Archive For The “Interviews” Category
Outrigger Beach Resort in Mauritius offers its guests so many dining opportunities. Each restaurant has its own character and will appeal to changing tastes and expectations throughout the day. Families with diverse requirements are catered for at all times in the other restaurants – but then one finds The Plantation Club, and that has a…
The Outrigger Mauritius Beach Resort has Guven Uyanik as Executive Chef. And he has already enjoyed some high-end international experience. Before joining Outrigger, Chef Uyanik worked in several countries including the UK and Hong Kong. He heads a team which has already carved a reputation for presenting fine food. This attractive hotel complex boasts a…
Outrigger Phuket is perhaps one of the friendliest luxury resorts one would hope to find. It combines both Thai hospitality and style. But food is often the cornerstone of any good vacation, and Outrigger Phuket Executive Chef Roberto Conrad ensures guests don’t go home disappointed. Tastes are diverse yet Chef Roberto has skilfully presented an…
There are few hotels I like more than the characterful Petersham, overlooking the River Thames in Richmond. And to compound the joy, there is a restaurant to admirably partner that hotel, and its Head Chef is Jean-Didier Gouges! This young man is charming, with a smile that seems never far from his lips. He is…
Indispensable rock of Les Dames d’Escoffier London Dame Sue Carter is the indispensable rock of Les Dames d’Escoffier London Chapter and is the hard-working and dedicated Secretary. She is also the founder, the inspiration for our group, and without her we can truly say we wouldn’t exist at all. In 2009 Sue Carter returned from…
Jacqui Pickles In Conversation – “I’m going to cook for life!” Les Dames d’Escoffier London are enjoying a vibrant calendar of events and are welcoming new members who are eager to participate in activities and raise funds for other women in hospitality. President Jacqui Pickles is one of the Chapter’s founding members. In 2015 she…
A few years ago one might scoff at the prospect of a visit to a Greek winery. The memory of old-school Retsina lingers on. That wine had more in common, to non-Greek taste buds at least, with that in which one might clean paint brushes. But those days are gone and now Greek wineries are…
Valentina Harris is perhaps our most celebrated and prolific Italian food writer, TV presenter and chef. Yes, the lady truly is Italian, although one could be fooled into thinking she is an authentically British blue-blood. Valentina Harris doesn’t have many free moments but I cornered her on a return flight from a culinary tour of…
I have met François Geurds on a few occasions now. A couple of times at his eponymous FG Restaurant and also at the newer Food Lab. For once, the Michelin judges have awarded their coveted stars with logic and insight. But it wasn’t just the food that impressed me, it was also the man. I…
It’s possible that the names of both Arun Kapil and his company Green Saffron will be new to you but it’s likely that over the next year or so they will become, if not household, at least kitchen names. The man and the company are carving out a respectable place for themselves in Ireland and…
Kiku is a Japanese restaurant conveniently located near Green Park station in Mayfair, and at the top of Half Moon Street. It’s one of the quieter thoroughfares, but popular with ‘them in the know’ as it’s the home of this exceptional eatery. I wonder why it isn’t more celebrated, but perhaps those regulars have the…
We, at least in London, are becoming more familiar with Japan’s iconic national beverage. We are tempted to take our first sips in the increasingly numerous Japanese restaurants in the capital. Sake is new to us but it’s been around for a couple of thousand years in some form or other, and there are families…
Japan has many icons. Sumo, sushi, kimonos are among the first that spring to the non-Japanese mind …along with sake! Japanese food and sake are becoming more common all over the world and London has a growing list of good restaurants serving sake to an increasingly knowledgeable audience. Toshie Hiraide is the Japanese Sake Samurai…
He is, for many of us, the face of Vietnamese food and travel. His easy manner allows him to present informative yet engaging TV programmes showing Vietnam, its food and its people in a positive and inclusive fashion. Luke was in London to promote his latest book, The Food of Vietnam (see my review here),…
Food and partnership – a recipe for success Malaysia Night: Trafalgar Square, Friday 4th October, noon – 10pm Malaysia Night has become an eagerly anticipated event for Londoners who crave the distinctive flavours of that peninsular. It attracts locals, tourists and even Malaysians who support this delicious initiative. We met Dr Wong Lai Sum, CEO,…
Bo London will be the next venture headed by “demon chef” Alvin Leung. He could just as easily be described as “the Man in Black” due to his habitual costume, although not his personality. He is an easy chap to like, with a dry sense of humour and engaging manner. He was in the UK…
It’s a very French company and has an equally Gallic director general in the guise of the suave and genuinely charming Geoffroy d’Anglejan-Chatillon. He has a lifetime of chocolate appreciation, and has made that a delicious career for almost a couple of decades. M. d’Anglejan-Chatillon explains in a rich accent that would have any red-blooded…
He hasn’t got a ‘serious’ chef persona. Willin rushes in and tells me to wait right there. He has some curry puffs that he wants me to taste. Just simple food and not even his, but Willin Low has not only talent but real passion for taste and texture. We settle in the courtyard of…
Maria Elia is attractive, petite and has a smile that seems a permanent fixture. Her warm and relaxed demeanour is indeed a genuine facet of her character, but so is her consummate professionalism and thirst for excellence. She is a successful chef and she just happens to be a woman. I asked Maria Elia about…
One would think that Valentina Harris is the quintessential English lady, well-spoken with Home Counties proper accent; but there is something else. Turn the sound off and one sees the unmistakable animation of a Latin. In fact Valentina is only on nodding terms with Englishness. “Let me explain about the English voice,” says Valentina with…