societé des Bains de Mer ’s Head Baker, shares an easy to follow recipe. Recipe can be found here. 
 

THE STARTER
Monte-Carlo Beach ELSA’s Purple Artichoke salad 

Chef Benoit Witz’s Purple Artichoke Salad is an exceptional dish to kick start the main dining extravaganza. In keeping with restaurant Elsa’s ethos, Chef Witz recommends using locally sourced, organic ingredients where possible. This delicious, seasonal dish is an example of the chef’s love for interpreting Southern cuisine with authentic flavours, in an unmistakeable Mediterranean style, filled with generosity, just like this big-hearted chef. Any leftovers, this recipe is highly recommended as a light and easy lunch option. Recipe can be found here.
Wine Pairing by Gennaro Iorio: “The artichoke is one of these delicate vegetables to be combined with wine, it has a high content of mineral elements. We need a white wine that delivers a mineral and saline tension appropriate to the dish. I recommend a Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine from Domaine Jo Landron (certified organic) cuvée Le Fiefs du Breil 2015 (on the menu at the Monte-Carlo Beach Hotel) or a southern white wine from Roussillon, Côtes Catalane from Domaine Olivier Pithon (certified organic) cuvée Macabeu 2015 (on card at Le Louis XV-Alain Ducasse at Hôtel de Paris).”
 

THE MAIN COURSE
COYA’s Beef Lomo de Res 

The the evening hots up with a stunning recipe for spicy beef fillet from COYA, a fabulous Latin American restaurant with sweeping views of the Mediterranean, with Peruvian antiques, lush plants and traditional furniture, immediately transporting diners to South America, with a menu of inspired fusion food from Peru.  The Lomo de Res, cooked in the open kitchen by Chef Fabrizzio Fossati and his team, packs a powerful taste punch, whilst being naturally light and healthy. Recipe can be found here.

Coya Monte-Carlo

Wine Pairing by Gennaro Iorio: “I recommend a red wine from the northern Rhône Valley 100% Syrah, Cornas cuvée appellation Les Chailles from Domaine Alain Voge 2013. This cuvée of great concentration will perfectly match this main. Otherwise a Pinot Noir from the Côte d’Or, appellation Beaune 1er cru Les Sizies du Domaine de Montille 2015 (on the menu of ÔMER at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo), an opulent wine!”
 

THE DESSERT
Signature Hôtel de Paris Le Grill Chocolate Soufflé

On the 8th floor of the glamorous, celebrated Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Le Grill is possibly one of the romantic restaurants in the world, with conversation-stopping panoramic views of the Mediterranean. In warm weather, the famous retractable roof is drawn back for lunch in the sun or dinner under a starlit sky. The legendary soufflés are still on the menu, as they have been since 1898 when the hotel first opened. Today, Chef Olivier Berger’s recipe for feather light chocolate soufflé will bring this gourmet virtual dinner party to a suitably impressive finale. Recipe can be found here.

Chocolate soufflé from Le Grill, Hôtel de Paris

Wine Pairing by Gennaro Iorio: “A natural sweet red wine, Rasteau appellation (VDN from the southern Rhône valley) vintage 2015 from the Domaine de la Soumade (on the menu of ÔMER at the Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo) goes perfectly (fused tannin-chocolate accord).”
 
Photos provided by SBM
 
 

Monaco contributes to €7.4 billion coronavirus fund

by: Cassandra Tanti
05/05/2020

Prince Albert has joined celebrities, world leaders and philanthropists across the globe in pledging to donate funds towards coronavirus testing, vaccines and treatments during an EU-led videoconference on Monday.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, who hosted the conference, said a vaccine was the best chance of beating the Covid-19 disease, which has so far killed nearly a quarter of a million people around the world – 140,000 of them in Europe.
Joining major European powers, Japan and Canada, Prince Albert answered the call for donations to develop and produce a vaccine. The United States government snubbed Monday’s telethon, however some wealthy American individuals did take part, including pop star Madonna, who contributed $1 million.
In his message, Prince Albert said: “I am convinced that it is only together and united that we will be able to overcome this ordeal which has no equivalent in our recent history. Together and united, we will also have the opportunity to steer the future towards a more sustainable and inclusive path.”
https://www.facebook.com/palaismonaco/videos/232211224775754/
 
