Pioneer of the Caribbean
Executive chef Adam Schop brings quirky Jamaican concept Miss Lily’s from New York City to Dubai
Something in the atmosphere Solutions Leisure reveals ambitious expansion plans for its Dubai-born nightlife venues
A taste of… Kuwait
Connecting F&B professionals Howknowledge homegrown concepts and local produce are with industry enhancing Kuwait’s young F&B market AUGUST 2016 Connecting F&B professionals with industry knowledge
August 2016
Contents
14
8 | WHAT’S COOKING? Catering News launches inaugural Leaders in F&B Awards; Gregoire Berger, Atlantis The Palm qualifies for S. Pellegrino Young Chef global finals; Middle East chefs take part in Cream of Europe campaign 14 | NEW PLACES Dubai’s new Japanese Izakaya concept, Ramusake, features a sake bar and robata counter 20 | COVER STORY Massimo Bottura, the man behind The World’s Best Restaurant reveals why culture and quality of ideas and ingredients are his secrets to success 28 | THE BUSINESS Solutions Leisure creative director Freek Teusink reveals the secret of the company’s success and its aggressive expansion plans for Dubai and beyond
28
32 20 August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
3
36 Managing Director Walid Zok Walid@bncpublishing.net Director Rabih Najm Rabih@bncpublishing.net CEO Wissam Younane Wissam@bncpublishing.net Group Publishing Director Diarmuid O'Malley Dom@bncpublishing.net Senior Sales Manager Nick Clowes Nick@bncpublishing.net Group Editor
Melanie Mingas Melanie@bncpublishing.net
40 46
32 | OUT TO LUNCH NYC concept Miss Lily’s ships diners away to a world of reggae music and authentic, Jamaican cuisine. Catering News catches up with executive chef Adam Schop to find out more.
Editor Crystal Chesters Crystal@bncpublishing.net Art Director Aaron Sutton Aaron@bncpublishing.net Marketing Executive Mark Anthony Monzon Mark@bncpublishing Photographers
Audrey Hastings Neville Hopwood Hayder Al-Zuhairi
SUBSCRIBE subscriptions@bncpublishing.net
36 | EVENT PREVIEW Ahead of The Big F&B Forum 2016, Catering News gathered a panel of F&B industry experts to discuss the issues, topics and trends impacting business this year 40 | A TASTE OF… KUWAIT While fast food American chains still dominate Kuwait’s young F&B landscape, a number of entrepreneurs are disrupting the market with innovative restaurant concepts and local produce 46 | MARKETPLACE Suppliers showcase the best dairy products on the market 4
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
PO Box 502511 Dubai, United Arab Emirates P +971 4 4200 506 | F +971 4 4200 196
For all commercial enquiries related to Catering News ME contact dom@bncpublishing.net T +971 50 55 97339 All rights reserved © 2014. Opinions expressed are solely those of the contributors. Catering News ME and all subsidiary publications in the MENA region are officially licensed exclusively to BNC Publishing in the MENA region by Catering News ME. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission of the publisher. Printed by Raidy Emirates Printing Group LLC www.raidy.com
Lactalis Dairy Products and Trading (Middle East) LLC Email: info@ae.lactalis.com - Tel: +971 4 3623025
Editor's Letter
Driving Change T
he August issue of Catering News is focused on the trends, concepts and individuals bringing about positive change in the F&B industry, both on a global and regional level. This month’s cover is the legendary Massimo Bottura, chef-patron behind Italian restaurant, Osteria Francescana, which in June was named number one on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list after several years climbing through the ranks. In an exclusive interview with Catering News, Bottura reveals his obsession with quality and discusses his mission to push boundaries in the F&B industry by spearheading waste management initiatives and educating future generations of chefs. We also look in depth at two exciting concepts coming to Dubai this year – Miss Lily’s and The Atlantic. Adam Schop, executive chef at New York-founded Jamaican concept, Miss Lily’s, was in town ahead of the opening of the brand’s first international outlet in Sheraton Grand Dubai, and he showed us around the quirky venue, located inside a shipping container and serving up a range of classic Jamaican dishes such as jerk grills and homely stews. Meanwhile, Solution’s Leisure creative director Freek Teusink revealed more details on The Atlantic, an Australian seafood franchise to be operated by the group,
6
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
which also boasts Q43, Lock Stock & Barrel, Asia Asia and Karma Kafe, in its successful portfolio. The Atlantic will open in September in the space previously occupied by Thai brand Mango Tree in Souk Al Bahar, overlooking The Dubai Fountain. This month also marks the launch of our ‘A Taste of…’ market update series and in August we look in detail at Kuwait’s F&B ecosystem, which continues to be dominated by American fast food chains, while a number of entrepreneurs are disrupting the market with innovative restaurant concepts and local produce. And with events season upon us again, we look forward to hosting our second annual Big F&B Forum and gathered some well-known industry names at Reform Social & Grill for a pre-event advisory panel discussion to debate the topics and trends that will drive this year’s agenda. While oversaturation was brought to the fore as one of the causes of declining returns, staff poaching and an absence of loyalty, panelists also highlighted some interesting, positive trends in the market, such as a shift toward more homegrown, neighbourhood venues and a strengthening talent pool. Enjoy the issue, Best regards Crystal Chesters
Follow us on our social media pages @cateringnewsme /cateringnewsme cateringnewsme
Crystal Chesters Editor
PACOJET 2
Summer Bundle Promo
Order your Pacojet 2 now for AED 20,500 and get 8 additional pacotizing beakers and a coupe set valued at AED 3,000 for FREE! Discover the magic of pacotizing now!
Valid until end of September 2016. Please use order code ‘PacoJet Promo August’ when ordering through our website.
Winner of prestigious awards from the Pro Chef Middle East Awards 2013 “Best Kitchen Tool” and Gulfood Awards 2014 and 2016 “Best Light Equipment Innovation Award”
Visit us online and discover 100s more creative products email: info@muddle-me.com
facebook.com/muddle.me.online
P . O . Box 24739, Dubai, UAE
twitter.com/muddleme
tel: +971 4 517 8111
issuu.com/muddleme www.muddle-me.com
fax: +971 4 329 8283
P10: PI. Dubai //P11: Hotel Show Africa // P13: Irish food producers in Dubai //
What's cooking?
For all the latest News, Visit www.hotelnewsme.com Follow us on Facebook for up-to-the-minute breaking news Read the latest edition on www.hotelnewsme.com
Awards
Catering News launches inaugural Leaders in Food & beverage Awards
C
atering News Middle East will this year launch the inaugural Middle East Leaders in Food & Beverage Awards, celebrating excellence and innovation in the region’s F&B industry. Set to take place at Westin Mina Seyahi Dubai on Wednesday 9 November, the Leaders in Food & Beverage Awards will celebrate 18 categories, divided into nine restaurant awards and nine individual awards. Wissam Younane, CEO, BNC Publishing commented: “The first annual Leaders in Food & Beverage Awards is part of BNC Publishing's ongoing commitment to highlighting exceptional industry players. “The Middle East's culinary and catering community continues to surpass itself in terms of creativity, service excellence, and innovative conceptual development. We look forward to welcoming both established and upcoming F&B talent to the event.” Sponsoring the event are some of the most prominent suppliers on the market, including exclusive water sponsor Horeca Trade, distributor of San Pellegrino and Acqua Panna; Ronai LLC; Pulsar Foodstuff Trading and MKN, with more sponsorship opportunities available. The individual categories in-
8
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
clude Young F&B Leader, recognising a chef or individual at the helm of an exciting F&B venture who thinks outside of the box, and demonstrates outstanding leadership abilities. Meanwhile the Leading F&B Investor Award celebrates an individual that shows exceptional vision by investing in brands that are going places. And for F&B talent operating within hotel operations, the Leading F&B Director award highlights the achievements of an individual who has showcased outstanding ability in exceeding KPIs, developing concepts, streamlining processes and team leadership. In the restaurant categories, Disruptor of the Year spotlights a game-changing F&B concept
or initiative such as an exciting food truck business, a slick new tech platform or a groundbreaking educational initiative. Celebrating the achievements of the industry’s entrepreneurs, Leading Homegrown Restaurant Brand will shine a light on the most successful, impressive and original Middle East-born F&B concept on the market. And open to both homegrown and imported brands, Newcomer of the Year will go to the most promising, exciting concept that has entered the Middle East’s restaurant market between July 2015 and July 2016. Nominations for the Leaders in F&B Awards are open from Monday 1 August until Thursday 29 September.
The full list of 18 categories is detailed below. For more information on nominations and full category details, please go to: hotelnewsme.com/events/ For nomination enquiries please contact Crystal@bncpublishing. net. To enquire about sponsorship opportunities or table bookings, contact Dom@bncpublishing.net or Nick@bncpublishing.net.
