Four Years After His Death, Chef Mārtiņš Rītiņš's Spirit Lives On Through New Excellence Award

Within Latvia's food service industry, Mārtiņš Rītiņš was known not only as a chef but as someone who constantly pushed people to question conventional ideas about what gastronomy should be. He had a demanding, at times relentlessly exacting personality, but behind that strictness lay a single goal: to make things better.

Rītiņš is remembered in the industry for a number of sayings that have practically become folklore over time. Among them is his greeting "Good morning, what a beautiful morning!", his advice for tough moments — "when there's nothing at home, we take salmon from the fridge" — and a phrase capturing his approach to life and work: "Never do it the easy way. Do it the better way."

This year marks four years since Mārtiņš Rītiņš passed away, yet his influence on Latvia's culinary scene has not faded. This is reflected in the newly established "Mārtiņš Rītiņš Excellence of the Year Award," created in his memory, which keeps alive the same insistence on quality and excellence that Rītiņš himself tried to instill in his colleagues and those who followed his example.

The award symbolically continues what Rītiņš pursued throughout his career — challenging complacency and encouraging everyone in the industry to keep striving for a better outcome rather than settling for the familiar or the easiest solution.