屠悅
換上筆挺的白色廚服,系上黑色的圍布,帶上黑色的廚帽,體會白糖、面粉在指尖輕柔地舞蹈,最后幻化成一道道精致的甜點……幾乎每位從“星曜堂”畢業的學員,都會在自己的朋友圈感慨:這樣的經歷“好幸福”。
“星曜堂”全名為星曜堂國際廚藝學院,由杭州萃品薈教育咨詢有限公司創辦,主打法式西點和法式料理的培訓,在烘培愛好者中很是受捧。還有一些學員“打飛的”從外地趕來上課,甚至西式甜點網紅“子瑜媽媽”也來進修上課。
是什么吸引了大家?
與其說“星曜堂”提供的是法式廚藝培訓,不如說它為那些向往精致生活的人提供了一個感受中西飲食文化差異的平臺。用“星曜堂”幾位創始人的話來說,“把時間浪費在美好的食物上”。為了這種美好,他們請來了來自米其林三星餐廳的外籍明星導師團隊,甚至連助教團隊也都擁有法國著名院校教育背景和多年的教學經驗。
今年6~10月,星曜堂還與法國第一高端餐飲集團、號稱“廚藝界的哈佛”的法國雷諾特廚藝學院達成戰略合作,推出了法式料理中外聯合課程,進入高階課程的學員還能去雷諾特廚藝學院巴黎總校進修。
做美好的食物,是愛的一種表達方式,也是一種積極向上的生活方式。“星曜堂”想把這種生活方式做到極致。
世間萬物,唯有愛與美食不可辜負。那些酸甜苦辣咸和記憶交織在一起,就會愈發顯得珍貴萬分。投資人施國榮就是沖著一份味蕾記憶,看好“星曜堂”的前景的。作為杭州三豪實業集團的董事長,他回憶起母親的水蒸蛋,觸動了內心最柔軟的地方,“美食是存在感情基礎的。”
原來,施國榮小時候家里兄弟姐妹多,生活條件也并不寬裕,一只雞蛋要幾個孩子一起分享。香滑軟糯的嫩黃色蛋羹上,滴上幾滴赤紅的醬油,母親做的水蒸蛋,“味道別提有多好了!”
時光流逝,如今母親年紀大了,打蛋的時候手也會抖,加鹽和醬油的時候又把握不好咸度,但施國榮依然覺得天底下最好吃的就是母親親手做的水蒸蛋。
美食背后的感情基礎,其實就是一種生活方式,因為吃可以拉近彼此的距離,美食可以成為與他人情感溝通的有效方式。這也是“星曜堂”的初衷——吃,可以變得很精致。
作為創始人之一,來自香港的黃展云這些年感受到內地生活方式的轉變:“大家越來越接受西餐文化,而且越來越向往精致的慢生活,而不是快餐文化。”黃展云家從外公一代開始,就在香港從事餐飲行業。從小的生活環境,加上30多年的酒店從業經驗,讓他對美食變得愈發執著。特別是2005年加入香港四季酒店,他作為集團亞洲旗艦店的籌辦團隊成員,看到同期負責籌辦法國餐廳的主廚和經理對美食極致的講究和精細的服務,而這兩人均來自巴黎米其林三星餐廳,黃展云心里的那個念頭發芽了:“希望可以引進米其林標準的烹調技術,將來運用西方新技術、新設備和呈現手法來優化中國菜,培育新一代餐飲業接班人。”而這在2008年有了最初的成果,那年米其林首次為香港餐廳評星時,香港四季酒店的“龍景軒”成為全球第一家米其林三星中餐廳。黃展云說,吃是一種享受,是一種態度,也是一種文化。
對此,另一位“星曜堂”創始人兼首席執行官林剛也很認同。在他眼中,美食文化的概念更寬泛,餐桌禮儀也是其一,“現在大家的生活品質提高了,一起約個飯,除了吃更多的是為了交流,所以禮儀顯得重要起來。”
在林剛看來,雖然越來越多的人接受了西餐,但很少有人懂得西餐文化。“刀叉怎么放,先吃什么菜,都是有講究的。”林剛就曾在大年三十晚上接到杭州朋友從香港打來的電話,原來她一家人受邀參加生意伙伴設的家宴,臨時發現是特別正式的西餐,她傻眼了,該穿什么衣服、怎么用刀叉完全不知道,突然之間手腳都不知道放哪里了,于是她連忙求林剛在電話里作緊急培訓。
“可能對于這樣的‘精致生活,目前有些人覺得有點‘裝,但它的確是我們蠻缺失的。”林剛說。
