FOOD ART & HEALTH PROJECT

Aleksei Kudrjavtsev

I teach gourmet cooking classes, work on call as a private chef, prepare food for corporate parties, consult on healthy eating, develop menus to increase libido. Compiled and prepared dinners for royal families, ministers, government, as well as popular musicians, artists and many famous businessmen. Conducted master classes in Spain and France.

When did you start your career?

I finished culinary school in Estoniain 2000, which took about 4 years. Afterwards, I took several career courses in different countries. I studied in France, Belgium, Netherlands and the last year I was in Spain.

What is your speciality?

Oh, I like desserts! But here at the lodge I actually do everything, from bread to desserts.

Would you say it is an international cuisine?

Yeah, but mostly with local ingredients. You can find a lot of fish, a lot of reindeers and a lot of berries. Of course, I also need to add ingredients from other countries, because in the middle of nowhere you cannot find everything what you need, like root vegetables for example — at least not in winter time as there is no sun.

Do you also prepare vegan and vegetarian meals?

Yes. Guests usually tell me their preferences in a booking form. So I know when they are coming and can prepare in advance. We also have a lot of requests for dairy free and I’m also planning a lot for people who have different allergies.

What is your favourite dish you like cooking?

Actually, I like cooking vegetarian food. But it is hard to say, what I really like. One day it can be pasta, one day it can be something else like beef.

Do you also have recommendations for wine?

Yeah, I made a lot of courses with wines from different regions. I also learned from sommelier courses, so I can recommend a nice one to go with the respective dish.

When you think about other chefs, what do you think makes your kitchen/ your cooking special?

My cooking style is like a freestyle one mostly, especially in summer, when the menu is a bit lighter. Sometimes, it just comes to my mind, I see ingredients and I put them together. I have been cooking for 25 years now and I also have a lot of experience with many VIP guests. In Estonia for example, I made desserts for Queen Elisabeth and dinner for Metallica or for Prodigy. Tallin is a quite popular city for people visiting and doing concerts. I also worked in the US embassy for one year. There were so many people coming, like politicians. It was quite interesting and I learned a lot.