Henri Alen | DevRonn's Blog

In travel

Exploring the Baltic Region

December 10, 2017 2 Comments

I believe there are no such thing as coincidences and that everything happens for a reason. So it was at first strange to me that Ronn would do his first European concert in a place like Estonia. When the request came in months ago, I wasn’t really thrilled to go anywhere that was obviously very very cold during the month of December, but after visiting Estonia, I have become quite impressed with the people and their hospitality. First of all many people may not know how tech savvy the Estonians are and that they developed Skype, among other notable things and that they are a very small country of only 1.3 million people. They have built themselves up from gaining their independence from Russia 26 years ago! And yes it’s quite cold there, but the people are very warm and welcoming.

We were immediately greeted by TV 3 at the airport for interviews and gifted yummy cupcakes that had the original B&B characters on them and we were told that two generations of Estonians learned the Finnish language due to watching Ronn on that show. It was obvious from our visit that Estonians grew up watching Ronn and he was truly loved there and like every country we visit, everyone wanted a photo. The concert was really beautiful and a lovely first experience for Ronn and the amazing Jawn Star as a result, we are happy to announce a European tour is now in the works for the fall of 2018.

Since we were so close to Finland and had some friends come by the boat ferry over to Estonia, we decided to travel back with them to celebrate their 100th year of Independence from Russia, which turned out to be quite an experience for us. It was beautiful to learn more of their history and see the pride they have for their country. Apparently, there is a movie called, “The Unknown Soldier” that is all about the Finns and how they gained their freedom against the odds from Russia. Even though the Russians had over a million soldiers against the Finns with only over 200 thousand, they won their independence because they are a strong group of people who love and take a lot of pride in their country. We had visited Finland back in 2013 when Ronn did a commercial there and it was also obvious that they all loved and adored Ronn, so going back to celebrate this milestone was really special for us.

Now when I think of the Baltic region of Europe, I will have fond memories of our visit and look forward to returning for Ronn’s European tour later next year. It was wonderful to see our friend Henri Alen who has opened two new restaurants, “Sue Ellen” and “Finnjavel.” Some of you may remember that we guested on his cooking show, “American Food Battle” in which he challenged me in cooking gumbo. Seems southern cooking is what inspired him to create unique dishes for his restaurant, “Sue Ellen” and yes the name was inspired by that TV show, “Dallas.” We had wonderful crab biscuits, pickeled okra, fried green tomatoes and champagne to toast their 100th year of independence. “Finnjavel” which Henri told us means, “Finnish Bastard” a nickname the Swedish gave them was quite a different experience in dining. We had 7 course of typical Finnish inspired dishes with Henri’s signature twist of artistic flare that included, Reindeer! Even Prince enjoyed Reindeer which tasted very much like beef and loves chef Henri’s cooking! Thank you Estonia and Finland for making us feel so welcome, we look forward to our next visit!

In cooking

American Food Battle

March 16, 2014 7 Comments

By now you know that I won the Gumbo battle with Henri Alen and Nicolas Thieulon on their Finnish cooking show, “American Food Battle.” We blindfolded Ronn who was the judge and picked out my Gumbo instantly. I taught these Finnish boys a thing or two they didn’t know about making a roux the non-traditional way that they left America very confused.

It’s funny because Henri Alen owns the best French restaurant in Finland, “Muru” and was so impressed that he now wants to do a cooking show with me and Ronn, where we would cook with celebrities in Los Angeles and Finland. I think it’s just an excuse to figure out all of my secrets in the kitchen and to have Player perform “Man On Fire” which is his theme song in the kitchen there. Devin’s Kickass Cajun Seasoning was my secret weapon and the Finns now want to carry it in some of their restaurants.
American Food Battle

America Food Battle is seen in 50 countries, but not in America so I can only give you a clip and some photos, but we are hoping to have our new cooking show seen here in America. Henri Alen is an amazing Chef and I’d be proud to work with him anywhere. Nicolas is French and knows so much about wines that hanging out with him could only spell fun!

