Which is the best restaurant you have ever
been to and why?
Recently I went to Orana in Adelaide, Australia.
Chef Jock Zonfrillo is a f****** dude. It was
love at first sight. Many of the ingredients he
sources come from communities in remote
parts around Australia. I went through a
tasting menu during which I tasted as many
as 40 native Australian ingredients and wild
foods, which I have never even seen before.
Each dish spoke to me of Australia and the
land the ingredients came from – sometimes
in a traditional way, sometimes abstract, and
sometimes radical, but always given thought
and always paying respect to the idea of a true
Australian cuisine. I guess.
What aspect of being a chef is most gratifying
for you?
I think it’s giving pleasure to people in many
other ways. Sometimes I see myself like a
‘pusher’ ... providing people something that
they will be craving. I love to see people
relaxed, enjoying their moment, the experience. I love seeing people merging together
through the medium of gastronomy.
If you could cook for and dine with anyone,
who would that be?
Mmmm… when I was younger, I wished I
could open a private club with Edith Piaf. So it’s
has to be Edith.
What is your favourite national or regional
cuisine?
No doubt. The Piedmontese bourgeois cuisine.
After all I am native from Piedmont region
and it’s the only one that possesses both the
cuisine of the terroir, of the royal court and the
traditional rustic one, all together.
When you are at home and want to cook, what
do you prepare?
I am a super fan of soups. Any soups of any
kind. Especially the most complex one.
What are the secrets of a successful restaurant?
Communication in every form. The communication with the customer through your cuisine,
between staff, front of house and back of
house for example.
What was your favourite meal as a child?
I couldn’t have enough cod fish fingers. Fish
fingers, fish fingers, fish fingers.
Mayo mayo mayo!
Which five guests would you most like to
dine with?
Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Merisi from
Caravaggio, Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, and
Marilyn Monroe.
Do you think being a great chef is a natural
talent, or is it something anyone can learn?
I think that if you’re a successful chef it doesn’t
matter where it comes from. It could be a
natural talent or one you learn through sheer
hard work.
How has your cooking evolved over the years?
That’s the reason behind the name of the
restaurant Combal.Zero. Every two years I
basically start form zero with a new concept
and philosophy. Ultimately, what I try to create
is an experience , not just a meal. I like to play
with custo