Middle East Leaders in F&B categories RESTAURANTS: • Sustainable Restaurant Award • Healthy Restaurant Award • Leading Homegrown Restaurant Brand • Disruptor of the Year • Best Newcomer • Best Interior • Leading Casual Dining Restaurant • Leading Fine Dining Restaurant • Leading Nightlife Venue PEOPLE: • Leading Hotel F&B Director • Chef of the Year • Pastry Chef of the Year • Leading F&B Investor • Young F&B Leader • F&B Heavyweight • Leading Restaurateur • Bartender of the Year • Best Service Team
What's cooking? Competition
event
Dubai chef to Italian Cuisine World represent MEA at S. Summit to take place in Pellegrino Young Chef Dubai This year 2016 global final
T
G
regoire Berger, head chef at Ossiano, Atlantis The Palm has won the S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2016 regional challenge for the Middle East and Africa. Chef Gregoire will represent the MEA region at the grand finale in Milan on 13 October 2016, where he will compete against 19 other regional finalists from across the globe for the S. Pellegrino Young Chef 2016 title. Commenting on the regional win, Berger said: “It was a moment when time just stopped; the kind of emotion you cannot describe. I can’t believe it; it’s so exciting and I’ve made so many sacrifices in order to achieve it. “I’m so proud of the dish I presented and it’s a token of my gratitude to all my chefs that I used to work with and a huge achievement in my career.” Berger was one of 10 semifinalists from across Middle East & Africa who gathered in Cape Town on 26 July to compete for the chance to make it to the finals. Among the semifinalists were three other chefs from the Middle East: Harda Azman, Nino, Kuwait, Michael O’Shea, The Ivy, Dubai and Eka Mochamad, Bateaux Dubai. O’Shea and Mochamad were awarded second and third place respectively.
Berger’s winning dish was Kerguelen Islands legine and cured goose with a ponzu insert, potato shell stuffed with agria espuma, roasted and sour jus, artichoke and black truffle, shimeji, and tarragon powder. Ahead of the final, the 20 regional winners will be assigned a mentor chef who will advise them on how to improve their signature dishes so that they can demonstrate their best work on the day. Berger has been assigned South African chef, chantel Dartnall, S. Pellegrino’s Chef of the Year 2014. He comments: “I will be happy to share the challenge with my mentor, Chantel Dartnall, and you can believe that we are going to fight for [the trophy].” The event is an opportunity for participants to learn from other talent, gain global visibility and come into close contact with well-known chefs. These include the ‘Seven Sages’ grand finale jury, which features: David Higgs, Carlo Cracco, Gaggan Anand, Elena Arzak, Mauro Colagreco, Wylie Dufresne and Roberta Sudbrack. S.Pellegrino Young Chef 2016 was created by sparkling water brand, S.Pellegrino to promote emerging talent in the culinary world.
he eighth edition of the Italian Cuisine World Summit (ICWS), an event that promotes Italian food, design and lifestyle outside of Italy, will take place in Dubai from 7-17 November 2016. The 2016 edition of the event will bring Italian restaurants, food and wine producers, Michelin-starred chefs and culinary experts together to showcase Italian cuisine, its ingredients and manufacturers. Rosario Scarpato, creator and director of the summit commented: “The 2015 edition involved 60 Italian restaurants from Dubai, 45 Michelin-starred chefs and 80 partners, attracting over 120,000 people, and the 2016 edition looks set to build on this impressive reputation.” The Dubai summit will also present Italian Cuisine Week, an international initiative by the Italian government spread
over seven countries globally. This is the fourth time the event is being held in Dubai and the 2016 programme looks set to take the celebration to new heights. Highlights of the week include a Speciality Food Festival (November 7-9), which will feature cooking demonstrations and competitions from Italian Michelin-starred chefs. Additionally, the ‘United Nations by Italian Cuisine’ Gala Dinner will see 180 cooks from 18 nations, representing a total of 36 Michelin stars, prepare a dinner for 600 guests. The dinner aims to be the largest Italian culinary show outside of Italy. The Summit is promoted by www.itchefs-gvci.com, a network of over 2,500 chefs and restaurateurs working in more than 70 countries in collaboration with Italian restaurants and hotels in Dubai.
Chef Moreno Cedroni, Bice Mare
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
9
In a nutshell
Picture perfect
Catering News was in Singapore on 18 – 19 July as part of the Cream of Europe campaign during which nine chefs from Saudi Arabia, UAE, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan gathered at the At-Sunrice Global Chef Academy to showcase how to incorporate their country’s ingredients into the traditional French pastry dish, Saint Honoré. Cream of Europe is a three-year global campaign organised by CNIEL, the French Dairy Interbranch Organisation and the EU to raise awareness of French dairy cream in Asia.
In a nutshell: PI. Dubai Founders of The Pizza Guys, Rami Badawi and Amber Haque unveil Dubai’s first sourdough pizzeria What made The Pizza Guys concept successful? People liked that we were two people following our passion, and they were attracted to the simplicity. The intention of The Pizza Guys was to create a high quality version of the food people want to eat, so we have a very simple menu that is entirely made from scratch. People aren’t necessarily interested in the details of ingredients, but they appreciate how quality tastes. Please explain the concept of PI. Dubai: The name PI. comes from the American colloquial term for pizza, "pie”. Many of our customers recommended that we have a bigger, more accessible space so we decided to do a more elevated version of The Pizza Guys that still specialises in what we do best – pizza. 10
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
and probiotic bacteria in the sourdough environment, leaving less sugars for your body to digest. Thirdly, sourdough bread has far less gluten than regular bread. Studies have shown that even celiacs can enjoy sourdough bread with no adverse effects.
Why do you use sourdough to make pizza at PI. Dubai? If not properly fermented, wheat contains many anti-nutrients that prevent your body from absorbing minerals. Sourdough fermentation occurs in the presence of probiotic bacteria that neutralise these anti-nutrients, enabling your body to absorb the minerals in the wheat. Secondly, sourdough bread has a lower glycemic index than regular bread. The starches in the wheat are food for the yeast
What else is unique about the ingredients you use? We use all-natural ingredients to make everything from scratch. So for example, with our pistachio cheesecake and gelato, instead of buying ready-made pistachio paste, we actually roast pistachios and make a butter to use in our gelato and cheesecake. We try to use the absolute best ingredients in all our food, whether that be heirloom tomatoes, marble score, 6 to 7 Wagyu beef or 36-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano. You don't find many restaurants at our price point using such ingredients.
What's cooking? events
DMG Events launches The Hotel Show Africa
E
xhibitions company, DMG Events Middle East, Asia & Africa will launch its hospitality event brand, The Hotel Show, in Africa. The Hotel Show Africa 2017 will take place from 25 - 27 June at South Africa’s Gallagher Convention Centre in Johannesburg and is the first geo-adapted event from the DMG hospitality portfolio to launch in Africa. Christine Davidson, vice president, DMG Middle East & Africa said: “Africa offers huge opportunities for hospitality providers on a continent forecast to enjoy some of the highest economic growth rates in the world.
“The Hotel Show Africa 2017 is a direct recognition of the sector’s growth. South Africa is the right place for this show, offering a gateway to the African market, in a country that is undergoing a strong hospitality boom with millions of dollars’
investment and a governmentbacked recognition of the economic benefits of tourism.” The new event is adapted for the African market and based on the company’s The Hotel Show Dubai. It will bring together national
and international exhibitors to showcase hospitality products for restaurants, cafes, bars and hotels, through to food & beverage service outlets. The Hotel Show Africa 2017 will focus on new trends in the hospitality sector, covering topics from technology to kitchen equipment, cleaning services, interior design, furnishings and tableware. The event will also introduce the Vision Conference, a knowledge platform, expected to attract senior industry leaders to discuss trends, debate challenges and spotlight opportunities in the African hospitality sector.
Campaign
Middle East chefs take part in Cream of Europe campaign
T
wo chefs from the Middle East participated in the Singapore leg of Cream of Europe, a three-year global campaign organised by CNIEL, the French Dairy Interbranch Organisation and the EU, to raise awareness of French dairy cream in Asia. Chef Ludovic Audaux, complex executive pastry chef – Al Habtoor City Complex, Dubai and chef Mona Mosly, executive chef, Adel Abu Al Jadel, Jeddah, and jury at Taste represented the Middle East at the event, which took place at the At-Sunrice Global Chef Academy in Singapore from 18-19 July. Commenting on the experience, Audaux said: “It was great to see new faces and new people, especially those who don’t have
the same culinary habits as Europeans. I saw lots of things that have opened my eyes on what’s going on in this part of the world.” Audaux, Mosly and seven more chefs from key cities in Asia showcased how to incorporate their country’s ingredients into the traditional French pastry dish, Saint Honoré, using European cream. While Mosly made a reinter-
pretation of the Middle Eastern baklava using puff pastry and pistachio cream, Audaux combined his French heritage and Middle Eastern experience using seasonal cherries and a hibiscus insert with a white chocolate and rosewater ganache. Explaining why using European cream in his pastries is so important to achieving the best taste, Audaux said: “It’s for the taste, the volume, and
for the texture. There’s nothing comparable to the cream you have in Europe.” Mosly added: “I decided to be part of this event because when I worked in Paris I realised that having a good ingredient can make a dish worth millions.” The campaign, organised by Sopexa marketing and communications agency, is taking place in China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and chefs from each of these countries were present at the two-day event in Singapore. As part of the campaign, La Crème de la Crème recipe book is developed each year and distributed in the nine countries. This year it will showcase the Asian interpretations of Saint Honoré. August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
11
What's cooking?
Dubai to launch Future Food Live
Dubai Municipality has partnered with Dubai World Trade Centre to launch Future Food Live, a new exhibition, conference and workshop aimed at increasing food security and creating a healthier society. The event will put diet and nutrition under the spotlight, with a focus on nutritional food and beverage products, and organic and halal producers. There
will be an additional focus on regional manufacturers and agritech equipment that facilitates independent farm production. Future Food Live is expected to attract global food specialists, distributors and government-backed farms. It will take place from 7 – 9 November in conjuction with Yummex, SEAFEX and The Speciality Food Festival.