 
The teleconference narrowly missed its target of €7.5 billion, although some contributors did not put a final sum on their pledges. According to UN chief Antonio Guterres, the amount needed is more in the vicinity of €38 billion.
“These funds are a kind of down payment for the development of new tools at the speed needed,” Guterres told the conference. “But to reach everyone everywhere we likely need five times that amount.”
Regardless, World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the fundraising a powerful show of “global solidarity”.
President Emmanuel Macron warned that “a race against time is underway,” as he donated €500 million on behalf of France.
Among the larger contributions, the European Commission has pledged €1 billion in grants and €400 million in guarantees on loans. Japan pledged more than €730 million while Germany offered €525 million. The UK pledged £388 million (€441 million). Italy and Spain, perhaps the hardest hit by the virus in Europe, each said they would provide more than €100 million.
Monaco’s contribution to the fund has not yet been revealed by the Palace.
Of the €7.5 billion, four billion will go on vaccine development, two billion on the search for a treatment and 1.5 billion for producing tests, the EU said.
 
Top photo: Screengrab of Prince Albert’s video address to the EU
 

Pauline Ducruet to open new MCFW project

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2020

Monte Carlo Fashion Week is stepping off the catwalk and into living rooms for a series of live meetings in its new 2020 MCFW A Conversation With… series.

The health crisis has put a dampener on many anticipated events in the Principality. One of those is the Monte Carlo Fashion Week, which would have been celebrating its 8th year this month from the 14th to the 18th of May, bringing together the best new and local talent.

Sadly, the coronavirus had other ideas. Instead of packing it in, the organisers of the event decided to launch a project to bring together Monaco’s style players, past, present and future, giving them a forum to talk about the fashion industry of today and tomorrow as well as giving them a forum to preview their latest collections.

What they are proposing is “a rich calendar of live digital and interactive talks and a platform dedicated to emerging and innovative designers to bring life to an alternative and sustainable fashion week to discover.” 

This alternate show has been envisaged as a glamorous program on Instagram Live on the @montecarlofashionweek channel. The brainchild of MCFW founder and president and founder of the Chambre Monegasque de la Mode, Frederica Nardoni Spinetta, high profile personalities will join together to discuss themes pertinent to the industry at large.  

“In this emergency situation, a series of reflections have imposed themselves,” says Ms Spinetta. “From sustainability, to the rationalisation of production, through creativity and the consequences of the pandemic: fashion does not stop, and we discuss a new chapter of the future in an interactive way.”  

The guest speakers have one thing that ties them all together – they all are committed to imbuing the fashion world with different approaches that are favourable to the environment, ethics and awareness.

Pauline Ducruet, founder of the clothing brand Alter and daughter of Princess Stephanie, will open the event.

A new prize, the MCFW Fashion Award Digital Sustainable Brand, will be given to the designer that best embodies use of sustainability. Other awards that have thus far characterised the event in past years will also be given.  

In order to be a part of this unique experience, sustainable brands are being asked to create a video that will be broadcast on the Monte Carlo Fashion Week’s social network channels, giving the brands an opportunity to strut their stuff in a whole new way. 

 
 

Life post-lockdown begins

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2020

After seven weeks of stringent confinement, the government is slowly loosening measures in order to jumpstart life in the Principality again.

Monday and Tuesday marked the first days of what is rather annoyingly being called the “new normal”. The strictest phase of lockdown is now in the rear view mirror and life is slowly returning to the streets of Monaco.

Shops have been allowed to reopen and to celebrate this occasion, Ministers Jean Castellini and Didier Gamerdinger were on hand at the shopping centre in Fontvieille where they met with merchants to see how their first day back was going. Despite the barriers to ensure social distancing and other precautions such as the general wearing of face masks, shop owners and their employees seemed quite pleased to be back on the job.  

 

 

Also reopened were public institutions such as the Palais de Justice. The Monaco judiciary has been adamant that they will get back to regular activity as soon as possible. The building is open to the public again, for those with good reason to be there, such as for a summons, requests for apostilles or records or the filing of documents. Hearings are set to gradually be restored by the end of the month.

Though the harshest measures have been eased, border controls are still firmly in place with both the Monegasque and French police patrolling the streets. In the interest of public health and safety, the measures will continue until otherwise deemed unnecessary. This means that people must continue to have good reason to enter the Principality, such as work or school, and others will be turned back.

 

 

Minister of State Serge Telle, accompanied by Minister of the Interior Patrice Cellario and Director of Public Safety Richard Marangoni, took time to see first-hand the effectiveness of the operations and were satisfied all was as it should be.

