Mauro Colagreco, chef: ‘Ingredients are key – I choose mine with my heart’
Chef Mauro Colagreco is a two Michelin star award-winning chef, known for Mediterranean-inspired dishes created with high quality fresh ingredients.
The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2017, recently ranked his restaurant, Mirazur, in Menton, France the fourth best restaurant in the world. Mirazur moved up two positions from its 2016 ranking.
Mauro Colagreco has signed on to lead Grill 58°, a restaurant which will be located within the soon to be opened MGM Cotai property. With a menu planned to feature premium beef sourced from the best ranchers around the world Grill 58° is expected to become a world-renowned destination for food and wine connoisseurs that is known for delivering exceptional steak dishes. Interviewed by the Times, Colagreco talks about what he proposes to bring to Macau.
Macau Daily Times (MDT) – Grill 58° will be the first restaurant in Macau to feature a Salt Meat-aging room. In what sense will this feature provide guests with a different experience in taste?
Mauro Colagreco (MC) – The Salt Meat-aging Room at Grill 58° will enhance guests’ experience in many ways. First, it will allow us to showcase different pieces of premium meats, giving the guests a visual interaction. It is also a plus on the technical side, as it dry-ages the high quality meat in the best conditions to reach perfect maturity. What the salt does, is that it dehydrates the meat, leaving the meat with a more condensed and intense flavor. In addition, just looking inside the room itself is a sensorial experience because the room features a big block of Himalayan salt, which is the first in Macau.
MDT – What are the main highlights of the menu and how did you decide on those particular dishes?
MC – The menu offers four different origins of meats – Australia, USA, Japan, and France – which will be accompanied by garnishes, condiments and sauces from the four respective countries, allowing guests to “travel [through different tastes] without moving.” The choice of such meats is obviously quality-driven, and getting the best meats from each [origin] is definitely our goal.
MDT – You have a gathered over the years a wide and highly praised reputation including an accolade from the world-famous Michelin Guide. How do you describe your cuisine?
MC – I like to describe my cuisine as personal, intense and influenced by my experiences [voyages] throughout the world.
MDT – Ingredients often have an essential role, how do you choose yours?
MC – Ingredients are key to any cooking. And I choose mine with my eyes and taste buds, but also with my heart. Knowing the people who make the ingredients I use and sharing their philosophy is just as important as tasting them.
Grill 58 restaurant rendering
MDT – What do you expect from the new trends in Asia, after observing how Asia has become the setting for “world cuisines” and “Fusion Cuisines.” Are these trends a reflex from the globalization trend worldwide?
MC – It is a bit tricky to link globalization with fusion cuisine in my opinion. In fact, people have always travelled and exchanged cultures, and cuisines have been telling that story for hundreds of years, long before globalization became a concept…
MDT – What are your feelings about Macau and its long traditions in mixing South American, European, Middle Eastern and Far-Eastern cuisines? Is it the right place for a gastronomy gathering?
MC – Macau is definitely a perfect setting for gastronomy, being at the crossroads of so many cultures.
Its location, its vibrancy and its spirit stimulate creativity. In Macau, you feel like there is no limit to culinary art.
