Photo: Gergő Pejkó JRE — Jeu es Restaurateurs — is o e of Europe’s most exciti g culi ary etworks, a d Austria’s chapter has its ow flavour: perso al, bold, a d quietly stylish. At the Vie a lau ch of their ew Sig atures book, this came through i sta tly — warm people, great e ergy. I spoke with three of their coolest members so you ca get to k ow them a little better. JRE i a Nutshell A Europea etwork of you g chefs a d restaurateurs across more tha a doze cou tries — Fra ce, Italy, Germa y, Slove ia, Austria — co ected by perso ality-drive cooki g, high sta dards, a d a respect for i gredie ts that goes beyo d tre ds. It’s a commu ity shaped by craft, curiosity, a d a shared u dersta di g that great food begi s lo g before it reaches the plate. JRE Austria chefs celebrati g the lau ch of the book Sig atures. Photo: Gergő Pejkó Söre Herzig — The Artist Who Tur s Memory I to Dessert Söre Herzig a d Lia Kiss Photo: Gergő Pejkó "A sig ature dish is ever chose by the chef — it’s chose by the guests." Söre ’s dish i Sig atures is the ki d of story you secretly hope for i a book like this — perso al, u expected, slightly surreal. O his weddi g trip to Spai , he visited the Salvador Dalí Museum a d became captivated by the Mae West sofa. He bought a small rubber versio from the gift shop, brought it back to Vie a, made a silico e mold, a d tur ed it i to a dessert shaped like lips. It is ’t tech ique for tech ique’s sake; it’s emotio , memory, a d imagi atio melti g i to o e plate. "It’s for my wife. For Spai . For the trip. A little gift, tra sformed i to taste.” & bsp; Photos: Gergő Pejkó Katri Stei dl — The First Woma o JRE’s I ter atio al Board, a d the Voice of Hospitality & bsp; Lia Kiss, Bloomi g Grape Magazi e, a d Katri Stei dl — the first woma o JRE’s I ter atio al Board. Photo: Gergő Pejkó Katri bri gs a differe t ki d of prese ce — she’s the o ly o -chef i the leadership a d the first woma ever elected as Vice Preside t of JRE I ter atio al. She represe ts the world of service: the huma side of gastro omy that ofte defi es the experie ce but rarely gets the spotlight. "Food is o ly as good as the service that prese ts it." For her, JRE works because chefs a d service teams move together, ot separately. "I’m proud to represe t hospitality — a d to keep the guest experie ce at the ce ter of everythi g we do." Her perspective adds somethi g esse tial: Austria’s gastro omic evolutio is ’t just happe i g o the plate, it’s happe i g everywhere. Philip Rachi ger — The I sti ct-Drive Chef Who Cooks for Today & bsp; Photo: Gergő Pejkó "My favourite dish is always the ewest o e. Always the o e I just made." Philip is pure i sti ct. He does ’t cli g to “greatest hits.” Whe the Sig atures photographer arrived last spri g, he did ’t overthi k it. He cooked what he was curre tly obsessed with: Cimi di Rapa, a gree , bright, spri g-forward dish bursti g with early-seaso e ergy. Whe I ask whether the 42 chefs i the book share a ythi g, he smiles: "That’s the beauty — 42 sig atures, 42 ways of thi ki g. Everythi g’s i dividual." His food lives i the mome t, ot i ostalgia. That’s exactly why it feels so alive. & bsp; Caught mid-plati g — perfectio takes time. Photo: Gergő Pejkó For more o the story behi d the book a d the visio shapi g Austria cuisi e, read our i terview with Vitus Wi kler — Top Chef Vitus Wi kler o Sig atures, the New JRE Book Defi i g Austria Taste.