ICCA Dubai wins City & Guilds’ International Centre of the Year ICCA Dubai has been awarded ‘International Centre of Excellence Middle East’ and ‘Overall International Centre of the Year’ at the City & Guilds Lion Awards 2016. This year marked the launch of the City & Guilds International Centre of Excellence awards, which recognises outstanding achievement of City & Guilds centres around the world, outside of the UK and Ireland. Five regional awards in-
cluding Africa, Middle East, Asia Pacific, Europe & The Caribbean, Middle East and South Asia were distributed, with ICCA Dubai recognised as the Middle East winner and the ‘Overall International Centre of the Year’.
Dubai Maritime City Authority enforces safety procedures for floating restaurants Dubai Maritime City Authority (DMCA) is carrying out an inspection campaign to ensure floating restaurants operating in Dubai conform to international best practice standards. The authority is also encouraging floating restaurants to register their maritime operations in the Cruise Logbook, a standardised record, which provides a frame of reference for enforcing regulations 12
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
and processes. Abdullah Bintouq, senior maritime inspection director, DMCA highlighted that floating restaurants are a key segment of the investment landscape of Dubai’s tourism and maritime industry and that recent actions related to the organisation of floating restaurants will contribute significantly to the enhanced investment appeal of the segment.
Michael Hussey, regional manager Middle East, Bord Bia
Origin Green event to showcase Irish food producers in Dubai
A
n event showcasing sustainable food producers and exporters from Ireland is set to take place in Dubai this year. Origin Green, A Taste of Ireland, organised by Bord Bia – Irish Food Board, will take place on 24 November at Ritz-Carlton Hotel, JBR, Dubai. Chef Robbie Krawczyk of Tankardstown House will travel to Dubai for the event and is working on a menu especially for the night using Irish food available in the UAE market. The event is expected to attract more than 350 buyers from retail, foodservice and manufacturing sectors, as well as local and Irish media and friends of Irish food. Bord Bia is the main sponsor and organiser of the event, and more sponsors will be confirmed shortly. The event is part of Origin Green, a national sustainability programme for the Irish food and beverage industry. Launched in 2012, it is the only programme of its kind that operates on a national scale, uniting government, the private sector and food pro-
ducers through Bord Bia. The programme is independently verified at every stage and enables Ireland’s farmers and food producers to set and achieve measurable sustainability targets, reduce environmental impact and serve local communities more effectively. The overall ambition is that every farm and food manufacturing business throughout Ireland will be on the road to sustainable production by the end of 2016. Food exports from Ireland to the GCC have grown significantly in recent years, from €192 million ($211.19mn) in 2012 to over €260 million ($285.99mn) in 2015. Exports of food from Ireland to the UAE are up by 25% in 2016 so far and if the trend continues, should reach over €60 million ($66mn) by year-end. The most popular Irish food products in the UAE are dairy products, high quality dry aged Irish beef, seafood, and packaged consumer foods for the retail trade. The alcoholic beverage sector is also a key export and is growing strongly, especially in the hospitality sector.
What's cooking? Dubai’s Gen Z call for more sophisticated children’s menus
A
panel discussion hosted by Catering News to find out more about children's eating habits on holiday, revealed that under 18s would like more sophisticated, healthier menu options in hotels and restaurants. Eleven children from years 10, 12 and 13 at The Winchester School, Jebel Ali and Dubai English Speaking College took part in the event, hosted at Time Oak Hotel & Suites earlier this summer. The children reported that variety is very important to them when they travel with their parents, and that hotel buffets offer a novelty factor and plenty of choice. Harrison Le Marquand, year 12 at Dubai English Speaking College said: “Hotel buffets are always good and a novelty. I’ve never had bad food in a hotel.” Ishan Raj, year 10 at The Winchester School added: “When I go abroad what I look for in hotel food is a good amount of choice.” However, when it comes to children’s menus, the group reported that hotels and restaurants often don’t offer enough variety, healthy options or sophisticated dishes. Alijaeh Go, year 10 at The Winchester School said: “I feel like the children’s menus underestimate the palate and
taste of children, especially as we become more globalised with the internet. "Children know more food; they know more culture, so I feel that restaurants should try to adapt to that change of taste.” Toby Hodges, year 12 at Dubai English Speaking College added that a child’s palate develops dramatically in a short space of time, so menu options should vary for different age groups. “I think the age range is too wide. When you’re 12 compared to when you’re six it’s a massive change, you can’t compare the two. As you get older you experience more things, your parents introduce you to new things and you become more adventurous,” he said. A report on the findings from the roundtable was broadcast on Dubai Eye and the podcast is available online: dubaieye1038.com/theticketpodcasts. The full roundtable discussion will be published in the September issue of Catering News. The event was part of a series of four panel discussions with children organised by BNC Publishing in partnership with Time Hotels to find out more about what Generation Z expect from a holiday.
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
13
New places
RAMUSAKE
Stanislas de Boissieu, director of operations at Mahiki, Ramusake and Copper Dog showcases Dubai’s new Japanese Izakaya concept, Ramusake at DoubleTree by Hilton, JBR Describe the concept of the venue in your words?
Ramusake is Dubai’s most unique Japanese Izakaya restaurant, which combines elements of fine dining with an innovative and contemporary twist. The restaurant features a separate sake bar and lounge while the main dining area features a robata counter. We also have a live DJ every night of the week.
What are the signature items on the menu?
The menu features several signature dishes including the tuna sashimi pizza with truffle ponzo and wasabi tobiko, fried truffle and cheese dumplings and chicken kara-aga sliders with kimchee mayo.
What is interesting about the beverage offer?
There is a story that accompanies every cocktail on our menu. Each one has been individually designed with a particular region of Japan in mind and we are the first Japanese restaurant in Dubai to offer the Japanese Sanguria sharing cocktail.
Who designed the interiors and how do they reflect the concept?
Ramusake’s multi-faceted venue was designed by Mariko Yuki. It draws its design inspirations from 1920’s show era Tokyo combined with a futuristic twist. Using aged concrete, charred timber cladding and oversized abacus custom light fixtures juxtaposed against neon lights, Ramusake transports diners on a virtual reality journey into Japan with a culinary experience like no other.
How will the venue compete on the Dubai marketplace?
Ramusake is not like other Japanese restaurants in Dubai. The menu incorporates unique culinary techniques and our bar aims to excite diners with an extensive cocktail list paired to the food menu and a selection of the world’s finest sakes. With the launch of our ladies night and brunch later this year, we aim to become the best Japanese restaurant in terms of food, drinks and experience.
Prax’s
Café 302
Metropolitan Catering
Asian fast food restaurant Prax’s, which first opened in 2015 on Jumeirah Beach Road, has expanded to a second location in Barsha Heights. Serving Thai and Chinese dishes in oyster pails (Chinese takeout containers), the venue seats 27 diners. It offers a set menu or a ‘go freestyle’ option, whereby the diner selects a base (noodles, rice or mixed vegetables), protein (tofu, chicken, beef or prawns), sauces, toppings and garnish.
Café 302, a new café concept located in Abu Dhabi’s Al Maha Arjaan by Rotana, has opened its doors. The café offers a retail element, with virgin olive oils and organic food items among the products on sale. Menu options include steak, seafood, salads, freshly baked breads, pies and quiches and Kyoto coffee from Japan, which takes 10 – 12 hours to brew and is best served over ice.
Following a multimillion-dirham investment, Habtoor Group’s Metropolitan Catering has re-opened, unveiling new kitchen facilities spanning 18,000ft2 with the capacity to produce 45,000 meals per day. Established for more than three decades, the facility, located in Jebel Ali Free Zone, offers private, corporate and commercial catering, with a focus on quality and value for money. New GM, Ramy El Sayah, will oversee more than 170 chefs at the facility.
Location: Barsha Heights, Dubai Opening date: 21 July 14
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
LOCATION: Al Maha Arjaan by Rotana, Abu Dhabi
OPENING DATE: 19 JULY
LOCATION: Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai Opening date: 12 July
New places BBQ Eel and Fois Gras Maki
The facts Opening date: June Head chef: Michael Muir Fun fact: Ramusake has two murals hand-painted by Maria Hegedus especially for the restaurant. Jidaiokure
TEN STREET
Rüya
ARROWS AND SPARROWS
Rmal Hospitality has opened a party venue with Canadian dishes such as smoked BBQ ribs, burgers and sharing platters. Featuring music from the 70s, 80s and 90s, Ten Street has a private karaoke room, three full-size 10 ball pool tables and screens showing sport. Games and competitions include the ‘Red Light Rush’ offering discounted beverages and the ‘Lucky Wheel’ giving guests the chance to win prizes on arrival.
A new Turkish restaurant headed by chef Colin Clague who previously worked at Jean Georges, Qbara and Zuma is set to open this quarter. Maintaining the authenticity of Anatolian food, ingredients will be enhanced to suit a contemporary market. Some of the menu highlights are Cağ kebabı, a horizontally stacked marinated rotating lamb kebab, baked traditional fish and meat dishes, rotisserie and traditional Anatolian bread, katmer.
Arrows and Sparrows is a new café concept from the founders of JLT’s Friends Avenue café, Davron Hamidov and Zee Alikhonov, who describe it as a “cool, contemporary, but comfortable café serving excellent food and coffee”. Arrows and Sparrows, to be located in The Greens, Dubai, will feature quirky interiors with turquoise and rose gold hues and will have an extensive breakfast menu.
LOCATION: Grosvenor House, Dubai OPENING DATE: Q3, 2016
Greens, Dubai
LOCATION: Jumeirah Beach Residence,
Dubai
Opening date: 13 July
LOCATION: Emaar Business Park, The OPENING DATE: August August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
15
Talent
Shaking up Abu Dhabi
Zeneger B. Oliquiano, bartender at Saadiyat Beach Club says harnessing creativity while catering to the mass market is a balancing act Describe your first ever role in the F&B industry?
