Fell in love and became a chef in Iceland
Manuel Vincent Colsy, holding a copy of Saturday's edition of Morgunblaðið. The front page features a photograph of himself, and a photograph of François Hollande, President of France. "I'm sending this to my mother," he says. Mbl.is/ Árni Sæberg
"I came to Iceland 26 years ago for the simple reason that I fell in love with an Icelandic woman who was studying in Paris at the time. I decided to move to Iceland with her," explains French chef Manuel Vincent Colsy who was pleasantly surprised to share the cover of Morgunblaðið on Saturday with the President of France, who was attending the Arctic Circle conference in Iceland.
"What a funny coincidence, this will make my mother happy," said Colsy who is going to send the issue to his mother in France. The reason he was in Morgunblaðið this weekend was that he was interviewed about working as a French chef in Reykjavik.
Colsy, who trained as a chef and worked at numerous restaurants in Paris before moving to Reykjavik now works as a chef at Kaffi Retro in the harbour area of Grandi. "I've worked at several restaurants in Reykjavik and also in other parts of Iceland. I was head chef at the Fosshótel in Húsavík and also at Nautabú in Egilstaðir. I like changes to the scenery but now I'm back in Reykjavik and I love working at a small intimate place like Retró where I don't have to work a sixteen hour work day. I prefer to put a lot of time into cooking so that the end result is of top quality," he explains.
"Retro is a cosy place, where the heart goes into every meal and into every cup of coffee. " Colsy thinks Icelandic cuisine has come far in recent years compared to when he first moved here. "Icelanders travel a lot more than they used to. Restaurant culture in Reykjavik has greatly improved, and the wine and beer culture. "
He regularly visits his mother who still lives in Paris, but the charm of Paris has faded he explains. "I was there earlier in October and there are just too many crowds, too much pollution, too much noise and too much traffic. I love visiting Paris but I wouldn't want to live tehre anymore. My father is Basque and I'd love to move to the Basque country when I retire. I love being there in the countryside, surrounded by mountains and to fish for trout."
Kaffi Retró is located at Grandagarður 14 in Reykjavik and offers fantastic views of the harbour.
Colsy is chef at a tiny, cosy restaurant by the harbourfront called Kaffi Retró. Mbl.is/ Árni Sæberg
