Maxim PolyakovCommunity profile

Born in 1992 in Krasnoyarsk, he first explored the world of gastronomy at the age of 16, getting a job at a cafe on the banks of the Yenisei River. Maxim assisted the head chef, helping to prepare grilled dishes, which remain among his main professional interests. Maxim Polyakov is one of those chefs who "made himself," constantly improving and refining his skills through experience. He has worked in restaurants in Krasnoyarsk, Sheregesh, Irkutsk, Chita, Vladivostok, and Moscow. "Over the past fourteen years, I've practically crossed all of Russia, from Vladivostok to Kaliningrad," the chef says. In 2017, Maxim moved to St. Petersburg. His career in the northern capital has been associated with establishments such as Bloody Mary Bar & Grill, Punk brew, Twiggy, the "Phali-Khinkali" restaurant chain, "Khacho i Puri," and the United Butchers meat restaurants. As the head chef of the Mемо restaurant, Maxim follows the path he chose in his youth, preparing dishes on a grill and in a Pompeian oven, developing the restaurant's concept. The Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes that form the basis of Mемо's menu are combined with local ingredients, creating unusual fusion dishes. He serves octopus with honeyed turnips, kvass, and lovage; beef cheeks are prepared with mint bulgur and plums; and the summer salad with stracciatella includes smoked cherries. Maxim is also fascinated by unconventional combinations of culinary techniques. He believes that new cooking methods expand the perception of a particular product or dish. "Everyone is used to the fact that a classic cheesecake is, in essence, a baked cream cheese on a crust, but I decided to look at this dessert differently: I thought, why not make a cheesecake using the sous vide technique," Maxim shares. "And after that, I decided to continue the experiment and put the resulting base in a siphon. The result was very inspiring, and now this dessert is included in the updated menu of Mемо. I am ready to apply all the technologies that exist in the world today; I find it very interesting. For example, there are many ways to use a technique like fermentation not only for meat, but also for vegetables and fruits."