Birmingham beats Madrid to secure top chefs
3rd Feb 2010
Birmingham City Council and Marketing Birmingham announce that following an intense period of lobbying, the Délice network of Good Food Cities, has voted to select Birmingham as its culinary ‘City under the Microscope’ during July 2010.
The vote took place at an international meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, between representatives from 12 of the 17 member countries. The final decision went to a straight vote between Madrid and Birmingham. Although Madrid’s eight Michelin-starred restaurants furthered its claim as a worthy competitor, Birmingham’s increasing culinary reputation clinched the decision which will see Michelin-starred chefs from as many as 12 countries coming to the city.
The event will see top-level meetings between Birmingham’s own Michelin chefs and culinary experts at University College Birmingham on how the fine-dining industry must become more accessible. Alongside the meetings, world-class chefs from Barcelona, Stavanger, Osaka, Lyon, Brussels, Riga, Leipzig, Madrid, Milan, Genoa and Lausanne will lead workshops with members of the public as they demonstrate the styles and techniques of cooking which have won them such acclaim.
The event would coincide with Marketing Birmingham’s annual Taste of Birmingham food festival, ensuring a boost for the city as it works to increase its profile nationally and internationally. The dates of both events coincide, scheduled to take place from 16-18 July 2010.
Mike Whitby, Leader of Birmingham City Council, said:
“I am delighted to see Birmingham’s reputation for fine-dining go from strength-to-strength. Birmingham has been a proud member of the Délice network for over two years now, and as the only UK city to become a founder member we have gained a great deal of both experience and profile.
“As the “culinary ‘City under the Microscope’” in 2010 I believe our already formidable culinary offer will be enriched even further. I hope all of our participating chefs and restaurants will be able to seize the opportunity to exchange skills and techniques.”
Neil Rami, Chief Executive at Marketing Birmingham, said:
“We are delighted to see such confidence from a world-class group of chefs. It further proves that our work to promote Birmingham as an international food city is receiving plaudits from those at the top of the culinary industry both in Europe and further afield.”
Andreas Antona, owner of Simpsons Restaurant, has been working closely with the Délice network in Birmingham. He said:
“It has been clear to me that Birmingham’s reputation has developed over the past few years to become a major player and destination within Europe. Part of this exciting transformation has been the coming of age of Birmingham’s dining scene. Already proud of its ethic and cosmopolitan restaurants, it can now boast to be one of the national centres outside of London for fine dining. Also with the world-beater University College Birmingham, and its highly acclaimed students, Birmingham is well placed to meet the challenges that face the hospitality industry of the future.”
