DECEMBER 2020 AN ITP MEDIA GROUP PUBLICATION Lining up the most important pieces of the Middle East’s F&B scene POWERCHOCOLATIER IN NAPOLI - ITALY Gambero Rosso ‘2 Cakes’ award 2020 When you mix passion with experience, the promise of a masterpiece is never far away. For 70 years Icam Linea Professionale and Agostoni have fed the creativity of pastry chefs, chocolatiers and ice cream makers worldwide. And now we are back with the origin of taste: we are back with our Italian chocolate. 205x275 Catereer Mdlle East.indd 120/11/20 17:22In this issue 3 December 2020 caterermiddleeast.com ON THE MENU Specials 16 We rank the 50 most in uential people in the region's F&B scene. Did you make the list? 46 With two Michelin Guide stars at his New York restaurant, Daniel Boulud now comes to Dubai. The Power 50 Brasserie Boulud Specials The Power 50In this issue caterermiddleeast.com December 2020 4 Mains 06 Trending 54 Most wanted 58 Kitchen con dential Jones the Grocer Cocktails from Giffard BellaEditor's Letter 5 December 2020 caterermiddleeast.com Hello, Well, what a year that was. And what a way to end it, with both the Caterer Power 50 and the Caterer Middle East Awards. Trying to whittle down all the people in our amazing industry to just 50 names is never an easy task. And in a year like 2020, when so many of you have stepped up to the plate and faced down the toughest challenge ever, it’s even harder. Across five categories we have picked the top ten most influential people of the past 12 months. We used our first-hand knowledge of their efforts to fight the challenges imposed by coronavirus, and weighted our choices in favour of those who inspired others and battled to improve the industry. The unusual circumstances of the year have led to a number of new entries and have proved that despite the difficulties, there will always be people joining the industry, willing to give their all for F&B. Despite that, let's hope 2021 is a little bit easier. Simon Ritchie, editor The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error or omissions contained in this publication, however caused. The opinions and views contained in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances. The ownership of trademarks is acknowledged. No part of this publication or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publishers in writing. An exemption is hereby granted for extracts used for the purpose of fair review. Published by and © 2020 ITP MEDIA GROUP FZ-LLC MEDIA PO Box 500024, Dubai, UAE Tel: +971 (0)4 444 3000 Web: www.itp.com Offi ces in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, London & Mumbai ITP Media Group CEO Ali Akawi Managing Director Alex Reeve Deputy Managing Director Martin Chambers Group Editor Paul Cliff ord Editorial Editor Simon Ritchie Tel: +971 4 444 3550 email: simon.ritchie@itp.com Advertising Commercial Director Sally Whittam Tel: +971 4 444 3348 email: sally.whittam@itp.com Sales Director, Hospitality & Design Rebecca Lockwood Tel: +971 4 444 3268 email: rebecca.lockwood@itp.com Sales Executive James Sperring Tel: +971 4 444 3477 email: james.sperring@itp.com International Sales Manager Amanda Stewart GSM: +44 7908 117 333 email: amanda.stewart@itp.com ITP Live General Manager Ahmad Bashour Tel: +971 4 444 3549, email: ahmad.bashour@itp.com Studio Art Editor Gerald Du Designer Junemar Tulipas Photography Senior Photographers Efraim Evidor, Adel Rashid Staff Photographers Aasiya Jagadeesh, Ajith Narendra, Fritz John Asuro Production & Distribution Group Production & Distribution Director Kyle Smith Production Manager Basel Al Kassem Production Coordinator Mahendra Pawar Senior Image Editor Emmalyn Robles Circulation Distribution & Warehouse Manager Praveen Nair Marketing Director of Awards and Marketing Daniel Fewtrell ITP Group CEO Ali Akawi CFO Toby Jay Spencer-Daviescaterermiddleeast.com December 2020 6 TRENDING7 December 2020 caterermiddleeast.com To make it in the food business, operators are going to have to offer their customers more, with the days of being “single dimensional” over, according to Jones the Grocer CEO Yunib Siddiqui. Speaking exclusively to Caterer Middle East ahead of the launch of Jones’s new Palm West Beach outlet, Siddiqui cited its multiple revenue streams as one of the reasons why it had survived the coronavirus pandemic. Palm West Beach welcomes Jones the Grocer CEO Yunib Siddiqui believes its versatility will help it thrive ”Every community site we operate is well ahead of last year’s numbers“ “Every community site we operate is well ahead of last year’s numbers,” Siddiqui revealed. “There are some sites that aren’t, and those are obviously in commercial locations, but our mix has changed and that’s why I’m saying we’re so versatile. We’re now more of a grocer than we were pre-Covid. That’s a good and a bad thing because our margins are lower and food margins are higher so while revenue is up, gross margins are down. But if we didn’t have retail we might have ended up in a much worse position — like a lot of people in the industry.” The latest licensed outlet on Palm Jumeirah “has a little bit of everything”, said Siddiqui, but without a full grocery offer due to its beachside location. “We tailored the site to have more ice cream, there’s more snacking, there’s more things you can take away and sit on the beach with the family.” It also has Jones’s rst wood- red pizza oven, serving out what Siddiqui calls the “best” reasonably priced pies in Dubai. Palm West Beach’s beautiful waterfront location with views of Dubai Marina has already become a popular hotspot, with Koko Bay attracting the younger party crowd, but despite the presence of a DJ at the weekends, Jones is aiming for a quieter audience. “For people on the Golden Mile this is their closest beach and it’s dog friendly. So you can grab a coffee and walk along the beach with your