< PreviousTrending caterermiddleast.com January 2020 10 Fika The number one chef on this year’s Caterer Middle East Power List has a venue for every need. Gaia has become the place to be seen in DIFC, Aya satisfi es any Asian craving you might have, while Carine’s French Mediterranean dishes have proven a hit at Emirates Golf Club. For his latest opening at Jumeirah Izu Ani's latest concept offers fresh and vibrant food What's the fuss about... Beach Hotel, Izu Ani has gone for more wholesome fare, for those looking to enjoy a life well lived without having to worry about what they’ve eaten. “It’s all about living a lifestyle, not a diet,” said Ani about the Swedish-named Fika. “I don’t want people to come here thinking ‘oh I can’t eat this, I can’t eat that’, I want you to come and enjoy it.” Ani says that Fika is inspired by “the Asian principle of food being medicine for the body” and is all about “keeping it simple, keeping it honest, and understanding all of the ingredients”. Diners can enjoy the likes of charcoal roasted lobster, Spanish octopus, and even Swedish meatballs as a nod to the venue’s name, but the light, fresh look Trending 11 January 2020 caterermiddleast.com and with Fika’s head chef hand-picked from one of his previous restaurants La Serre, Ani has a trusted team around him. “It’s a joy working with people who have talent,” he said. “We never start with a blank canvas. Whatever I’ve done before, we always use as a base for the next thing to grow.” But Fika is still signifi cantly different than what has come before, and that’s the way Ani likes it. “The reason I do different concept and different directions of cooking is because I want to learn more. I don’t want to ever stop learning, I get itchy.” Ani certainly has his hands full with three completely different venues opening in 2019 and more on the horizon for 2020 as he aims to retain his crown on Caterer's Power List. So plenty for Ani to learn from. of the restaurant situated on the Arabian Gulf deliberately entices guests to order the seafood. Ani helped design the restaurant as well as the menu, and laughs as he cites the film Will Smith film Focus about a conman who uses visual clues to bend people to his will. Whether it’s the location by the sea or the plates that look like they were straight from your grandmother’s house, everything about Fika relaxes you and lulls you into the exact state of mind that Ani’s team wants. That team includes former Zuma executive chef Carlos de los Mozos who helps develop all of Ani’s new concepts, 2 openings in a month for Ani who also launched Aya at City Walk alongside Fika at Jumei- rah Beach Hotel. "It’s all about living a lifestyle, not a diet. I don’t want people thinking ‘oh I can’t eat this'" Izu Ani has launched FikaTrending caterermiddleast.com January 2020 12 Macario Jr. Dela Cruz from Gontran Cherreir has won the Saudi Monin Cup 2019 mocktail crafting compe- tition sponsored by Bidfood KSA and Georges Monin SAS. Bogdan Solonyi from Nozomi and Lester Macatangay from Gontran Cherreir finished second and third place, respectively. The Saudi Monin Cup 2019 fi nal event took place in Japanese restaurant Okku in Riyadh; sponsored by Saudi Arabian Chef Association, renowned chefs and beverage innovators Fahad Bukhari, Sanjin Dilaver, and Jan Marc Menicable were part of the judging panel. Ten fi nalists competed live for the judges, preparing mocktails inspired from the best of local and natural ingredients RIYADH PLAYS HOST TO SAUDI MONIN CUP 2019 FINALS Marcario Jr. Dela Cruz took home the title or from Saudi culture and cuisine. Among the fi nalists were Jhon Michael Beran from All in 7 cafe, Kevin Pereira from Kabsh Restaurant, Renante Cellan from Ritz Carlton Riyadh, Ariel Rogayan Crowne Plaza RDC, Rodel Bucayu from Vivienda Hotels and Resorts, and Hottensiah Kinyanjui from Nofa Resorts, a Radisson Collection Hotel. The winner and runner-ups will get direct entry to the fi nale of Saudi Monin Cup 2020 edition, with the national winner heading to the global edition of Monin Cup 2020, set to be held in Paris. Commenting on his win, Dela Cruz said: “For a moment, I felt it was a dream. With the round of applause around me, I realised it was a dream come true. It was a tense journey but a truly interesting experience as it helped me push the boundaries of my perceived abilities.” Dela Cruz’s winning drink was Red Maria, inspired by his baby daughter. Red Maria was created using Monin Almond Syrup and raspberry puree, presented with watermelon, redcurrants, and dried grapefruit. Hamza El Shaer, marketing manager, Bidfood KSA said: “We are very pleased with the overwhelming response we had received to the call for entries, due to which Monin International decided to add Saudi Arabia to be a part of the global edition next year. This demonstrates the importance of such competitions that provide young industry professionals with an unparalleled opportunity to spark their creativity and display their skills to the fast-growing food and