Pleasure is really the most important thing

Whenever I type “Tanja Grandits” into my computer, the autocorrect program always transforms her name into “Tanja Grandiose”. And I type her name in a lot - before I finally visit her restaurant, the legendary Stucki. The more I read about her in advance, the more difficult I find it to write about her. Because she has already answered every question you can possibly think of, countless times. The fact that there is a huge cloudburst on the day that I am meeting her, just when I am standing in front of the Restaurant Stucki, doesn’t make things any easier.

I sit at one of the restaurant tables looking like a drowned rat and am served a warm ginger drink. It’s my first ever visit to the Stucki and in fact to any gourmet restaurant at all. All I know so far about the world of high-end gastronomy is: the air is thin up there. Guests and critics expect perfection daily, the responsibilities and pressure to succeed are immense; and any number of chefs have already suffered breakdowns because of it. Ms. Grandits must be pretty stressed herself, I think to myself, after all, this past year has not been an easy one. And I expect to encounter an exhausted woman.

I am completely wrong. The slenderly built Tanja Grandits breezes into the room, relaxed and smiling. Not a trace of flurry or agitation. If I hadn’t known that she is chef of the year, with 19 Gault Millau points and two Michelin stars, that she has written seven cookbooks, has a staff of forty and runs her own delicatessen – I would have sworn she was a breath therapist. Or a yoga teacher.

“This extraordinary last year has contributed to the fact that I have never been as well-rested as I am now”, she pronounces in her pleasant, Southern German accent and beams. She did work a lot, but in a completely different way. She wrote recipes, worked on her latest cookbook and served in her shop, selling her dishes as take-aways. In the evenings she was free. “After 20 years in gastronomy it was a completely different life. Incredibly lovely!”

When Tanja Grandits talks her eyes sparkle and she is completely focussed. She seems to be utterly at peace with herself and the world. The image I had in my head of choleric chefs – rolls away down the back of my neck - with the last of the raindrops. I chuckle to myself when she tells me how she completes a yoga routine every morning, right after brushing her teeth. And I am awed by her extensive morning ritual: “I light candles, drink my matcha tea and immerse myself in lovely scents, listen to soft music, make myself a face mask and feel invigorated enough to face the day. Once I have taken care of myself, I can spend the rest of the day taking care of everyone”, she laughs.

By everyone else she means, for example, her team. She doesn’t just feel responsible for being able to pay her employees their salaries, but also for ensuring that they are well. “As a chef, I want to be there for my employees so that they feel at ease and have the chance to progress. People spend so much time at work it should really be pleasant and enjoyable. And food tastes better when there is a good atmosphere.”

It is obvious that Tanja Grandits works differently to other chefs. Less hierarchical, more of a family atmosphere. You can also tell this by the fact that some of her staff have been with her for years. She has been working with her sous-chef for 14 years and she still has to grin when she talks about him. “He is an absolute original; he always wears pink aprons and a pink chef’s jacket and he likes to hide in cupboards and jump out unexpectedly to give the team a terrible shock.” She is also delighted with her two musical dishwashers from Tahiti: “They both play the ukulele – incredibly well! Whenever someone has a birthday, they play a tune and sing along to it – it is so lovely, an incredible treat!”

She often emphasises how grateful she is. For example, for the time with her 16-year-old daughter Emma. Or for the fact that she recently found a great piano teacher and can already play a little bit of “Amélie”. She is happy that she gets to do things she enjoys every day and which fill her with energy. What makes her angry then, I want to know? “Stupidity and ignorance”, she admits. But then immediately adds: “But I am never cross with someone for very long. Anger is a feeling that slows you down and blocks you from doing new things. An emotion that robs you of energy. I actually most enjoy being be at home with myself.” And if sometimes things aren’t going so well, she has a special trick: “Then I go upstairs quickly, take a shower and start the day afresh. That works!”

Getting older also helps her to live very consciously in the here and now. “I really enjoy this composure that comes with age so much. Over the last few years an incredible underlying sense of contentment has settled within me. Where I am at the moment is fantastic. I know that what I have done so far is right, it is my role in life.” But this doesn’t mean she is about to sit back and relax from now on. Her drive is too great, her dreams too enticing. For example, one day she would like to have a small hotel where she could bring everything she has learned and experienced in life together, under one roof. It would have to be in a beautiful place, handsomely furnished and of course it would always smell incredibly good. “I imagine myself then, sitting at the kitchen table, drinking champagne and writing recipes. And all the people I have met over the years, could visit me and eat well and enjoy life. Pleasure is really the most important thing.”

The rain has lightened a little as I take my leave of Tanja Grandits a the end of our interview. She disappears as soundlessly as she arrives – as though she were an apparition from the spirit world. Relaxed and smiling I float down the steps of the Stücki restaurant myself. Perhaps my autocorrect program is right when it keeps turning “Grandits” into “Grandiose”.

Miss Grandits, what could you always eat, no matter what the time of day?

Hummus with carrots. That is basically our appetiser every day. I like it best with plenty of lemon and tons of tahini. It couldn’t be simpler, but it makes me completely happy.

Do you have any friends who still dare to cook for you?

Yes indeed! I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it when someone else cooks for me. It can be a simple raclette, I’m not at all fussy. The only thing I don’t like are sausages.

What do you like about Basel?

I like the fact that this city is so cosmopolitan and international, so full of art and life. You have everything a city has to offer you here, but you can be out in the countryside in 5 minutes. I like being so close to Germany and France and I love walking along the Rhine. Mind you, I would never go swimming in the river, that is definitely not my thing.

How do you feel about fashion?

I love fashion! I find it very important that the materials are lovely - like linen, flannel and top-quality cotton. They feel good against my skin. And I really like wearing overalls and dungarees. I have my favourite dungarees in four different colours. And I recently bought another two identical pairs of my favourite white trainers. They are simply the best.

Who gives you the best advice?

My friend Elisa. She is 84 years old and very wise. When I am at a loss about something, I ask her and then it all works out well. I also got my obsession with postcards from her. I really love writing postcards that I create myself with rubberstamps and stickers. Elisa has been doing that her whole life long. She writes to herself too. And I have started doing that occasionally as well. It is very amusing to find a postcard you’ve written to yourself in the letterbox.