Portuguese chef Vasco Coelho Santos has achieved a lot in his culinary career. At 35, he has four restaurants, a fishmongers and a bakery. He was also named Chef of the Year 2023 by Boa Cama Boa Mesa, Portugal’s most prestigious culinary guide.
Portuguese chef Vasco Coelho Santos. JOAO COSTA
The guide also awarded his Michelin-starred and signature restaurant, Euskalduna Studio, the Golden Fork, which signifies it as one of the best places to eat in Portugal.
“Since I travelled so much during my career, my food is global, but it uses Portuguese ingredients. That’s my focus… local ingredients. I believe I have to protect Portuguese suppliers and small producers, but the way I cook isn’t Portuguese or traditional. I use techniques from the all over the world,” says chef Santos.
The word Euskalduna refers to a Basque person. “Though in English it is pronounced with…