family. For us its more about being relaxed.” Unlike Club Vista Mare on the opposite side of the Palm’s trunk, where the dense F&B outlets are on top of one another, the sparsely populated Palm West Beach could become an oasis retreat.Trending caterermiddleeast.com December 2020 8 90 percent of UAE operators expect sales to decline more than a fth, says KPMG NEWS Its F&B report paints a bleak picture for the next 12 months Almost all F&B operators in the UAE are expecting to see like for like sales decline in the next 12 months, according to the latest KPGM F&B report. The report outlines the tough road to recovery facing the industry, with Anurag Bajpai, partner and head of The UAE is in for a rough road consumer and retail, KPMG Lower Gulf, saying that most operators are “expecting reduced sales” in 2021. In fact, 90 percent of respondents said their revised outlook for the next 12 months suggested like for like sales would be down at least 20 percent, with a third expecting the decline to be more than 40 percent. With many people choosing to leave the house less, whether due to concerns about the virus, or due to the fact they are now working from home, it has meant 91 percent of restaurateurs are concerned about reduced demand. KPMG’s report suggests that this trend will continue in the short- and medium-term, with the vast majority of diners expected to “stay home or scale back on eating out through to the last quarter of 2021 owing to health and hygiene concerns”. Saudi Arabia, however, is expected to recover more quickly. BARS Following on from the success of Galaxy Bar in Dubai, which was named as the winner of the Campari One to Watch Award, Zuma Dubai has been crowned as the Best Bar in the Middle East and Africa by The Zuma Dubai team Zuma Dubai named the Best Bar in the Middle East and Africa The Japanese venue placed 23rd on The World’s 50 Best Bars 2020 list The World’s 50 Best Bars. Coming in at number 23 on the list, it’s the only venue from the region to make it into the top 50, therefore taking the best bar in the region award. Zuma’s global bar development director Jimmy Barrat said: “This year being ranked at 23 is incredible and much higher than I ever expected. I am immensely proud of our team, especially with the unforeseen challenges of this year. We are so grateful for the support from the global bar community and the World’s 50 Best Bars for the recognition. Zuma Dubai has been a labour of love, it wasn’t something that happened overnight but is the reward after 12 years of hard work. “The consistency and retention of a team sharing the same goal, pushing the boundaries of creativity and believing in a part of the world that wasn’t on the cocktail craftsmanship map.” Connaught Bar in London took the world’s number one spot.Trending 9 December 2020 caterermiddleeast.com A new two-story, licensed dining hub as launched at The Pointe on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah. Food District features 13 homegrown brands under one roof with indoor and outdoor seating in front of the newly opened world recording breaking dancing fountains. The rst oor showcases ten dine-in venues including Dibba Bay Oysters, Reif Japanese Kushiyaki, Sticky Rice, and The Roost, and two licensed Bramble Bars. The rst oor terrace also offers comfortable lounge seating in addition to regular tables. Live music with a singer will be on show over the weekends. Meanwhile the ground oor features Silk Gelato and Boon Coffee, where customers can enjoy premium farm sourced beans along with sandwiches and pastries. Sandy El Hayek, food and beverage manager, Nakheel Malls, said: “Building on the success of Depachika Food Hall, we have developed the UAE’s MICHELIN GUIDE NEW OPENINGS rst dedicated dine-in food market celebrating solely homegrown concepts with bar service — 13 to be exact.” Designed to conform to Dubai Municipality’s Covid-19 health and safety regulations, customers scan QR code menus to choose dishes, paying at the respective vendor. A buzzer alerts when the food is ready to collect to limit customer interaction. Food District will be open from 9am to 10pm daily for the ground oor, with the rst oor opening at noon. Food District’s restaurateurs Alan Yau, the revolutionary restaurateur behind Wagamama and Hakkasan, believes the Michelin Guide’s time as the foremost restaurant recommendation is coming to an end, with personal recommendations now more valuable. Speaking to Caterer Middle East following his appearance at Ithra’s Tanween Conference 2020 on the Future Food panel, Yau said the Michelin Guide “has become the equivalent of a corporate branded in uencer”. Yau started Wagamama in 1992 Licensed dining hub set to open at The Pointe, Palm Jumeirah Food District features homegrown brands including Reif Japanese Kushiyaki Michelin Guide the ‘equivalent of a corporate-branded in uencer’, says Wagamama founder Alan Yau The Hakkasan founder believes peer-to-peer recommendations are the future of the industry He explained: “They are not necessarily a bad thing, but the global taste journey has moved beyond high- level generic corporate insights of food. Peer-to-peer relationships have become the de facto in discovering where and what to eat — where there can be a 360-degree detailed reviews, which are much more interpersonal and trust lead.” He told Caterer Middle East that the ratings system adopted by the likes of TripAdvisor has too many flaws to be reliable, saying: “They have tough moderation problems that result in fake news and bubbles. The things that rise to the top rise because of the number of followers and likes — number-based success. That also leads to the old-money problem, which puts people who were first or had a one-time success in a better place to keep getting attention based on their previous success rather than the quality of content they produce now.”Next >