Bianca Mirabili

Evvai, São Paulo

The young talent bringing Brazilian flare to pastry

Bianca Mirabili was initially reluctant to work in pastry, worrying that her creativity would be limited by the section's demand for exact precision. As anyone who has tasted her creations can attest, her dishes prove that this is a false dichotomy, and that in the right hands, technical exactitude and expressiveness can coexist happily.

Born in São Paulo to a family with Italian heritage, Mirabili's childhood memories include cooking Italian dishes in her grandmother and aunt's kitchens. Her first professional experience in food was an after-school job in a neighbourhood bakery and following that, she studied gastronomy at Anhembi Morumbi University, before staging at São Paulo restaurants Fasano, Salvatore Loi and finally Evvai, the Italian-influenced São Paulo institution where she's worked ever since.

At Evvai, her career took off, and Mirabili went from intern to pastry chef within a year. In 2019, she created a honey bread made with native honey from four different species of Brazilian bees, a dish which caught the attention of the Brazilian culinary community and which she describes as a turning point in her career. The use of honey has since become her signature and can now be seen across the Evvai menu. Some of her creations blur the lines between sweet and savoury, such as a dish of carbonated green apple and sheep's yoghurt, served at Evvai as a palate cleanser, connecting the savoury and sweet sections of the Brazilian Italian menu.

Mirabili is also a great proponent of Brazilian ingredients. On the current menu at Evaii, she kicks off the dessert courses with a dish called Absolute Cupuaçu. Here, the Amazonian fruit is presented in different textures and at different temperatures, allowing guests to experience it in all its acidity and potency. There's also a semifreddo which draws inspiration from the classic bolo Souza Leão, which is made from cassava dough and is one of the country's most traditional desserts. The chef has a playful side too: one of her signatures are her popsicles and she's currently presenting a popcorn and chocolate version to diners.

In 2024, Mirabili featured on Forbes Brazil's 30 under 30 list and this year, she is the highly deserving winner of Latin America's Best Pastry Chef, sponsored by República de Cacao.

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