Renato Cunha, with an entrepreneurial spirit and a multifaceted life, divides his time between Ferrugem—a 20-year-old restaurant project—teaching at the college level, and activities connected to the land, such as his organic garden, rural tourism, and the #ircomsedeaopote project.

The latter project received an Honorable Mention at the “Best of Wine Tourism 2025” awards by Great Wine Capitals in the Gastronomic Experiences category; was a finalist in the 2024 National Tourism Award in the Gastronomic Tourism category; and, in 2022, was named Best Tourist Experience at the Minho Innovation and Tourism Awards by the Minho IN Consortium.

A chef by vocation, he likes to be seen as an ambassador for Portuguese gastronomy. To that end, keeping a close eye on what’s happening in Portugal and around the world, he seeks a broad-based education grounded in both traditional folk wisdom and the knowledge of haute cuisine and academia.

The cuisine he advocates features, as its main ingredients, products with a Portuguese identity—preferably sourced from sustainable agriculture—along with folk traditions, technical precision, and a dash of creativity and innovation.

This year, he will participate in another edition of the Douro & Porto Wine Festival as a culinary curator.