We meet the executive chefs at Dubai’s 5* hotels

by | Art of Confiture

05
April, 2017
Andrésy Confitures took advantage of its trip to the GULFOOD food and hospitality event in Dubai to meet the executive chefs, corporate chefs and F&B managers working in Dubai’s 5* hotels. Being at the best tables is great; being able to share our passion is even better!
Chefs in luxury hotels, despite being very busy making sure everything is perfect for their clients, are more than willing to sit down for 30 minutes in the dining room and share the passion they bring to their everyday work. They share their experiences, talk about their day-to-day difficulties and beam as they tell you about their achievements and happy clients.

Now it’s Andrésy Confitures’ turn to share the joy of discovering this very demanding profession.

Gulfood Awards 2017 - Dubai
Gulfood Awards
Photo© ASP
"Meilleur Ouvrier de France" Medal

What does it mean to be executive chef in a 5* hotel in Dubai?

First and foremost, it means being trained by the top restaurant owners across Europe and around the world.  Their mentors include such leading chefs as Paul Bocuse, Joël Robuchon, Alain Ducasse, Gordon Ramsay, Pierre Gagnaire, Marc Veyrat, Thierry Marx to name but a few.

“Getting together to talk about excellence”

Executive chef of a 5* hotel: a full-time passion!

Steve Deconinck, Executive Chef of the 5* hotel The Palace, says that being executive chef in a luxury hotel or resort means keeping an eye on everything and being everywhere at once

Naturally an executive chef also relies on top staff, because, try as you might, you cannot, at the same time, run tastings to select the best ingredients from the world over, make sure that the right foodstuffs reach the kitchen and that the cooks and pastry chefs follow the chef’s instructions to the letter, organise events for 150 people, manage budgets and actually get behind the stoves, which is all too seldom but always a real pleasure!

Being an executive chef also means leaving your mark

Each chef adds his or her own special touch to make breakfast something uniquely memorable. And – three cheers for France – the French Touch is very often part of it!

Cédric d’Ambrosio, Executive Chef at the Sofitel Downtown, has done a remarkable job with his team by creating themed hubs with a distinctively French flavour.

Sofitel Downtown, Dubai
Confitures Bar, Sofitel Downtown, Dubai
Brightly-coloured cast-iron casserole dishes, Sofitel Downtown, Dubai
Breakfast, Sofitel Downtown Dubai
Brightly-coloured cast-iron casserole dishes for the hot dishes, cheese platters, pancakes and waffles cooked to order and a magnificent jam bar!

At the St Régis, Executive Sous Chef Bijendra Yadav’s team have taken Versailles as their theme!

Admittedly the hotel lends itself to the theme with its gold and marble, on a scale worthy of Louis XIV’s chateau!

The jam counter is in marble, the sideboards are in copper and varnished wood, the tray tables are in wood, frosted glass or marble: it’s life in the lap of luxury!

St-Regis, Dubai
St Regis, Dubai - Breakfast
Le W, Dubai - Breakfast
The W, lobby, Dubai
Surprisingly enough, the same executive chef and sous chef team work on closeness and simplicity at the W, a hotel that spells futuristic designer trends right from the lobby.

 

Hand-pick the best artisans and producers right from the outset for an unforgettable customer experience.
At the Roda Al Murooj, Christophe Prudhomme and Pierrick Cizeron, respectively Executive Chef and Corporate Chef, were tasked by the owners with completely rethinking the quality of their breakfast offering.

They brought together importers and distributors, and the Middle East’s producers and artisans to choose the best ingredients, and partners capable of consistently delivering the best and ensuring that everything is cooked and prepared in a way that is worthy of top-flight hotels.

This is also part of what it means to be on the “executive” team: making crucial decisions that will keep luxury hotels on the path of excellence.

Roda Al Murooj, Dubai

Executive chef: a wide variety of skills to make sure everything is perfect

The next time you ask someone to cook you a crêpe or a waffle, or help yourself to freshly-cut fruit, or enjoy a plate of scrambled eggs, spare a thought for the person behind the scenes who made sure everything ran smoothly: the executive chef.