“星曜堂”在官網上有一句口號:“致力于成為國內領先的美食創業基地,旨在培養更多的年輕人踏足世界美食舞臺。”為此,他們也下了血本——學院大樓上下共4層,占地2000平方米左右。
通往各個教學區的路上,分別有三朵米其林花。仔細看,米其林花上還有一只正在跳躍的青蛙。“星曜堂”的校長鄭佩介紹,米其林花寓意著學員的廚藝不斷進步,而青蛙則是希望學員跳出國界,與國際接軌。
“星曜堂”在教育領域的培訓課程包括法式西點培訓、法式料理培訓、SCA咖啡師初中級培訓,西點、料理課程由外籍導師團隊自主研發,課程內容本地化,以符合國內消費者的飲食習慣。教學模式方面,“星曜堂”采用小班化教學,由一位外籍導師+一位中國助教聯合授課,并且兩位外教導師穿插授課,課程分為導師演示與學員實操,以實操內容為主,通過學員親手實操,掌握每款單品的制作。
目前,“星曜堂”有三位常駐外教導師——馬來西亞籍的Donald Lim和意大利籍的Emanuele Canuto。Donald Lim被學員稱呼為“當勞”,主要負責法式西點培訓。別看他是90后,卻擁有9年的法式西點從業經驗,24歲就擔任米其林三星餐廳L'Auberge du Vieux Puits西廚主管。Emanuele Canuto則擁有17年的法式料理從業經驗,22歲就擔任瑞士日內瓦米其林一星餐廳Restaurant Il Lago Hotel des Bergues(四季酒店集團)西廚主管。
還有來自法國西北部布列塔尼的高級導師DAMIEN BACCON,專攻歐式面包。他目前擔任“世界面包大賽”的評委,而這項賽事號稱面包界的“奧林匹克”。
其實,每次上課都是中西方餐飲文化的碰撞。在當勞看來,中國人比較喜歡水果慕斯、抹茶慕斯,而在西方,更受青睞的是巧克力慕斯。而Emanuele更是遭遇了來自學員的挑戰——有學員帶了核桃到課堂上,希望Emanuele拿核桃做一道菜。“核桃這種食材太中式了,法式料理里很少用。”Emanuele用足了心思,最后用核桃做了一道湯和一道菜。再比如,有學員拿來云南松茸,這跟法國松茸不一樣,最后Emanuele將本地食材改良,研發出本土化的法國料理。Emanuele說,平時經常碰到學員帶來中式原料,他就會混合到法式料理,這種碰撞也讓他感到驚喜。
感受到中西餐飲文化碰撞的不只是導師,學員的感受尤為深刻。
學員七七說,自己以前接觸到的西餐比較簡單,沒有中餐的那種千變萬化,很死板。她告訴筆者:“通過在這里的學習,我還是開了眼界。西餐里還是有很多想法、很多構思的,從醬料到配菜到擺盤,都要根據主菜花很多的心思,有時候都讓我覺得過分精細了。”
學員奶茶對于法式魚湯印象很深:“外教主廚每一個步驟都講解得非常精準,助教老師也很給力。魚湯和以前我經常喝的法式濃湯不一樣,這道湯清澈透明。雖然只是湯,但我真的認識到了法式料理的精細。海鮮的處理、蔬菜的煎炒、兩款法式芥末蛋黃醬、湯的熬制、蒸(你能想象這道湯是蒸出來的嗎)、過濾……還有配菜的烹調方法、擺盤的方法,真的是很精致的生活。”
目前,“星曜堂”已有300余位學員陸續畢業,多數學員已創立了自主品牌門店,開始了個人的創業夢。
Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province in eastern China, is becoming more and more international, as testified by Chefinary International Culinary Academy, founded in 2016 in the city.
