Hangar-7

Our expert gourmet shares a sense of adventure and liking for innovation with the New York-based swiss celebrity chef. It's the start of a beautiful friendship.

Together, stylised maple, lime, ginkgo and plane tree leaves form the logo for Swiss chef Daniel Humm's New York restaurant "Eleven Madison Park". It's a good choice of emblem, because when you look out of the restaurant's panoramic windows you would almost think you are outdoors, even though you're in the heart of Manhattan.

One thing first of all: it's in the nature of my job that I get to know an incredible number of great chefs.
I get on with most of them from the outset; I get on very, very well with many of them. In the case of Daniel Humm, I knew immediately that I was looking at a future friend, because from the very first day of cooking together there was a bond between us of the kind that is only possible between two like-minded people.

Take Daniel's crab with daikon radish, for example, I immediately get to grips with this course without any explanation. The sweetness of the crabmeat, the sweet and sour of the pickled radish, the intense flavour of the seafood mayonnaise and the coral oil, made from lobster roe. This concentration on a few products, the interaction between depth and freshness of flavour, and an accuracy of composition in the process, is one hundred percent Humm, and an integral part of my culinary world.

Humm's major theme is communication, which is why it matters to him that the guest be inspired to enter the kitchen for at least one dish. This guarantees a conversation, even if it's only about the big photo of Miles Davis, the legendary jazz trumpeter. Next to it a sign refers to the cornerstones of Davis's personality – coolness, innovation, spontaneity, desire for adventure. These are also the foundations of Humm's work.

When Daniel combines marinated scallops with preserved, sweet and sour kaki, I ask myself why I haven't thought of that, because with our mutual points of reference, it's an absolutely mandatory combination. Another belief we have in common is freshness if we're working with citrus fruit or vinegars. John Dory cries out for a lemon dressing, accompanied by dried grapefruit, oranges and edamame, or baby bean sprouts, and herbs.

At 34, given his skill, Daniel Humm is extremely young. It's all the more impressive that he does not seem to be weighed down by his top-flight achievements. Incredibly the Swiss runs a half marathon every day. This is where the similarities end. When he visits us in April it will be my pleasure to show him the nicest places for runners in Salzburg, but he'll have to look at the maples, limes, ginkgos and planes on his own.

All guest chefs at a glance

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Archive

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus

Preview
Guest chefs 2012 /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/preview-guest-chefs-2012/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: May 2012

Pino Lavarra /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/pino-lavarra/

Trettl meets Pino Lavarra

Pino Lavarra
Italy /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2012/roland-trettl-meets-pino-lavarra/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: April 2012

Tanja Grandits /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/tanja-grandits/

Trettl meets Tanja Grandits

Tanja Grandits
Switzerland /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2012/roland-trettl-meets-tanja-grandits/

Guest chefs at Restaurant Ikarus: February 2012

Tim Raue /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/tim-raue/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: March 2012

Ryan Clift /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/ryan-clift/

Trettl meets Ryan Clift

Ryan Clift
Singapur /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2012/roland-trettl-meets-ryan-clift/

Trettl meets Tim Raue

Tim Raue
Berlin, Germany /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2012/trettl-meets-tim-raue/

Guest chefs at Restaurant Ikarus: January 2012

Nuno Mendes /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2012/nuno-mendes/

Trettl meets Nuno Mendes

Nuno Mendes
Viajante, London /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2012/trettl-meets-nuno-mendes/

Guest chefs at Restaurant Ikarus: December 2011

Daniel Redondo &
Helena Rizzo /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/daniel-redondo-helena-rizzo/

Guest chefs at Restaurant Ikarus: November 2011

Björn Frantzén &
Daniel Lindeberg /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/bjoern-frantzen-daniel-lindeberg/

Roland Trettl on tour

Helena Rizzo & Daniel Redondo, São Paulo, Brazil /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-helena-rizzo-daniel-redondo/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: October 2011

Xavier Pellicer /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/xavier-pellicer/

Roland Trettl on tour

Xavier Pellicer,
Barcelona, Spain /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-xavier-pellicer/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: September 2011

Alvin Leung /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/alvin-leung/

Roland Trettl on tour

Alvin Leung,
Hong Kong, China /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-alvin-leung/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: August 2011

Ikarus Team /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/ikarus-team/

Roland Trettl on tour

Peter Goossens,
Kruishoutem, Belgium /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-and-the-ikarus-team/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: July 2011

Peter Goossens /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/peter-goossens/

Roland Trettl on tour

Peter Goossens,
Kruishoutem, Belgium /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-peter-goossens/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: June 2011

Emmanuel Renaut /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/emmanuel-renaut/

Roland Trettl on tour

Emmanuel Renaut,
Megève, France /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-emmanuel-renaut/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: May 2011

Anatoly Komm /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/anatoly-komm/

Roland Trettl on tour

Anatoly Komm,
Moscow, Russia /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-anatoly-komm/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: April 2011

Daniel Humm /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/daniel-humm/

Roland Trettl on tour

Daniel Humm,
New York, USA /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-daniel-humm/

Guest chef at Restaurant Ikarus: March 2011

Claus-Peter Lumpp /en/ikarus/guest-chef-at-restaurant-ikarus/2011/claus-peter-lumpp/

Roland Trettl on tour

Claus-Peter Lumpp,
Germany /en/ikarus/roland-trettl-on-tour/2011/roland-trettl-meets-claus-peter-lumpp/