From Gelendzhik to Moscow: the Success Story of Chef Evgeny Tsyganov

Evgeny Tsyganov was born in the small seaside town of Gelendzhik, where his childhood and youth passed. The question of what to be never once came up for Evgeny — he'd been drawn to the kitchen since early childhood. His mother played no small part in shaping the future maestro. She cooked wonderfully and managed to instill in her son a love of delicious food. Together, they experimented a lot, studying how various spices affected the final result and dreaming up new combinations. That practice taught Evgeny a distinctive culinary thoughtfulness. At the heart of the maestro's approach to every dish lies a complete understanding of the nature of the ingredients used, knowledge of culinary techniques, and their physics and chemistry. The result: culinary works with perfectly calibrated combinations of creativity and craft.

Evgeny came into the kitchen at 17. His first job was at Mediterranean restaurant "Saint-Michel" in his native Gelendzhik, whose menu was built mainly around Black Sea seafood. He then moved to the international "Kempinski" hotel chain. Alongside that, Evgeny got a relevant education, graduating from a trade and economics college in Rostov with a degree in "Food Service Technology," and did an internship in China.

In 2017, he decided to move to the northern capital to continue his career and conquer new heights. In St. Petersburg, the young cook did internships at several restaurants, and a year later decided to move to Moscow, where he immediately got an offer from Takhir Kholikberdiev to become chef at restaurant "Yuzhane." That same year, 2018, Evgeny interned under maestro Vladimir Mukhin at Chef's Table, and the very next year Tsyganov became head of the kitchen at restaurant Cameo, where he was recognized in the "Chef — Discovery of the Year" category. The restaurant's signature feature: no waiters — the cooks do everything themselves.

In 2021, Tsyganov took part in A. Rappoport's project "Pavilion," and a year later took charge of the kitchen at Wine Skills.

Today, brand chef Tsyganov heads the culinary team at ENO Bistro. This is a new Folk Team project, bringing three formats together under one roof: a country restaurant, a wine boutique, and a wine lecture hall. Besides regular guest service, professional culinary gatherings of Russian chefs and winemakers are held here regularly. Tsyganov is also brand chef for the restaurant group run by D. Romanov and V. Ivanov.

One of the brand chef's most recent ventures has been involvement in the Spanish-Portuguese project Pardon, whose driving force was Portuguese chef Adrián Quetglas (holder of one Michelin star) — a fine-dining signature-cuisine chef, co-owner, and brand chef of restaurant projects in several countries. Adrián and Evgeny made several trips together to Mallorca, Spain, where Quetglas currently lives and works, to develop a special menu for Pardon. 

During this collaboration, it was decided to open another culinary spot in Moscow called "Anchous" ("Anchovy"). It's a fish brasserie that's always loud, busy, and fun, where you can try refined sea bass or a "simple" hot dog — but with octopus — as well as fish fat, anchovies, kupaty sausages, octopus mortadella, and much more. "Anchous" (official Moscow name Anchovy's Club) is a kind of challenge to Moscow diners' shifting culinary preferences. Chefs have started noticing that tastes have grown blander: customers want diluted spices, no lactose or salt. One of "Anchous's" goals is to bring back interest in bold, rich, generous, full flavor.

Evgeny is convinced that every ingredient should be used in full, adding nothing and taking nothing away — that is, keeping the flavor balance. This is achieved by building a whole spectrum of flavor around the main ingredient, one capable of bringing out that ingredient's qualities to the fullest.

When free time comes up, Evgeny devotes it to his family, as well as his hobby — photography.