I was very nervous when I first started out as I was unsure whether my guests would like the drinks I was making for them. My confidence grew quickly, thanks to the number of guests who complemented the drinks and service I provided. It motivated me to develop my skills and constantly strive to improve.
Who has been your most important career inspiration?
My father: he always encourages me and motivates me in every aspect of my career.
How do you view the F&B scene in the region?
Zeneger B. Oliquiano
16
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
F&B is a growing scene, not only in every corner of Abu Dhabi, but across the whole Middle East. People are always looking out for what’s new when it comes to food and beverage.
Work Experie nce
February 2013 - November 2015: Bartende Trader Vic’s r, at Beach Rota na Abu Dhabi September 20 12 - Februa ry 2013: Barten Café Columbi der, a at Beach Ro tana Abu Dhab i October 2010 - June 2012 : Bartender, Thunderbird Hotel Resort and Casino, Philippines
What is the biggest challenge of your role?
My biggest challenge is letting my creativity flow while creating drinks for the mass audience. I have set myself the task of creating something that will become the signature drink of Saadiyat Beach Club.
What is your favourite aspect of your role?
Definitely speaking to the customers and receiving praise for what I create.
If you could work in any restaurant in the world, which would it be?
I would work in any of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants as he’s my favourite chef.
What tip would you share with new staff starting out in the F&B industry in the region? Be patient and willing to learn.
Talent: appointments Le Méridien Dubai appoints chef to oversee 18 restaurants
Six Senses Zighy Bay Oman appoints new executive chef
Royal Catering grows team with two new appointments
Le Méridien Dubai Hotel & Conference Centre has appointed executive chef Ramon Salto Alvarez to oversee the operations of its 18 restaurants and 24 meeting and events facilities. The Catalonian chef has worked in France, Spain, UK, USA, Kuwait, Qatar and India, including experience at several Michelin-starred restaurants. These include the famous three-Michelin-starred elBulli restaurant in Catalonia and Arzak restaurant in San Sebastian, Spain. In his new role, the multilingual chef oversees more than 250 chefs and 70 stewards.
Six Senses Zighy Bay in Oman has appointed new executive chef, Stephen Jones to oversee its four dining outlets. The Australian national has worked at The Oberoi Lombok, Indonesia; Le Gray Beirut; Pangkor Laut Resort in Malaysia; and Per Aquum Huvafen Fushi, Maldives. Jones has a simplistic approach to cooking and believes that less is more. He commented: “Sustainably sourced, natural and delicious with awareness of intelligent nutrition, my approach to food is multicultural and layered with influences from travelling the world.”
Royal Catering has hired chef Yannick Tirbois and Tarek Hamze as it looks to further develop its operations in the UAE and GCC. Tirbois has been appointed as executive chef of Royal Catering’s outlets, including Catch, Rozanah and Café D’Alsace. Hamze has experience in restaurant operations management, training and development, special events staging and quality assurance. He is Royal Catering’s new executive chef of banqueting and was central to the development of the company’s new 82L8 convenience concept.
www.1765gemini.com marketing@1765gemini.com
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
17
Opinion
How to calculate the ROI of your social media activity Measuring the return on investment of social media activity is no longer optional says Tiina Kontra, social media and communications consultant, but the good news is that there’s an easy way to do it
Y
ou might be working hard on your restaurant’s social media, but are you able to establish the return on investment for your efforts? The good news is there is a simple way to do this. Socialmediaexaminer.com defines social media ROI as “a measure of the efficiency of a social media marketing campaign”. A straightforward formula for establishing this is: social media ROI = (return — investment)/ investment. However, before doing any calculations, we need to first understand the audience we are trying to reach. It seems like a simple question, but it really is the key to everything. Once the audience has been clearly defined, we can find out where they live on social media. Ask yourself who your ideal customer is. How old is he/ she? Are they on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, YouTube, Google+ or another channel? Using the wrong social media platform is an absolute waste of money, and if you are on multiple channels, it is worth knowing which ones work best for you so that you can give those the most attention. Secondly, we need to set specific and measurable goals to achieve, and understand how these relate to our business goals. For example, these might be new followers, clicks on advertisements, coupons or website, check-ins, sign-ups for newsletters, time spent on the website or use of promo codes. Next, choose some of these and start tracking. Check out the built-in trackers on the social media channels you are us18
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
ing, or use Google Analytics. Offline, ask your staff to conduct short surveys with questions such as “Where did you hear from us?” or track used coupons mentioning a special code only available on social media. To figure out return, we need to give a monetary value to the set goals. There are various different methods to calculate return, for example lifetime value of a customer, lifetime value multiplied by conversion rate, or average sale. If you lack historical data, make a ‘guestimate’ using common sense and experience. The next step is to calculate the investment that you put into your social media. Are you using advertisements or paid social media tools? Or are you working with a social media consultant or a graphic designer? If you are doing all the hard work yourself, write down the hours that you put into content development and social media management and how much this costs you. And there you go, you have your numbers to calculate return on investment. To go the extra mile, consider coming up with a visual way to report your results. First choose a timeframe that makes sense to you – is it for your weekly, monthly or quarterly reports, or all of these? Once you have done this, review the results and reset your goals. You could even go a step further and benchmark yourself against a competitor’s social media activity. Perhaps you may even uncover an opportunity for your restaurant to be heard through the noise.
Tiina Kontra “If you are doing all the hard work yourself, write down the hours that you put into content development and social media management and how much this costs you”
For us the emotions start from jumping in the sea in Pantelleria or drinking a lemonade in Sorrento or breathing in the fog in a porch in Modena or the snow in the Dolemites. Everything is compressed into edible bites
20
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Cover Story
MASSIMO BOTTURA Blending quality ideas and ingredients, the man behind the best restaurant on earth reveals his plans to save the world, one bite at a time. Crystal Chesters reports.
O
steria Francescana, a 21-year-old restaurant with just 12 tables, located in the humble Italian town of Modena was earlier this year named The World’s Best Restaurant. “We have been working very hard over the last year, pushing boundaries, improving our service, our ideas, our smiles,” says chef patron Massimo Bottura, explaining how Osteria Francescana finally took the top spot after six years ascending through ‘The World’s 50 Best Restaurants’ list, sponsored by S. Pellegrino and Acqua Panna, having been ranked at number three in 2013 and 2014 and number two in 2015. Bottura was still reeling from the win — announced at a glitzy ceremony in New York’s Cipriani Wall Street on 13 June — when he spoke to Catering News. “I’m trying to keep my feet on the
ground! The recognition is not just about me but about my team, about Modena, about Italy,” he says in vivacious Italian sing-song. Osteria Francescana wasn’t always considered the pinnacle of culinary prowess, however. The win represents a culmination of Bottura’s success in transcending boundaries, which at one point threatened to close down the restaurant. His experimentation with the Italian classics was at first met with contempt from diners and critics alike, and he was plagued with bad reviews. Dishes such as “The Five Ages of Parmigiano Reggianno in Different Textures and Temperatures” and “Tortellini Walking into Broth” — a reinterpretation of the Modenese classic with just six pieces of tortellini and the sauce on the side — were considered virtually sacrilegious when they first appeared
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
21
Cover Story
“Franceschetta, a contemporary Italian trattoria may be making waves in 2017. We are looking into opening in several locations, maybe even in the Middle East. It would be extremely good in terms of quality of the ingredients and very nice preparations”
on the menu due to their seeming disregard for the traditional Italian kitchen — the linchpin of the country’s culture and society. Osteria Francescana being named “The World’s Best Restaurant” therefore not only signals a milestone in Bottura’s career, but a breakthrough for modern Italian cuisine, now touted on the global stage as the best in the world. “It’s a celebration of the value of the Italian kitchen — the contemporary kitchen, not the nostalgic one. We’ve changed the direction because our Italian kitchen focuses on the quality of the ingredients but also on the quality of ideas, so it’s a big change,” Bottura comments. “The quality of the ideas is what makes every single restaurant in the world different to the other.” Osteria Francescana is Bottura’s “laboratory of culture” where he combines his ideas with his past and present experiences to spawn something innovative. “We create new ideas and compress my passions of music and contemporary art into edible bites; they are filtered by my mind through the memory of such a big and important past, and this is what we do every day at Osteria.” Bottura’s focus on innovation doesn’t mean to say that his cuisine lacks depth or substance, however. In fact, it is very much rooted in the terroir of Italy. He has great 22
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Sometimes mallard, sometimes partridge and even bollito
respect for the land, its farmers, its ingredients, and believes that it is his duty to condense the whole breadth and depth of Italy into his dishes. “My kitchen is very deeply Italian,” Bottura explains. “We focus on Modena, the capital of the food valley, but also on Italy in general. For us the emotions start from
jumping into the sea in Pantelleria or drinking a lemonade in Sorrento or breathing in the fog in a porch in Modena or the snow in the Dolemites. Everything is compressed into edible bites.” Conveying the emotion linked to food is crucial to Bottura’s cuisine. He admits that to this day his favourite dish is raw tortellini
Cover Story
Oops! I'veDropped the lemon tart
because of the nostalgia it conjures, reminding him of sneaking his grandmother’s creations from under the table as he watched her roll pasta dough. However, quality ingredients rather than ideas, are what is most vital to communicating emotion. “Quality of the ingredients is the first step for everything. If you don’t have the right ingredients, how can you transfer emotion? Our communication is with the palate of the people, not with the mind. The ideas are extremely important but we need to always be focused on the quality of ingredients and be on the side of our farmers to protect them and help them evolve.” Bottura’s obsession with quality was sparked during a period working at Louis XV in Monte Carlo with Alain Ducasse, one of the most important inspirations of his career. “He influenced me a lot by explaining what obsession with quality means. Now I’m obsessed with quality; quality of music, quality of contemporary art, quality of food. To me, life is an obsession with quality.” Another formative experience — this time under Ferran Adrià, the chef behind the world-famous three-Michelin-starred elBulli restaurant in Catalonia — convinced Bottura to keep pushing the boundaries. “Ferran Adrià helped me to free myself from the idea of being influenced by
