Three culinary hotspots blend tradition with a cosmopolitan vibe
A restaurant where the cloth napkins are deliberately not ironed: it may sound unusual, but it makes perfect sense. Or at least it does if you know about the vision that Feysal Ghafelzadeh and Louis Ottevaere have. They’ve created three culinary hotspots in Kortrijk – Nude, Spicy Lemon and Choclo – where the interior and the experience are as important as the food they serve.
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In their own individual ways, Nude, Spicy Lemon and Choclo are the perfect blend of traditional authenticity and a cosmopolitan atmosphere. The inspiration for the interior and the dishes comes from various different regions and cultures. ‘In the case of Nude, it’s Levantine cuisine from Israel, Lebanon and Syria. Spicy Lemon has a Persian character, with lots of spices such as saffron, turmeric and sumac.’
Choclo, inspired by Latin American culture and cuisine.
‘Meanwhile Choclo, our newest business, is Mexican-inspired. We deliberately don’t call it a Mexican restaurant: out of respect for the cultures in question, we use the expression “inspired by”’, says Feysal, who himself has roots in Iran. The three businesses are united under the umbrella organisation “Kurkumama”, which, incidentally, is also the nickname of Feysal’s mother, who cooks at Spicy Lemon.
Feysal and Louis want to make a visit to Nude, Spicy Lemon or Choclo a real experience. ‘That’s why we talk about hospitality rather than catering. For us, everything revolves around giving a warm welcome and storytelling’, he explains. ‘When you enter Choclo you immediately notice a characteristic palo santo aroma. We apply the Choclo concept – which is about the perfection of imperfection – to everything. The hand-made cups aren’t all exactly the same size, the napkins haven’t been ironed, the odd bowl may be chipped, the walls and ceiling have been given a special ageing treatment... We use these details to convey our message.’
They’ve gone to great lengths to make their concept work. And they’ve gone fast. ‘There were just four months between the purchase of our last premises and the opening. We were still refining our ideas right up to the last minute – our architect Simon Adriaenssens and our contractor could tell you a thing or two about that. At Nude we adjusted the design of the bar while they were actually building it. But these are the sort of things that belong in a story full of passion. The energy that’s present in the restaurant, the feeling we get when we’re at work, the reviews afterwards: these are the things that motivate us.’
Corporate social responsibility and the choice of AQUALEX
When Feysal took over his first restaurant nearly ten years ago – called ’t Fonduetje at the time, and Spicy Lemon now – he decided to have an AQUALEX tap installed. ‘I did that primarily for practical reasons. When you don’t have to buy bottled water, you create more space in the fridges. Moreover, you improve the work flow: your people no longer have to lug crates around and spend time opening bottles, so you can use your team more efficiently. Of course, the sustainability aspect of tap water is important too. Incidentally, we serve AQUALEX water in reusable wine bottles. When I’m serving water to customers I always say: “I’m Christ, turning wine into water”’ (laughs).
For every bottle of tap water sold, Kurkumama donates 50 cents to charity. ‘We donate the money to “charity: water”, a non-profit organisation that supplies drinking water to people in developing countries. I estimate that we’ll reach around 9,000 bottles by the end of 2023, so we’ll be able to make a nice contribution.’ They also practise corporate social responsibility in other ways. ‘We’ve already given seven or eight people the opportunity to work with us through a so-called IBO (individual vocational training programme). By doing this, we invest in training talent, with a view to longer-term collaboration. We also participate in the benefit event “A Taste for Charity”, an initiative of Lions Club Kortrijk Leie.’
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