Hangzhou is now a star city in China as it is home to Alibaba, the worlds biggest internet commerce business. A city of culture, tourism and history, Hangzhou attracts tourists all over the world. Over 160 million visited in 2017. The city boasts a very strong hospitality industry including numerous restaurants. As more and more internationals are coming to the city and talents flock from all parts of China into the city to further their careers, restaurants in the city are diversifying to cater to different groups of consumers. The setup of the academy in Hangzhou can be best understood in this light.
The founders of the academy are a group of entrepreneurs. One of them is Shi Guorong, a native of Hangzhou and president of Hangzhou Sanhao Industrial Group. Huang Zhanyun, a professional engaged in hospitality business in Hong Kong for three decades, has got the idea of introducing Michelin standards to promote Chinese food. Lin Gang, CEO of the academy, has had direct experience and knowledge concerning the market demand for high-end training in food and related etiquette.
The academy occupies an area of 2,000 square meters on four floors in a building in Hangzhou. The academy offers training courses in pastry, French culinary arts, and coffee skills for primary and intermediate certificates. The training courses of pastry and French culinary arts are especially designed and developed by the academy and the textbooks are localized to cater to the needs and requires of local consumers.
The academy has launched a training course in partnership with ?cole Len?tre, a pastry training powerhouse in France. Trainees at the advanced level can take a training course at ?cole Len?tre in Paris.
Some industrial insiders observe that the academy provides more than training courses. It is actually a platform for those in pursuit of an elegant life style to experience the best of western culinary arts. The most popular training course at the academy is pastry. Some trainees are from other parts of the country.
Training classes at the academy are of small sizes. Usually an international teacher and a Chinese teaching assistant work hand in hand. Trainees are able to acquire hands-on experience. At present, the academy has two resident teachers. One is a Malaysian pastry maser named Donald Lim and the other Emanuele Canuto, an Italian chef.
Donald Lim, though in his late 20s, is an experienced pastry master. He has worked nine years as a French-style pastry chef. At 24, he was appointed executive chef at LAuberge du Vieux Puits, a Michelin 3-star restaurant in France. Emanuele Canuto has worked in French restaurants for 17 years. At 22, he was appointed an executive chef at a Michelin 1-star restaurant.
Trainees at the academy find the training courses fascinating. The classroom serves as a place where different cultures clash and merge. Some trainees want to make pastries or dishes with local ingredients. They bring local food ingredients to classrooms and ask their masters how to introduce local food ingredients into recipes.
Donald Lim has found that trainees are more interested in making mousses flavored with fruit or powdered tea whereas in the west chocolate mousses are more popular. Emanuele Canuto finds it challenging to use Chinese ingredients to make dishes in French style. A trainee once brought some nutmeat of walnut to Canuto in the hope to see the popular Chinese ingredient play a part in a dish. Canuto studied the ingredient and made a dish and a soup. On another occasion, a trainee brought Matsutake Mushroom produced in Yunnan to the classroom. This mushroom is different from the species seen in France. Canuto processed the Yunnan mushroom in an innovative way before localizing a French recipe to cater to the Chinese flavor.
“Training here is eye-opening,” said a trainee, “Making a dish in the western style needs plenty of planning and thinking. Sometimes I think it too sophisticated.”
Over 300 trainees have graduated from the academy and most of them have set up their own restaurant businesses.