others, to be free to express myself as I want. Freedom: that’s the most important lesson I learned at elBulli.” Living in New York City was another liberating experience for Bottura who describes that period of his life as “like breathing freedom”. It was also during this time that he met his American wife Lara, “the mind” of Osteria Francescana. “Lara is extremely important. She is the intellectual part of our everyday lives,” he says. Every member of the team he admits is like family, each playing a unique supporting role — “they manage my craziness!” “The team can make you win every single match,” he asserts, describing the Osteria Francescana staff as “young and hungry” with a “sparkle in the eye”. Rather than choosing chefs from the best restaurants in the world, Bottura prefers to give people a chance if they have the right attitude. “It isn’t about the curriculum, we’d rather see passion and a smile. At the end of the day it’s about being part of the team rather than being a group of individual superstars.” And while they are inundated with job offers given the prestige of their training ground, Bottura’s staff tend to stick around. “I give them intellectual stimulation so they stay with us. They are my buddies, my friends and they don’t leave because they
are connected with me and my mind.” It’s easy to see what he means. Every day there is something new going on in Bottura’s kitchen, and just minutes prior to our interview, he had been working on his latest invention — a fish dish that uses a “revolutionary technique”. “I’m concentrating on sole and turbot al sale, al cartoccio and alla mugnaia. I’m very proud of this and I’m sure it’s going to be the dish of the year,” he enthuses. Although the idea factory, Osteria Francescana, will remain firmly rooted to Via Stella 22 in Modena, Bottura has more flexible plans for his Osteria Franceschetta concept, under which brand there is already one outlet in Modena in partnership with chef Marta Pullini. Bottura is considering rolling out the concept internationally, with talks underway for a Dubai venue, however having been approached with an opportunity for the emirate already, he wants to ensure his partner will “invest trust” above all. During a recent visit to Dubai he was impressed with the speed of F&B development in the city. “I was there very briefly and I was amazed at the enthusiasm and energy around. I’ve heard that the Dubai culinary scene has grown a lot in the past 10 years so it’s very exciting. It could be a very interesting place to open a contempoAugust 2016 Catering NEWS ME
23
Cover Story rary, casual restaurant,” he says. “Franceschetta, a contemporary Italian trattoria may be making waves in 2017. We are looking into opening in several locations, maybe even in the Middle East. It would be extremely good in terms of quality of the ingredients and very nice preparations.” However, expansion is not at the top of Bottura’s agenda. His main ambition for the future is to continue widening his horizons through travel, and giving back to the community. This month he will set up a “Refettorio” at the Rio 2016 Olympics, much like the one he operated at the Expo Milan 2015 during which 65 influential chefs from around the world were invited to cook healthy, seasonal meals using waste products. “It was an amazing experience, we brought all of our knowledge to this project,” he explains. “We are going to be in Rio De Janeiro for the opening of the Olympics. We need to be there, we are really happy to be there and we will use the spotlight to make sure that everyone that helped us to get there will be recognised,” he says. Another ambition for Bottura is to open a university where chefs will learn more about ingredients, and farmers will learn about taste, which is testament to his belief in the importance of combining quality produce with quality ideas in order to drive innovation. “We need to create the synergy between
Massimo and winners celebrating their win at The World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards
24
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Massimo with his wife Lara
farmers and chefs and we’re already talking about that and people around here are so interested,” he says, hinting that the president of the Emilia-Romagna region is in support of the project, which would be located near to Modena. Asked how he will maintain Osteria’s number one position in next year’s The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, Bottura says this is not one of his priorities. “It’s not about
maintaining the top spot. It would be better if every year there could be different guys at number one. We are thrilled to be recognised for our 21 years of work, but it isn’t important for us to maintain number one. “Once you achieve everything like I did, once you live your life in such a great and deep way, it’s time to give back; use your spotlight for others. First we need to fight waste, and secondly we need to influence the younger generations — they are going to be much more deeply alert about what to do in everyday life.” Bottura’s number one piece of advice for young chefs looking to improve their work is to see the world, citing culture in addition to quality ideas and ingredients as a factor essential to the development of the next generation. “My advice is to travel a lot, be exposed to many different cultures. This helps you evolve, but in travelling, don’t forget about yourself or where you come from. “Culture is the most important ingredient for the chef of the future. Culture brings knowledge, knowledge opens consciousness and from consciousness comes a sense of responsibility. A chef without culture just goes into the kitchen and can create good food, but that is different. A chef with culture can save the world.”
MASTERPIECE TASTE IN
PDO European Cheese Europe certifies its best products
The business
ICCA Dubai launches third scholarship
Sunjeh Raja, director and CEO, International Centre for Culinary Arts Dubai (ICCA) looks forward to doubling participation in the third ICCA Dubai Culinary Scholarship, set to commence next month What is the ICCA Dubai Culinary Scholarship? The ICCA Dubai Culinary Scholarship is an annual one million dirhams continuing education award aimed at educating, training and certifying financially underprivileged young chefs working in the UAE F&B industry. The 52-week day release programme delivers ICCA Dubai’s International Chef Training Programme (ICTP), City & Guilds International Vocational Qualification (IVQ) Level 2 Diploma in Food Preparation and Culinary Arts and is executed in strategic partnership with the Emirates Culinary Guild, City & Guilds London and World Association of Chefs Societies (Worldchefs). Where do the students come from? Our programme includes young industry chefs from diverse ethnic backgrounds selected from a long list of applications. They come from hotels and restaurants across the UAE, and in last year’s scholarship, they came from Marriott International, Shakespeare & Co and Emirates Flight Catering among other companies. What does the programme involve? A lot of the emphasis is on getting the fundamentals right. The students begin right from learning to prepare stocks, soups and sauces to entrées and main courses, while touching upon the basics of bakery and patisserie. The focus is on offering the student chefs a wide spectrum of knowledge to prepare them for international industry standards through 26
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
ber of students taking part, we will run two formats of the programme. One batch of 20 candidates will be fully sponsored and supported by ICCA Dubai, while another 20 candidates will be sponsored or supported by the industry.
a 52-week day release programme. Guest trainers comprise top chefs from the Industry, who conduct training sessions to impart their knowledge and skills aligned to the industry’s needs and best practices. What do the graduates go on to do? The training is application-focused with an emphasis on commercial cooking skills, product creativity, presentation, multitasking, interpersonal skills, and the supervisory and leadership skills required for the industry. Throughout the programme, the students have several opportunities to refine their skills in the fast-growing UAE market. We expect them to take the initiative to improve themselves by applying the knowledge and skills gained through the scholarship training to the workplace. What are your plans for the programme in 2016? The next scholarship programme will begin next month and we have started receiving applications. In order to double the num-
What guest lecturers are taking part in this year’s programme? Among the chefs who will be supporting the next programme as guest lecturers are Sascha Triemer (Atlantis The Palm), Michael Kitts (Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management), Darren Velvick (The Croft, Dubai Marriott Harbour Hotel & Suites), Harald Oberender (Dubai World Trade Centre) and Bobby Krishna (Dubai Municipality). How important are initiatives like this for the growth of the F&B industry in Dubai and the Middle East? When it comes to hospitality, Dubai offers the kind of quality, infrastructure and environment that you can't get anywhere else in the world. Having a scholarship programme based in the UAE opens up opportunities to those who may not be able to financially afford training. Through this programme, we provide the hospitality industry with smart resources to increase their knowledge and skills. With the Dubai Expo 2020 rapidly approaching, the UAE tourism and hospitality sector will experience massive growth to help cater to the 25 million expected visitors. We need to show these visitors that our offering is world-class, and this is where training such as this is paramount to make a difference.
Lock, Stock & Barrel, Barsha Heights
Lock, Stock & Barrel is one of Dubai’s only live music venues 28
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
The business
SOMETHING IN THE ATMOSPHERE Just five months after opening, Dubai’s alternative live music bar Lock Stock & Barrel has outperformed its targets by almost threefold. Solutions Leisure creative director Freek Teusink reveals the secret of the company’s success and its aggressive expansion plans for Dubai and beyond
A
s Freek Teusink, creative director of Solutions Leisure, quite rightly admits, he and his three colleagues at the helm of the Dubai-based entertainment and nightlife group are “busy boys”. The company is behind homegrown venues Q43 in Media One Hotel and Lock, Stock & Barrel in Grand Millennium Barsha Heights, and the franchise operations of Asia Asia in Dubai Marina’s Pier 7 and Karma Kafé in Souk Al Bahar, and it continues to expand, with an exciting new project confirmed in the pipeline. And despite Teusink’s admission that “real estate is the biggest challenge in Dubai”, Solutions Leisure has even managed to snare one of Dubai’s prime spaces for the concept. The new project is Australian seafood restaurant, The Atlantic, the company’s second Souk Al Bahar venue, to be located in the coveted space previously occupied by Thai brand Mango Tree Worldwide. Set to open by the end of September, the restaurant will seat 200 inside and on its terrace overlooking The Dubai Fountain. “We had seen Atlantic before and we thought it was a great brand.