I love Finland and cooking is so natural for me that who am I to say no to this proposal? Seems like having my own cooking show is my destiny and I now have South Africa wanting me to guest spot on their top rated cooking show as there is a mini Player tour among other things in the works for South Africa and Australia.

It’s safe to say we won’t be home much and lots of traveling is in our future, so renewing our passports now is a must for us. I have some other exciting things to share with you guys next month that I know you will flip over, but in the meantime, know that we are coming to the following countries, Australia, Finland, South Africa, The Netherlands, Sweden and Italy this year! Oh and talk about the luck of the Irish, happy St. Patty’s Day!

Post by Eden Ayers.

In travel

Fun In Finland

August 20, 2013 16 Comments

It was a short, but really impressive trip to Finland, especially for me because I’d never been there. We arrived early Saturday morning from a pleasant flight on Finnair, an extremely nice comfortable airline with great service. This is a must for us traveling abroad. Ronn was shooting a mystery project that I’m not allowed to reveal yet, but can tell you it’s very clever and will be a big success from what I can see. The weather was a bit cold and rainy at first, which is never a problem for Ronn because he loves it. But the sun shined towards the end of each day which made us able to do a little of sightseeing in between shooting.

The Fins have what is called, “Restaurant Day” in which anyone can go online and feature their dishes on that day to the public and I’ve never seen so many people outside enjoying the sunshine as I did that day. We ran across a bunch of guys cooking Mexican food who wanted us to join them and of course take photos with Ronn. Seems the Finnish people love Ronn very much and we couldn’t have felt more welcome.

I was very impressed with how organized and efficient the Finnish people are with almost everything. Their food and design was very unique and interesting to their culture and they seem to appreciate a variety of things. I find them also very creative and learned alot about their culture. The extreme weather they have learned to endure makes them very strong and also extremely creative I think.

We had lovely weather when we attended the soccer game and Ronn presented the Helsinki team with a huge trophy. Seems everyone was speculating on what brought Ronn to Helsinki and the press was super curious. We have all laughed at all the speculations which ranged from Finland’s TV version of “Big Brother” and “Dancing With The Stars” to a new Finnish soap version of “The Bold and The Beautiful.”

We also had the chance to see Yoko Ono in concert last night in a covered tent. It’s not everyday you get to see Yoko Ono who is 80 years old perform in a tent, but it was quite nice. Her performance is nothing short of eccentric and unique to her and I really enjoyed it. I feel you must listen to her with your eyes closed to really grasp the spirituality of what she does with her voice.

We then had the most unique and interesting coincidence in finding a restaurant after the concert. Apparently, most of the restaurants in Helsinki are closed on Monday and Tuesdays and our production crew wanted to find a good place for us to go. Ronn had retweeted fame chef Henri Alen who owns the restaurant “Muru” and the producers called him to ask if he could recommend a place for us to go. Henri generously invited us to his second and newer French restaurant, “Pastis” and had the most amazing dinner. I had steak and french fries cooked in truffle oil that was to die for.

Henri explained that he was a bit in shock when the producers called him because he was a big fan of Ronn’s music and the chefs in his kitchen listened to Ronn’s solo CDs all the time. So it was a thrill for him to have us there and he happily gave me a private tour of the kitchen along with a cookbook from “Muru” which I look forward to visiting the next time we are in Helsinki, which could be very soon! I challenged Henri to a gumbo cook off and Ronn and I are considering bringing, “Devin’s Kickass Cajun Seasoning” to Finland for a BBQ on restaurant day.

So as we board our flight back to Salt Lake City in time for Player’s performance tonight, we bring a little bit of Helsinki with us in our hearts. The producers of this project presented Ronn with a Suunto watch that he absolutely loves and will cherish. In time you will all know what the secret project is in September. We have fallen in love with this endearing place and hope to return to visit again very soon.