Chef Massimo Bottura's First U.S. Project Will Be a Rockefeller-supported Bronx Soup Kitchen
Massimo Bottura is coming to America — but not to open a restaurant. Eater reported last year that the chef behind Osteria Francescana, the Modena, Italy restaurant that topped the World’s 50 Best List in 2016, was planning to open one of his food waste-fighting soup kitchens, called Refettorios, in the Bronx with support from New York’s Italian consulate. On a recent episode of the Eater Upsell, Bottura elaborated on those plans and explained to Upsell host Greg Morabito why this country is in particular need of his efforts to eliminate food waste.
With his nonprofit Food for Soul, Bottura has begun a tradition of setting up Refettorios, which take potential food waste and turn it into meals for people who need them, sometimes with help from big-name chefs. Although most Refettorios were initially set up around major events, like Expo Milano and the summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the community kitchens have lasted long past those closing ceremonies. “We are not interested in pop-ups. We are interested in seeds,” Bottura says. “They’re going to grow, and they’re going to expand all over the world. . .