Interview with Alexander Wulf - JRE Chef of the Year 2024
In April 2024, during the JRE-Jeunes Restaurateurs International Congress in Paris, Alexander Wulf was honored with the JRE Chef of the Year Award, a testament to his outstanding contributions to the industry.
We got the opportunity to interview Alexander Wulf, chef of the Restaurant TROYKA in Erkelenz, Germany.
Can you tell us a bit about your journey in the culinary world? How did you start, and what inspired you to become a chef?
I started watching my mother cook in the kitchen at a very early age. I don't know today whether it was because I wanted to cook or because I wanted to spend time with my mother. My mother was a single parent and worked a lot and didn't have time for me, but we could always talk a lot in the kitchen and that's how I learned to love cooking. I saw my mother's passion and eventually developed the same passion. I can remember the smells and tastes since I was 6 or 7 years old. My grandmother was also an incredibly good cook!! I loved watching her cook and bake. Cooking has been on my mind for as long as I can remember. I am the happiest person in the world when I am in my kitchen!
What is your philosophy regarding cooking and creating new dishes?
To be honest, I haven't thought much about my philosophy yet. I think, as in normal life, it is to be respectful of the products where possible, to be sustainable, but also not to do a triple loop jump before you can do a simple head dive! First look at the basics before you give in to the urge to keep improving...
Could you share a story behind one of your favourite dishes?
There are two dishes for which I would like to travel back in time to have that feeling again. As a little boy, I ate my mother's manti (Russian meat dumplings) and felt a feeling of happiness that I had never felt with any other food! It is always delicious! But that one time was incredible. I think it had something to do with my brother and my mother because we were together and it was so incredibly delicious and I was just happy! Or my grandmother's crumb cake, when I came home from school and my grandmother had baked it, you could smell the cake outside...! My friends were always jealous because I had already told them about the taste back then, the boys didn't understand what I meant. But it was simply divine!! My grandmother and my mother deserve 3 stars for the feelings of happiness they triggered in me.
Can you describe your restaurant's concept and what makes it unique?
The concept is like our menu: My childhood memories. The menu is a reflection of my origins, I was born in Russia and grew up in Kazakhstan, came to Germany when I was 9... I bring all these experiences and stories from these countries and the former USSR into our menu. We touch many of our guests emotionally, just like my mom did with me. I think that's pretty unique, Russian and Eastern Bloc cuisine at this level!
What does winning the JRE Chef of the Year 2024 Award mean to you and your team?
It was a huge joy for my team, because they are the ones who are passionate about my idea every day and give their all! It made me incredibly proud to stand on the stage in Paris and accept this award, in front of all these colleagues who I have idolized since I was 18! Getting the applause from my colleagues felt like getting another star! I was and still am overjoyed and grateful for this award!
What advice would you give to aspiring chefs who want to follow in your footsteps?
Oh, that's a question that should perhaps be asked of me in a few years, when I really have been consistently performing for years. But while we're at it: believe in yourself! Don't let partying and the like throw you off course! Work hard, do more than the others and with a bit of luck everything will turn out well! I'm blessed with luck! My old boss always said that luck favors the hard-working... I am and will always be hard-working!!!