beverage industry as well as promote the emerging talent in the Saudi culinary sector. Monin Cup has earned its status as the most coveted title in the beverage industry and through this initiative Bidfood KSA aims to inspire and encourage young talent to continue striving for ever upward improvement in their careers.” BEVERAGESTrending 13 January 2020 caterermiddleast.com Big talk When F&B teams should refresh, not rebuild Look at V2.0 before you scrap a concept completely There comes a time each year when we naturally look to refresh things. Maybe we paint a wall in our house, recover some outdoor furniture, or even go for a bit of a personal make-over just to spice things up. The same approach is taken by count- less restaurateurs when looking at their estate collectively towards the year’s end. A bit of a smile and a wink to the ones that have outperformed themselves over the year (go on you know who you are). Then there are those that maybe just missed the target: a few words of encouragement and better luck next year. Finally, there are those that just failed to ignite. They are our topic for today. Across this amazing business there are times when we need to look predominately at just how relevant our offerings are in the marketplace. Sometimes people simply take the easy (and more expensive route) of complete, wholesale change. “Peruvian not working for me anymore? “Let’s change the concept to Greek”, we hear amongst industry chatter. But I am here to tell you that before we submerge ourselves in the darkness of a complete rebuild. Let’s look at a refresh, an uplift. Let’s look at version 2.0 I have a brilliant case study recently of an outlet that we opened a little over a year ago that just did not hit the mark with the local community it was designed to engage with and inspire. The concept was solid and yet the menu just didn’t strike the right chord with the target audience. We were getting infl uenced by many as to why this was happening: bad location, no hard beverages, quirky design, and yet at the end of the day it all came down to one key issue. Relevance. This outlet was not relevant to its dinners. The menu was not relevant to the demographic and as such it suffered this year. The bones were good but the dressing, (i.e. food) needed work. In October, the menu was simplifi ed, the offerings tailored to what the guest wanted, and we had a mini rebirth of the venue to great feedback, but most importantly great customer engagement. The name is the same, the location the same, the employees the same, hence version 2.0. Focusing on one relevance in society is an enormous undertaking but it pays off in immense dividends when properly executed. This is a good time for egos to be checked at the door and for listening, not dictating what is being offered. It is inevitable that some restaurants ultimately won’t succeed, but I am here to tell you that does not necessarily have to be yours. Just because something worked in the past does not mean it is relevant to today’s market. We have the same consumers with less in their pocket to spend, how do we address this? I would like to challenge each and every one of you: step back from your business, look over it rather than in it and you might just see the next iterations of your existing venues peeking back at you. V2.0. "This is a good time for egos to be checked" By Duncan Fraser-Smith, director — global food & beverage for The First Groupcaterermiddleast.com January 2020 14 Hospitality group Hilton Hotels has appointed Lendl Pereira as the chef de cuisine for Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah’s Lexington Grill restaurant. Beginning his career with the Taj Hotels group in Mumbai, Pereira worked with Marriott Hotels in Florida, before taking on a new challenge in the UAE. Since arriving in Dubai in 2010, he has worked with a variety of celebrated Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah appoints chef de cuisine Michelin-starred chefs Chris and Jeff Galvin, Tom Aikens and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, gaining experience he'll hope to take into his new role. Directly before joining Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah, Pereira was a member of the pre-opening team of the Hilton Palm Jumeirah. In his new role he will lead the team at Lexington Grill which offers a menu of steaks and the seafood from around the world. The eatery also houses over 360 labels of wine in its temperature- controlled cellar. On his new appointment Lendl said: “I am delighted to be joining the talented culinary team at Lexington Grill, Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah. Lexington Grill is an award-winning steakhouse and I look forward to furthering the legacy by continuing to deliver high quality and amazing food to our guests while also bringing my personality as a chef to the brand.” Hilton Hotels has appointed Iran Lutton as the restaurant manager at Trader Vic’s Mai Tai Lounge at Hilton Al Hamra Beach and Golf Resort. Hailing