Aram Mnatsakanov is known to many residents of Russia and the CIS countries as a good and successful restaurateur, as well as an expert culinary specialist. Aram became known to the public after the large-scale culinary show "Infernal Cuisine" appeared on the screens of Ukraine, where he participated as a kitchen chef.
short biography
Aram Mikhailovich Mnatsakanov is a native of the capital of Azerbaijan - the city of Baku. He was born in 1962, on November 20, in a family of intellectuals - his mother and father were teachers (father is a teacher of physical education at school, and his mother is a teacher in kindergarten). He spent all his childhood in Baku, until the age of 7, after which the Mnatsakanov family broke up and his father and son moved to St. Petersburg. Here, at the age of 16, Aram entered the Nakhimov Military School, from where he took the documents after a year of study. This was followed by training at the automotive faculty of the Leningrad Civil Engineering Institute (LISI), which also could not be completed - the student Mnatsakanov was expelled for rare attendance.
So, having tried many professions, Aram Mnatsakanov ended up focusing on cooking, turning the hobby into a vocation.
Now Aram is fond of travel - he especially likes to travel to Italy, and also devotes part of his time to fashion business.
Personal life and family
During his life, Aram Mnatsakanov managed to become married twice (the names of the wives are Elena and Olga). He is also the father of two children - Aram has a son Michael and daughter Lina.
In general, the restaurateur does not like to talk about his personal life and family, so there is no information about this on the Internet and in the media.
Career
Aram Mnatsakanov’s restaurateur’s career began in September 2001, with the opening of his first bar called “Cork” - an institution where you can drink the best wine from all over the world. The budget on which "Cork" was created amounted to about 30 thousand dollars. Aram himself admits that this bar was organized without any experience in restaurant business, on simple enthusiasm, but, despite this, the project turned out to be very interesting and successful, which entailed the rapid development of the institution. Prior to that, Aram was engaged in the wine business, working as a commercial director at the Marine Express company, where he got the necessary acquaintances with wine suppliers. A little less than a year later, in July 2002, Aram opened his first Italian restaurant, Il Grappolo (not far from Panteleimon Cathedral), which also quickly gained popularity due to its delicious dishes and good service. The restaurant is popular to this day - famous people often come here for lunch and dinner.
Now Aram Mnatsakanov owns a large network of establishments in St. Petersburg and Moscow - it includes more than a dozen well-known restaurants of Italian and French cuisine. Recently, it was supplemented by the Sadko restaurant - an institution that serves Russian cuisine. The fact of his discovery made a splash among those who know Aram's true love for Italian cuisine.
The show "On the Knives", "Real Kitchen" and "Hell's Kitchen"
Aram Mnatsakanov became popular thanks to his participation in television shows, where he acted as the chief chef of the projects. Here he showed himself to be a master of culinary art, an excellent restaurateur, and also a stern and demanding mentor who can teach a lot.
The Hellish Kitchen project was launched in 2011 on the Ukrainian TV channel 1 + 1. It is an analogue of the American culinary show Hell's Kitchen, very popular in the United States.
A little later, Aram Mnatsakanov began to participate in the “On the Knives” project, where he shared his experience gained in the restaurant business with other owners of declining establishments. In this show, he revealed to many the secrets of their failure in business.
And, finally, another television project - “Real Kitchen”, which was released in 2014, also brought Aram a new portion of popularity. Here he was involved in evaluating the work of fifteen chefs who wanted to improve their culinary skills and compete for the title of best.
Awards and Achievements
Throughout his career, Aram Mnatsakanov won several awards. First of all, he was awarded the title of Knight of the Order "For Merit to the Italian Republic" for opening many Italian restaurants, thereby promoting the culture of this country in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
For the opening of the restaurant Il Grappolo ("Il Grappolo"), Aram Mnatsakanov was the first in all of Russia to receive the Bay Leaf award in the Restaurant Legend nomination. In 2013, the Snob magazine awarded him a prize in the Gastronomy nomination, and according to GQ magazine, he became the winner in the Restaurateur of the Year nomination.
However, the main achievement of Aram Mikhailovich, truly, can be considered dozens of people who gained his knowledge and experience in the restaurant business and culinary. All the cooks working in the kitchens of the Mnatsakanova restaurants are certainly great professionals who daily receive invaluable experience in this difficult creative work. The chef himself admits that he loves smart people very much - they can be taught the intricacies of culinary art, which he regularly does with great pleasure.
Aram Mnatsakanova Restaurants
During his career, Mnatsakanov founded a large network of restaurants. It includes such institutions:
- Wine Bar "Cork".
- Italian restaurant Il Grappolo ("Il Grappolo").
- Macaroni.
- Panoramic restaurant of Italian cuisine "Fish".
- Trattoria "Mozzarella Bar".
- Country restaurant "Cork in the Cottage".
- French cantina Jerome.
The founder of the famous group of restaurants Probka Family ("Cork Family") is Aram Mnatsakanov. These restaurants are located mainly in St. Petersburg, except for one - Cork on Tsvetnoy, which is located in Moscow on Tsvetnoy Boulevard.
All establishments working under the leadership of the famous chef have one common feature - they do not hold banquets and celebrations, and there is no VIP service system - here all visitors are equally equal. Also, the interior of each restaurant is distinguished by its style in the interior - Aram Mnatsakanov himself participates in their development. Photos taken within the walls of these institutions convey the sophistication of the taste that prevails there.
Currently, the restaurateur has finished opening new establishments in Russia, and began to develop in the vastness of Europe - in Germany, as his wife and son live there.