We spoke with the owner and the click was there; they saw what we do, so we already had this [relationship],” says Teusink. “When we looked at real estate we always thought it needs water at least, it needs a terrace and then we knew Mango Tree was going out. Of course we already rent Karma Kafé in Souk Al Bahar and Asia Asia in Pier 7 from Emaar Hospitality so we had that relationship too and they were very happy for us to take [the restaurant].” Designed by Amsterdam-based Eleven, the upscale venue will have “slightly industrial” interiors and the menu, being created by Yorkshire-born celebrity chef Donovan Cooke who is at the helm of the Melbourne venue, is to be a smaller version of the original, with items such as langoustines, fish & chips, and a selection of oysters from a dedicated oyster bar. The company is also scouting out locations for a second Lock Stock & Barrel, just five months after the launch of the casual, industrial, alternative live music brand in Grand Millennium Hotel Barsha Heights, Dubai. The venue has outperformed its August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
29
The business
The Atlantic terrace: one of Dubai’s most sought-after restaurant spaces
targets by almost threefold, and the team have been overwhelmed with its success, so already Teusink can confidently say it is here to stay. “With this venue we don’t have any doubts. You always have your ups and downs but this is going to be very successful for a long time. It has a timeless interior and I think it will still be current three years from now from a décor point of view.” Industrial is a design trend many developers have been getting on board with over the past few years, with the likes of Tom & Serg and Fümé just some of the Dubai examples. But according to Teusink, it takes a certain vision to create the atmosphere and volumes Q43, Lock Stock & Barrel and Asia Asia enjoy. He admits the team “think about every square metre of the venue” so that “even if you’re the first person in you feel comfortable”. It all starts at the development stage, with Teusink walking around the space, and quite literally making marks in the sand with his feet to outline where seats, bars, and speakers will be located. “If I’m designing a venue, the materials are important but the most important thing is that you walk around the venue and with every seat you sit on, you feel like you have the best seat in the house. I am very old fashioned with how I do it; I walk around and if I get a chance I’ll put my foot in the sand and say ‘here’s the bar; do I feel right here?’” For example, in Lock, Stock & Barrel, instead of placing the stage on the elevated area at the back of the room, which would be the natural fit, Teusink chose to set it in the centre of the space to create a more intimate atmosphere. This means that wherever you stand, you feel you are in the midst of the action. With new venue, The Atlantic, being a franchise, Teusink expects to have less creative control, but he believes he will be able to make his mark in some way. “You always have an influence on it 30
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
The business
“Abu Dhabi would be an option; there’s already interest because obviously Lock Stock & Barrel is a great success, people in the industry have seen it and understand it, so there is some demand from abroad as well. I know there’s interest from Singapore and from Australia”
Freek Teusink creative director of Solutions Leisure
The Atlantic will feature a dedicated oyster bar
and if it doesn’t feel right then I’ll speak up,” he says. During the development phase of Asia Asia, for example, Solutions Leisure was given plenty of leeway to be creative, and altered the specs to create a concept that almost feels homegrown. “We had a big influence on Asia Asia, but you can use the elements from the franchise inside your plan and that works very well,” he explains. While Teusink is the main lead when it comes to the design of Solutions Leisure venues, he reveals that every concept is a huge team effort, with his partner Paul Evans, managing director, looking after the development and expansion of the company; Sacha Daniel, group operations director taking care of food and beverage; and Spencer Hartwell in charge of marketing and promotions. Teusink’s partnership with Evans began back in 2000 in Egypt. Previously a sound engineer, the Dutch national had moved there to launch a bar business, which he says “became a little empire where we had Ministry of Sound, Hed Kandi, beach clubs and numerous bars all over Egypt”. Following the Egyptian Revolution of 2011, Evans and Teusink decided to move to Dubai and recreate what they had achieved in Egypt. Now with four strong concepts under their belts and another opening in some of Dubai’s most sought-after real estate, Solutions Leisure is gaining ground rapidly, making a solid mark on the F&B scene. However, the company is not limited to Dubai; there has also been interest from Abu Dhabi for Lock, Stock & Barrel, as well as internationally, from Singapore and Australia. “Abu Dhabi would be an option; there’s already interest because obviously it’s a great success, people in the industry have seen it and understand it, so there is some demand from abroad as well. I know there’s interest from Singapore and from Australia,” says Teusink, who reveals that the goal is to expand by two to three venues per year, with a focus on creating “a few more” Lock Stock & Barrel concepts, however not necessarily using exactly the same branding. “I’m not sure if we’ll keep the name but the concept, yes. If we find the right locations we’ll make more of them,” says Teusink. In addition to Lock Stock & Barrel expansion, the company will also open another Q43 if the location is right, and is looking to create and franchise more brands. “We really like what we’re doing, we’ve got a great team and we’re expanding it on a daily basis and it’s our vision to grow by two to three venues a year if the right real estate comes up. It’s very exciting; we have a lot of concepts in mind. We have great partners we have spoken with – other franchisors – and if the right real estate comes up we’re always ready to go.” August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
31
Out to lunch
Pioneer of the
n a e b b i r a C Located within a quirky shipping container in Sheraton Grand hotel, colourful New-york brand Miss Lily’s ships diners away to a world of reggae music and authentic, Jamaican cuisine. Crystal Chesters catches up with executive chef Adam Schop to find out more.
O
n the fifth floor of Sheraton Grand Hotel Dubai sits a black shipping container with a Jamaican flag and the word’s “Miss Lily’s” painted on the door. On entering the space, all sense of being in the Middle East evaporates as a retro bodega counter appears, set behind colourful picnic benches. Hanging from the ceiling is a bright disco ball and a tall stack of retro yellow speakers conceals the left-hand wall. Behind the scenes, in what appears to be the back shop of the bodega, are shelves of Jamaican condiments, which not only serve to section off a private dining table from the restaurant, but as functional storage spacefor kitchen ingredients. There are just 10 tables in the main dining area, all painted to resemble vinyl records, while old-school reggae album sleeves line the walls. “It’s really a mash up of our restaurants in New York. We’ve taken components and design elements that we really love and have put them together,” Miss Lily’s executive chef Adam Schop tells Catering News during our interview at the venue, referring to the brand’s two US outlets – one in New York’s East Village and the other in the West Village. “The focus of the design is that you’re walking off the street into a yard and you’re hanging out at a picnic table eating chicken. The bar is like a store front bodega in New
32
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
York and then when you walk into the main restaurant it’s like being at the back of the bodega, so there’s a method behind the madness,” he says. Schop joined the Miss Lily’s team just over two years ago with no previous experience of working in a Jamaican restaurant. However, having opened his own pan-Latin restaurant, Nuela, in New York as executive chef and partner in 2008, Schop is no stranger to Caribbean cuisine. “It was a quick study to pick up the ingredients and recipes and learn about who they are as a group of people and what they like,” says Schop. “I’d always eaten in the fast food cafes in Brooklyn; I’d never travelled to Jamaica but I’d been cooking Latin American food from the Caribbean so the ingredients weren’t new to me. As far as learning recipes that were specific to Jamaica and understanding the culture, that was something of a curve.” However, Schop admits that it was the people behind Miss Lily’s rather than the food that attracted him to the brand. He had worked previously with co-owner Serge Becker, a well-known name on the New York nightlife scene and behind such concepts as The Box nightclub and La Esquina taco stand. Becker was also the creative mastermind of the Miss Lily’s interiors. “The main reason I came into Miss Lily’s was the people involved. The core group of folk that own Miss Lily’s were just really cool so that was what pulled me towards it,’ Schop says.
