A conversation with Daniel Humm, the Swiss chef and restaurant owner of Eleven Madison Park in New York. His cuisine is focused on locally sourced ingredients, with an emphasis on simplicity, purity, and seasonal flavors.
Did it feel at that time like you were taking big risks?
I think, yes. Me moving to America, I’ve already started establishing myself in Switzerland and very young I had a Michelin star and I was working in this beautiful restaurant. And then I got this opportunity to move to San Francisco and I moved with two suitcases to a new country I didn’t speak the language of. And there was obviously a big risk, but there’s also an amazing amount of liberation, to know that you are actually fine, you actually don’t need really anything other than what’s inside of you. And that starts to be like your secret weapon, and it’s quite powerful.
How did it feel to rise up the rankings among the greatest chefs in the world, with the greatest restaurant in the world?
We did achieve all these accolades that I was dreaming of, from the three stars to the best in the world. And it was 2017, and when we reached that point of being on the mountain top, it felt extremely disorienting and also empty. I was barely in the kitchen. I was just all over giving interviews and doing all these things and that felt so disorienting. And in a way I felt like wow, all these years that I was like working 60 hours a day and six days a week, no one cared and now I’m outside of the restaurant. And it was difficult to know what direction to take it. I had business partners who wanted to monetize this achievement, who wanted to open restaurants around the world and it was very hard to find what I wanted. And I fell into a pretty depressed time to be honest.
How was that though? Because you’ve achieved, you just mentioned that for 20 years, you’ve been seeking these accolades. And then all of a sudden you’re there and it’s so empty. And did you have a crisis?
I definitely had a crisis because for 20 years, I woke up in the morning with this one very goal to be the best. And when you become the best, and then the next day you wake up and you’re like, “What’s next?” And I got asked that all the time. I really didn’t know what was next.
How was that though? Because you’ve achieved, you just mentioned that for 20 years, you’ve been seeking these accolades. And then all of a sudden you’re there and it’s so empty. And did you have a crisis?
I definitely had a crisis because for 20 years, I woke up in the morning with this one very goal to be the best. And when you become the best, and then the next day you wake up and you’re like, “What’s next?” And I got asked that all the time. I really didn’t know what was next.
How was that though? Because you’ve achieved, you just mentioned that for 20 years, you’ve been seeking these accolades. And then all of a sudden you’re there and it’s so empty. And did you have a crisis?
I definitely had a crisis because for 20 years, I woke up in the morning with this one very goal to be the best. And when you become the best, and then the next day you wake up and you’re like, “What’s next?” And I got asked that all the time. I really didn’t know what was next.
