Ana Ros puts Slovenia on the gastronomic map as the world’s best female chef
And she is currently in Sri Lanka
There are two Slovenian women making global headlines. One is Melania Trump, wife of the President of the United States; the other is Ana Roš.
While it might be hard to match the First Lady in terms of column inches, the newly crowned World’s Best Female Chef will come a pretty close second in terms of making her mark over the next few years.
In their dating days, whenever Ana Roš’s husband, Valter, was in the doghouse, he would apologise by taking his wife to La Subida. Located on the Italian side of the border, it’s the only Slovenian restaurant in the world to have earned a Michelin star – because the Michelin guide doesn’t cover Slovenia. It is also the restaurant that most influenced Roš's career.
A Slovenian family-run restaurant less than an hour’s drive from her house, La Subida impressed the 23-year-old Roš with its creative approaches to ingredients such as rhubarb, which they put together with liver and soft-cooked polenta. Looking back, she says the dishes were simple but nevertheless made a lasting impression.
Ana Roš wasn’t destined to become a chef. She did so by accident, taking over her husband’s family’s restaurant, Hiša Franko, when her father-in-law retired. She met Valter when he was working as a waiter in his parents’ restaurant and the two began dating. When it came for them to inherit Hiša Franko, Ana had been offered a job in Brussels as a diplomat. She turned it down to stay with Valter in the Soça Valley – and her own father stopped talking to her.
“When we have a particularly difficult day and things aren’t running smoothly, I often think it would be easier to be in Africa,” says Roš, who now lives above the homely, family-style restaurant with Valter and their two children. “As a child, I had visions of being the ambassador in Tanzania, sipping my cocktails by the swimming pool. So when it’s really hard, I sometimes think that would be the easier option.”
She may not be representing her country as a diplomat but Roš has become something of an ambassador for Slovenian cuisine, particularly since her appearance on Netflix’s Chef ’s Table series last year. While guests at the restaurant before the show’s airing were mostly European, now they come from everywhere, sometimes flying for 20 hours from Australia or New Zealand just “to see the magic. And you don’t know if you have that magic – it’s a big responsibility. But we never thought this kind of very quick change could happen in a country like Slovenia.”
Roš had never trained as a chef and lacked the basic skills learned in culinary school, so she taught herself by travelling and eating at other restaurants, including La Subida. Almost 20 years later, she has earned a highly respected reputation for the restaurant by reviving locally grown produce and incorporating it into dishes such as hops ravioli with goat kid brain. Foodies are travelling from far and wide to experience her five- and ninecourse tasting menus.
Ana Roš will receive her World’s Best Female Chef Award at the 15th annual World’s 50 Best Restaurants ceremony in Melbourne, Australia, on Wednesday, April 5. Courtesy http://www. theworlds50best.com/