 

 

Precautionary health measures are in effect, as well. The 1.5 metre distance between people on lifts, escalators and stairways is being requested. The health officials also ask that people not press buttons, touch doors or hold onto railings without proper protection. Gloves are the first line, but also tissues that can be discarded are suggested when having to touch surfaces.

Masks are obligatory on public transport and gel hand sanitisers are available in many places. Appointments in advance must be made in order to visit dentists or for hair and beauty treatments. Additionally, regular cleanings of public spaces must be carried out. 

Many feel that this period is an obstacle course, fraught with rules and pitfalls that are confusing or unclear. It is essential to remember this is new to everyone and the slow ride back to life as it was will not be a straight one. There will be curves, bumps and the odd accident, but in the end, we will get there. In the meantime, patience is key.  

 
Photos: © Communication Branch / Michael Alesi
 
 

Sasa Obradovic staying with Roca Team

by: Stephanie Horsman
05/05/2020

AS Monaco Basketball coach Sasa Obradovic has signed a “gentlemen’s agreement” contract to stay on with the team for the 2020-2021 season.

The Serbian head coach of the AS Monaco Basketball team has agreed to stay on with the team he has taken to the top of the league, being in first place in Jeep Elite before lockdown and set to take on Virtus Bologna in the EuroCup quarterfinals.

The 51-year-old spoke to Monaco Matin and opened up about his thoughts on the Principality and the team.

“My intention is to stay in Monaco,” he revealed. “The most important thing now for the Roca Team is to finish the job and this translates into the desire to win the championship. 

“Beyond my very good relations with the whole club, everyone can see that we have done a good job for over a year and two seasons. The most important thing now for the Roca Team is to finish the work and that translates into the desire to win the championship. Compared to the supporters who identified with the team, compared to my friends who are close to the team, it would be really difficult for me to leave. I leave no doubt, I really want to continue my mission. I feel at home at AS Monaco, it is also important for my family and myself. I think we can continue to build beautiful things together.”

The coach has clearly inspired loyalty, as Roca Team President Sergey Dyadechko agreed, saying, “Too many questions and uncertainties remain. But I’m glad that almost all of the players in touch with the coach have said they want to return to Monaco. They are confident that this team will get the best results and they want to prove it.”

Obradovic came to the club in the 2018-19 season and they have blossomed under his guidance. He was a former player himself, a point guard, playing with various European outfits from 1987 to 2005. When he retired from play, he jumped directly into coaching and led half a dozen teams before settling in Monaco.

 
 

France discovers 1st Covid case from December

by: Cassandra Tanti
05/05/2020

A French hospital has discovered that it treated a man who had Covid-19 as early as 27th December, nearly a month before the French government confirmed its first cases.
Yves Cohen, head of resuscitation at the Avicenne and Jean Verdier hospitals in the northern suburbs of Paris, told French media that scientists had retested samples from 24 patients treated in December and January who tested negative for the flu.
“Of the 24, we had one who was positive for Covid-19 on 27th December,” he revealed.
The samples had all initially been collected to detect flu using PCR tests, the same genetic screening process that can also be used to detect the presence of the novel coronavirus in patients infected at the time the sample is collected.
Each sample was retested several times to ensure there were no errors, he added.
France, which has seen almost 25,000 people die from the virus since 1st March, confirmed its first three Covid-19 cases on 24th January, including two patients in Paris and another in the southwestern city of Bordeaux.
Cohen said it was too early to know if the patient whose December test was Covid-19 positive is France’s “patient zero”. Knowing who was the first is critical to understanding how the virus spread.
Cohen said the patient had survived and that a first investigation to trace the first contamination has been carried out.
“He was sick for 15 days and infected his two children, but not his wife, who works in a supermarket. He was amazed, he didn’t understand how he had been infected. We put the puzzle together and he had not made any trips. The only contact that he had was with his wife.”
The man’s wife worked alongside a Sushi stand, close to colleagues of Chinese origin, Cohen said. It was not clear whether those colleagues had travelled to China, and the local health authority should investigate, he said.
“We’re wondering whether she was asymptomatic,” he said.
“He may be the ‘patient zero’, but perhaps there are others in other regions. All the negative PCRs for pneumonia must be tested again. The virus was probably circulating (then),” he said.
 
(Reuters)