from England, Lutton began his career in New Zealand working as a bar and floor manager in 2013. He progressed and honed his skills moving between positions over the next four years. In 2016, he held the position of bar manager at Mannings bar. The experience helped prepare Lutton to take on the challenge of the food and beverage supervisor in 2016 at the award-winning Hilton Queenstown. In his new role, Lutton will oversee the Trader Vic’s Mai Tai Lounge team, which offers a true tropical experience in a spacious setting. Having already worked with Hilton in the past, Lutton will be bringing international expertise and understanding to his new role. New restaurant manager for Hilton Al Hamra Beach and Golf Resort CAREERS100% FRESH BASIL. GLUTEN-FREENO ADDED PRESERVATIVESCareers caterermiddleast.com January 2020 16 Five minutes with... Michael White How does one go from America's dairyland to Michelin stars for an Italian restaurant in New York? Only he knowsCareers 17 January 2020 caterermiddleast.com His fl agship restaurant Marea has two Michelin stars in New York. Replicating that success in the Middle East has proven diffi cult for many chefs before Michael White, so Caterer Middle East found out how he was getting on. How did a boy from Wisconsin, USA get into Italian cooking? I was really fortunate that at the end of nouvelle cuisine, around 1989, I decided I was going to be a chef. My father was a banker, I was in college playing football and had a knee injury and I said ‘Dad, you know what, I’m going to be a chef. He said ‘fantastic, but how do you expect to make a living out of that?’ Because there was no food TV at that appoint. I went away to Italy to hone my craft, watch how ricotta is made. I arrived in ’93 and went home in 2000, I married an Italian woman. I travelled in every region in Italy. I paid my dues, washed my clothes in a bucket in Italy and dried them on a clothes line. How authentic is the Italian food at Marea Dubai? It’s inherently Italian. The hallmark of Italian cooking is simplicity. I look at food and say 'what can I take out of here'. Young people that are in the kitchen are watching Top Chef and saying 'what can I put on to make it look fantastic', but I really think about taste fi rst, then I think about how it looks on the plate. People like to talk about regional Italian and authenticity — everything we do is from the Italian soul. Anything that's inside of Italy, from the North African infl uences in Sicily, all the way up to the Piemonte, there is a playbook that I can use of many things. So Marea is very much a hodgepodge of Italian fl avours. But I would never use a product that’s not really inherent to Italy. How involved you are in Marea Dubai? A tremendous amount. My partner Ahmass Fakahany and I won’t put our name on a door. We don’t have management projects, this is blood, sweat, and tears. Most of my peers do management deals and then go away, I’m here seven, eight, nine days a month. I am dedicated because we care too much. This is the fi nest Italian restaurant in the Middle East right now. Don’t mistake my confi dence for cockiness, I’m very poised, but so enthusiastic. Why Dubai? This is my first outpost of Marea and I’m so happy that I chose Dubai because it has everything, it was a no — brainer. Having Emirates Airways flying however many times a day to Milano, where the largest fish market in Italy is, it’s just amazing. I’ve been doing due diligence for years here and the only place I wanted to be was in DIFC. This is very strategic, Marea is not going to go anywhere else in places such as Dubai, Hong Kong, it has to be the right places. The unique part about DIFC is the infrastructure. The natural fl ow of people leaving to get something to eat means the traffi c is outrageous in Dubai. There’s such a nucleus of great restaurants here and I’m excited every day new restaurants open because that just means there’s more people here and I’m so confi dent in what we do. A rising tide lifts everybody. These people in business think ‘oh there’s more competition’… Bring it on. Are you opening up anywhere else in the region? I’m just back from Riyadh. We’re going to open there in 2020 and it’s amazing. The infrastructure they are putting in there is second to none. And if you think the type of cuisine we do in Marea is new here, I can’t wait till we get to Riyadh. I did a lot of travelling and due diligence in the last four days and it’s pretty ripe. Let me at ‘em! I don’t think we’ll have a big enough restaurant. It’s going to be a Ristorante Morini, not Marea, because we don’t want to dilute [the Marea brand]. Not going to open in Riyadh until second quarter, third quarter, next year, but I’m training the chef now so it’s all done systematically and we can guarantee quality. "Most of my peers do management deals, I’m here seven, eight, nine days a month"caterermiddleast.com January 2020 1819 January 2020 caterermiddleast.com Is Saudi Arabia ready to take the Middle East’s F&B scene crown from Dubai?Next >