“The food we serve is very similar to how we would make it in Jamaica. We have great respect for the authenticity, the truthfulness of the food on the plate. It’s really classic, homely food that grandma would make”
Miss Lily’s executive chef, Adam Schop
The other co-owner, Paul Simon, is chairman of The Rockhouse Hotel, part of Jamaican children’s educational charity, The Rockhouse Foundation. A portion of all Miss Lily’s profits goes to this cause. As part of his role within the group, Schop oversees the food and beverage offer at The Rockhouse Hotel, and travels to Jamaica every six weeks in order to do so, which helps him to stay up-to-speed with the latest techniques and ingredients being implemented there. “Soulful, delicious and craveable,” is how Schop describes the menu at Miss Lily’s, which specialises in good old fashioned, Ja-
maican cuisine. “The food we serve is very similar to how we would make it in Jamaica. We have great respect for the authenticity, the truthfulness of the food on the plate. It’s really classic, homely food that grandma would make.” One of his favourite dishes is the oxtail stew, which is marinated for a day in a rub of ginger, garlic, scallion and Scotch bonnet chili and then cooked very slowly with broad beans and served with a side of rice and peas. “It’s exactly what you’d get in Jamaica; the flavour profile is identical. We went to great lengths trying to find oxtail
that was up to par,” Schop explains. A classic Jamaican technique used widely throughout the menu is jerking, with jerk corn, and a jerk grill of either chicken, salmon or pork some of the options on offer. Schop explains jerking as marinating meat heavily and cooking it slowly on pimiento or sweetwood to create a dried out, smoky product that can be stored. He combines this with the more Western technique of brining to make the meat juicier. “The cooking process is heavy on the preparation so when people come in and order their chicken, it just gets grilled and finished. The flaAugust 2016 Catering NEWS ME
33
Out to lunch vour really resonates all the way down to the bone with the special jerk sauce we use.” To create authentic flavours, Schop is keen on importing as much produce as possible from the Caribbean, explaining, “there’s something soulful about cooking with ingredients from that region”. However, he admits this is no mean feat given the associated expense and the challenge of finding suppliers that can source the right products. So far, the Scotch bonnet chili, indigenous to the Caribbean, has been the most troublesome ingredient to find in Dubai, and Schop says a number of suppliers have actually sold him the wrong product. “The Scotch bonnet chili is very unique, it has characteristics that are impossible to mimic,” he says. “There are a lot of chilies imported that look like Scotch bonnet and get sold as Scotch bonnet, so it’s this arm wrestling situation with vendors. I had to bring them chilies and show them what they are supposed to be, so it took a while but we got them eventually.” Explaining why Dubai is the first international location for Miss Lily’s, Schop reveals it wasn’t so much that the brand chose Dubai but that “Dubai chose us”. The relationship between Dubai partners Varun Khemaney and Khalil Dahmash and Miss Lily’s was already established a while back, so it was just a question of finding the right location and timing to introduce the brand. “Varun identified Miss Lily’s as a brand he wanted to get involved with and he thought there was a niche here in Dubai for a Jamaican restaurant, and obviously he was right given that another group has just opened one here,” says Schop, citing Ting Irie in Downtown
In the main dining area, tables are painted as records while old-school reggae album sleeves line the walls
Miss Lily’s appetisers: (clockwise from L-R) Jerk corn; cod fish fritters; Miss Lily’s DXB Salad; Tamarind Glazed Lamb Ribs; hot pepper shrimp
The front bar is designed to resemble a New York bodega
Dubai, which opened earlier this year. “It’s really fun to have two restaurants doing similar things in the same area.” Schop’s involvement in the development of Miss Lily’s has gone beyond a consulting role, he explains, calling ‘consulting’ a “dirty word in the restaurant industry”. He has spent a lot of his time over the past 12 months visiting Dubai and has worked closely with newly appointed on-site head chef, Andrew Paderes – previous head chef at Claw Crabshack & Grill in Souk Al Bahar and executive chef at The Gramercy, DIFC – to train him thoroughly on the menu. “We have a partnership here and I’ll be here as long as it takes to create the standards that we want. I’ll be here as often as it takes to implement new dishes, meal periods and ultimately creatively work in tandem with the folks here,” he explains. And aside from the usual teething problems encountered when opening a restaurant in Dubai, such as licensing and procurement, the success of the restaurant will ultimately depend on how well the Dubai market responds to Jamaican food – something relatively new to the region – and to a concept as quirky as Miss Lily’s. It’s not surprising therefore, that Schop has a “healthy dose of anxiety” about the launch. “I know expectations in Dubai are very high. We’re bringing a cuisine that’s very different, so of course we’re concerned. I don’t think you ever lose that anxiety or anticipation; you’re always asking questions, you never feel good about the next restaurant, it’s always right back to square one where we hope people will get it. We want to give a lot of love and we want people to love our restaurant,” he says.
7 - 9 NOVEMBER 2016
*Source Alpen Capital
DUBAI WORLD TRADE CENTRE
SERVING THE $35 BILLION DEMAND FOR F&B IN THE MENA REGION* SATISFY YOUR CUSTOMERS’ DEMANDS: VISIT 3 SPECIALIST FOOD EVENTS IN 1 PLACE
Source from 200 international suppliers of gourmet and specialty products
Cherry-pick from 150 global suppliers of superior quality seafood
Do business with 300 international suppliers of confectionery and snacks
SIMPLY REGISTER ONLINE FOR ONE EVENT AND HAVE FREE ACCESS TO ALL THREE: www.speciality.ae | www.seafexme.com | www.yummex-me.com
Organised by
Powered by
Taking place alongside
Procurement Partners
Official Travel Partner
Official Courier Handler
Official Partner Airline
Official Publisher
Event preview Ahead of The Big F&B Forum 2016, to take place on 20 September at Westin Mina Seyahi Dubai, Catering News Middle East gathered a panel of F&B industry experts at Reform Social & Grill to discuss the issues, topics and trends impacting business this year
g i B The
T
Food & Beverage forum
VENUE: Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi DATE & TIME: 20 September, 8am – 2pm SPEAKING OPPORTUNITIES: contact Crystal@bncpublishing.net SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: contact Dom@bncpublishing.net WEBSITE: www.hotelnewsme.com/events/
he Catering News Middle East Big F&B Forum is back for a second year with a morning of debates, expert sessions and workshops covering the most pertinent issues impacting the F&B industry in the region. One of the key challenges brought to the fore at the pre-event advisory panel debate, which took place on 12 July at Dubai’s Reform Social & Grill, is an absence of zoning regulations, which has resulted in market saturation. This has impacted return on investment for F&B businesses, and has created an absence of loyalty and a culture of staff poaching. Meanwhile, as many Dubai residents and tourists continue to chase new openings, the industry is also seeing a shift toward more people staying in their local areas to avoid traffic and save money. This presents an opportunity for neighborhood eateries, and in particular the homegrown players, which with the right support have the potential to drive more sophistication in the F&B market, both in Dubai and the wider Middle East. Another big topic on the minds of the panelists is the smoking ban, set to come into effect across the UAE in all public areas by the end of 2016. For outlets located in high-rise towers, this is a daunting prospect and threatens to pose yet another hurdle for generating good returns.
Advisory panel Tomas Reger, personal chef and food consultant, Food for Thought restaurant consultancy
Helen Morris, executive chef/ senior lecturer, Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management
Sacha Daniel, operations director, Solutions Leisure 36
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Henrik Baecklund, bar manager, La Serre Bistro & Boulangerie
Akshay Dosaj, managing director, Purple Honey Group
Colin Clague, executive chef, Rüya Dubai
Mark Patten, vice president culinary, Atlantis The Palm, Dubai
Naim Maadad, CEO, Gates Hospitality
Markus Thesleff, cofounder of Whissle Group
Ali Sinaei, managing partner, RoundMenu
Event preview
Market Saturation Markus Thesleff, Whissle Group
MARKUS THESLEFF: There are many restaurants open today and within three years
exactly the same amount is coming into the market. There’s absolutely no control, regulations or zoning so it’s not sustainable; already it’s saturated. When things start closing, what knock-on effect does that have on the rest of the UAE economy? If Dubai Tourism (DTCM) could change the zoning rules, that to some extent would control quality.
NAIM MAADAD: In the last four months there have been 10 closures and I’m not
talking cafés and small restaurants, I’m talking about high profile restaurants. I think the biggest challenge is authorities and the legal processes.
MARK PATTEN: This market isn’t sophisticated yet. We just keep adding more and more restaurants and hotels and we have this oversaturated market. We’re not quite there yet and that’s where you get this disparity between what the customer expects and what is delivered.
THE SMOKING BAN Markus: I think the next big discussion point is going to be non-smoking. I think it’s a good thing, I can’t wait for it. It’s scary when you look at the other countries that have gone through with it and it’s worked and we can’t do it here. Sacha Daniel: I think there’s a stronger smoking culture here than there is in London. Akshay Dosaj: It’s easier
to ban smoking in London because there are fewer highrise buildings.
Mark: I was in Singapore when they applied it there and before that I was in Hong Kong and everyone thought it was going to be really tough but they applied it. It took a bit of time but people got over it.
Markus: What I’m told is you’ll have to step outside so they won’t even allow internal smoking rooms. In hotels they will allow dedicated cigar bars.
Sacha Daniel, Solutions Leisure
Mark: Dubai Municipality has really locked down the whole shisha story. They want to stop it and they’ve come in with a lot of regulations; they are really moving forward on it. Naim: Look at the Marina, there’s a lot of clean up being done. Shisha bars are being closed down, it’s a dirty business. Sacha: I think there’s more awareness of it and people are more willing to have nonsmoking venues, whereas a few years back they weren’t, so I think it’s changing for the better.
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
37
Event preview
CREATING COMMUNITIES Ali Sinaei: You go to Manhattan and you get maybe 15 different trendy areas but in Dubai there are maybe only two or three – one really (DIFC) where top-end restaurants will work and people will sit in traffic to get there. There are other places that just serve the hyper-local market but it won’t bring in Dubai residents from further afield. The conversation with Meraas is all about creating local communities. Markus: Neighbourhood
venues are exploding.
Mark: You can even look
The Springs, Jumeirah Village Circle, Arabian Ranches and that side of town will go to the Marina now. Mark: I think another thing is
that people are not going out. The local residents are deciding to cook at home and I’ve noticed this over the years.
Naim: Because at home you
have what you want, with no stress, without having to be stuck in traffic and without being treated as another number.
Colin: If you’re not going out
at Sports City, it’s the next one that’s going to explode. The canal residence, look at everything planned for there.
as much because of cost, are you going to try a new place or are you going to go to where you know you can have a good meal guaranteed and tried and tested?
Sacha: Five years ago it was
Markus: In Dubai people will
just Grosvenor House in Dubai Marina. Now you have Pier 7, Marina Social, you have much more choice so I think the main expat communities of
Ali Sinaei, Roundmenu
THE TALENT DEBATE
continue to try the new places. It’s more like, ‘do I want the same old or do I want to be able to tell everyone that I just went to the newest place?’
Helen Morris, Emirates Academy Helen Morris: For students that graduate in Dubai their
expectations of salary don’t match what’s being offered so they go elsewhere; either they leave F&B or they leave Dubai.
Sacha: We can’t pay a bartender AED 3 – 4,000 anymore. In the
market today, people want quality service, whereas five years ago you expected very submissive service. Today people pay staff 10k. We are breaking the bank but that’s what people want.
Markus: You’re going to hate it but I’ve got the same guys and
I’m paying them AED 2.5 and they’re walking away with 20k a month, 25 sometimes. I don’t have a waiter that makes less than AED 20,000 and I have a runner on AED 12,000. I’ve set up a system and they are really happy with it. It’s taken me six months to figure out the process; it’s very similar to an American system, but my staff are getting picked like crazy from me.
