São Paulo – The culinary entrepreneur Marcelo Fernandes, one of the main names in the industry in Brazil, will bring dates to the menus of his six restaurant brands in São Paulo. The fruit, which grows well in more arid regions, is broadly cultivated and consumed in Arab countries and has been winning over consumers in Brazil.
Fernandes is the owner of Clos Restaurante, Attimo PER QUATRO, Kinoshita, Mercearia do Francês, Panetteria Attimino and Tradi Hamburgueria. Dates are already included as an ingredient in some recipes of his restaurants, but he’s now developing and testing recipes for it to appear more broadly in all of his establishments.
The fruit is used in salads, main courses, desserts and drinks. In an interview to ANBA by phone, Fernandes gives some hints of what he’s preparing: au gratin, quiche, ceviche, pudding and caipirinha (sugar cane liquor, sugar and lemon), all including dates. The entrepreneur himself is taking part in the development of the new recipes alongside the leading chef of each restaurant.
Fernandes believes that in June the new recipes should be ready and will begin to be served to the clients. The business owner’s goal is to turn his clients into dates consumers, of the type that look for the fresh fruit to consume.
“When the client is in the restaurant, he will be surprised, will taste and will begin to communicate this. It’s really nice to be surprised in a restaurant with a unique delicacy that it’s just not common in your country,” says Marcelo Fernandes.
Marcelo Fernandes is a fan of dates since his childhood and inherited this fascination from his mother, who, in turn, had the same preference as his father, a Brazilian of Italian descent. The business owner says that his mother encouraged them to eat it and would buy dates at the São Paulo Municipal Market or during trips. “The taste of dates is a blessing, it’s a nectar for me,” says Fernandes.
In the trips that the business owner takes to the countries where dates are cultivated, he usually tries it. Fernandes says that, two years ago, in a trip to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, United Arab Emirates, he had the opportunity to eat dates but also introduce his sons to the fruit.
In the six restaurants of group Gastronomia MF, Fernandes will use many types of dates, according to the recipes. The options offered will also differ in each restaurant, based on the profile of the establishment and of the clients.
Fernandes says that his current plan to include dates in the menus had the support of business owner Julia de Biase. She’s an importer of dates and a distributor of the fruits from the Dubai-based Al Foah brand in the Brazilian and South American markets.
Marcelo Fernandes’ restaurants each offer a different cuisine. Kinoshita serves Japanese food, Attimo PER QUATRO specializes in Italian cuisine, Clos is an Spanish restaurant, Tradi is a hamburger place, Mercearia do Francês is a bistro with French-Brazilian cuisine, and Panetteria Attimino is a bakery.
Contact:
Website: http://gastronomiamf.com.br/
Email: fernandes.mf@gastronomiamf.com.br
Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