Mark: Go back six years and you couldn’t go from one job to another, there were a lot of laws in place. We were all against it at the time but now if you think about it, it actually had merit. Colin Clague: When it takes 50% of your cost to open a
restaurant, people are thinking ‘I’ll save money and just poach staff from inside and save all the hassle’.
Sacha: I got a call from a GM of a small venue in DIFC and he
said ‘your venues are taking my staff and it’s hurting me’. I didn’t know about it and I appreciated that because they are a small company and their visa costs are high so I called my GM and asked him to stop poaching from that restaurant.
38
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Event preview
CULINARY TRENDS
L-R: Henrik Baecklund, Akshay Dosaj and Naim Maadad
Mark: I think Persian is the one area that hasn’t been tapped.
I think Persian food is a cuisine that could be really good to get right for this region, but it has to be authentic. I also think there’s room for modern Indian. I’m not talking foam or edible jellies, I’m talking about a modern, casual, contemporary Indian concept.
Markus: I think the Iranians will be the next group of people to come here. There’s a Turkish angle too; there are a number of Turkish concepts appearing. Colin: I’ve been in and out of Turkey a lot and some of the food
is Middle Eastern. It comes from way down near Syria and then further north it’s more like Hungarian. You can do whatever you want, it’s such a massive country. The Black Sea stuff is phenomenal. The great thing about Turkish food is it’s there, you just have to make it look a bit prettier.
Akshay: Indians like food the way their grandma cooked it but surprisingly they have started to accept the Western take on Indian food because it leaves you feeling lighter. Naim: F&B concepts are not about cuisine anymore; it’s
affordability, value, fun, and that’s the market I’m after and the market where you’re seeing a lot of growth. People want to be able to go out twice a week without selling the car. Ali: The big winner over the past few years has been the delivery market, so we see now 70% + of our traffic is looking at delivery. Naturally you will eat delivery more than you eat out anyway so that’s why. Markus: But if you can buy your alcohol cheap and have it at home and your bill is 60% cheaper then it’s a no-brainer, and you still get the food.
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
39
Market Update
A taste of While fast food American chains still dominate Kuwait’s young F&B landscape, a number of entrepreneurs are disrupting the market with innovative restaurant concepts and local produce. Catering News reports.
F
ood and beverage is still a relatively new industry for Kuwait, with the economy largely supported by the strong energy trade, which has been active since the discovery of Kuwait’s oil in 1946. At the beginning of the century, restaurants were largely limited to hotels, and McDonalds was one of the few standalone brands on the market. Today, American chains dominate and the number of standalone restaurants has grown meteorically, while hotel restaurants struggle to compete, particularly given the popularity of Kuwait’s restaurant complexes, which are growing in number and house both homegrown and imported brands. Despite a significant increase in the number of F&B outlets in the country, Kuwait is still considered a relatively immature market compared to neighbouring Dubai, and restaurateurs rarely push the boundaries, with many jumping on trends that burn out quickly rather than investing in new formats or cuisines to expand the variety of options available. That said, Kuwaitis are passionate about food and proud of their nation so there is big potential both for the expansion of imported brands and growth of the homegrown sector.
Top Trends TAKEAWAY On RoundMenu there are 40,000 online orders in Kuwait each day compared to 10,000 in the UAE. SUPPER CLUBS Kuwaitis are getting on-board with the peer-to-peer supper club trend seen in London and New York. FAST FOOD Fast food is 10 times more popular than casual dining and 20 times more popular than fine dining. RESTAURANT COMPLEXES Malls containing 20 – 30 restaurants and no retail are big on the entertainment agenda for Kuwaitis, unlike in the UAE where F&B is integrated into malls that are largely retail-oriented. LOCAL PRODUCERS Honey, cheese and milk are just some of the locally-produced products on the market, and this is set to grow.
Summary 1: Key facts on Kuwait City 2009, 2014, 2019 Indicator
2009
2014
2019
Total GDP (US$ million, current prices)
73,202
115,816
113,855
Real GDP Growth (%)
-7.6
-0.2
2.6
Population: January 1st ('000)
2,069
2,905
3,215
Euromonitor: Kuwait City Review 40
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Market Update
BRAND DOMINATION Currently, the Kuwait market is very much dominated by chains, which represent 57% of the market. Fast food is the most popular dining sector, making up 62% of outlets compared to 34% in the midscale/ casual dining sector, and just 4% fine dining. There are more than 70 McDonalds restaurants in Kuwait, while new players continue to emerge, including IHOP, which has five stores in the country, and Five Guys, which launched earlier this year. Meanwhile, Alghanim Industries, the master franchisee of Wendy’s in the Middle East is preparing to open its first Kuwait location for the fast food brand on Gulf Road and is looking to roll out more stores in the country over the coming years. According to Phil Broad, vice president food & beverage, Alghanim Industries, which also looks after the franchise operations of Costa Coffee, Kuwait is a particularly interesting market for brands that already exist in the GCC and that are looking to expand. “There are a lot of big operations pulling new brands in all the time. Brands that are already somewhere in the Middle East are now seeing Kuwait as a growth opportunity so I’ve been amazed by the amount of F&B outlets operating in Kuwait and how well they’re doing.”
RESTAURANT COMPLEXES Restaurant complexes are hugely popular in Kuwait and provide an important centre of entertainment for Kuwaitis. The Arabella Complex, for example, designed like a traditional European town and featuring outdoor seating, houses among many others, The Cheesecake Factory, Red Lobster, Texas Roadhouse and Starbucks, while Murouj Complex Sahara Resort features the likes of Burger Boutique, Caribou Coffee and Ubon Thai restaurant. Meanwhile, Sidra, a dining destination, which opened in October last year has several brands franchised by Alshaya: The Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang’s, Texas Roadhouse, Shake Shack, IHOP, Pinkberry and Starbucks.
57 %
OF REST AUR IN KUWA ANTS IT AR CHAINS E
Wendy’s fast food chain is preparing to open its first Kuwait store
F&B Market segmentation Fine dining: 4%
4
Fast food: 62%
32 62
Mid-scale/casual: 32%
The Wendy’s Beefanator: burgers are the most searched for food item on Roundmenu in Kuwait. Statistic courtesy of Roundmenu. Euromonitor: Kuwait City Review
“What amazes me is that there are specific dining areas with 20 – 30 restaurants and no retail,” says Alghanim Industries' Broad, who moved to Kuwait at the end of last year. “They are really busy, with quite a diverse range of restaurants and lots of parking. It’s like browsing a catalogue; there are no shops to distract you. This is what people spend time doing, they go out with their families and friends and meet at different restaurants around Kuwait. They are all levels of customers so I think the standards are very high, and these keep growing.” And while restaurant complexes do heighten the competition between F&B outlets, Broad believes that there is plenty of consumer demand to go around. “It’s
a very competitive market but from my experience people are trading well, restaurants are very busy and people use different restaurants for different occasions.” David Harnois, area executive chef, Middle East – Turkey, Rezidor Hotel Group, who oversees the restaurant portfolio of Radisson Blu Kuwait as part of his remit, says that in the strip where the hotel is located, a number of restaurant malls have opened up. “There is one next door to us with 28 restaurants and there are another two coming up. It’s a destination so people go there to see people; they’ll sit outside next to the sea or in the beautiful gardens. There are no bars, clubs or other forms of entertainment so restaurants are the places to go.” August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
41
Market Update Homegrown Restaurants
Coffee at Street Almakan by Zubabar Coffee Culture One of the most competitive spaces in the F&B industry in Kuwait is the coffee scene, with more than 90 Starbucks stores (Alshaya), 34 Caribou Coffee shops (AlSayer Group) and 33 Costas (Alghanim Industries) among other brands. Broad of Alghanim Industries comments: “Coffee culture certainly exists in Kuwait; we’ve got 33 stores but many of our competitors have more than that. Our Costas do very well in the market and coffee is one of the most competitive arenas.” In addition, there are some independent players starting to emerge, such as Vol 1, a locally-owned and operated coffee shop that roasts its own beans. According to Faisal Fahad AL Nashmi, chef patron of independent restaurant, Street Almakan by Zubabar, which also prides itself in offering high quality coffee, the coffee scene is popular for entrepreneurs looking to make inroads into the industry. “Kuwait currently has around seven speciality coffee places that have opened over the course of the year and we have around six more to open toward next year,” he comments. The rise of independent coffee shops is also beneficial to the chains, which can learn more about how to adapt their offer to the local market, says Broad. “We look at the local coffee businesses because they are very entrepreneurial and have a lot of ideas that the chains can learn from.” For example, Costa in Kuwait earlier this year rolled out a new menu with exclusive items created by professional baker, author and TV personality, Dean Brettschneider, who has incorporated local flavours, such as halloumi with Turkish pita, Bombolone and scones with spinach, feta or pumpkin. “Dean is a skilled artisan baker and this has enabled us to have a point of difference in our stores, which has really paid off,” says Broad. 42
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
Kuwaitis have a strong dining out culture, and being a patriotic nation, proud to invest in local talent, there are big opportunities for independent operators to set up shop. However, according to Rezidor's Harnois, the issue is that many people who launch restaurants are inexperienced and instead of blazing a trail with new concepts, they latch on to the trends, which become quickly saturated. “We see a lot of restaurants opening up and I think that within another one to two years we’ll see a lot of them closing down,” says Harnois. “A lot of people are inexperienced and the problem is that when something is in fashion, for example burgers, 20 burger restaurants will open. And while they can do it for a little while, they don’t have the experience so they’ll be quick to close.” Al Nashmi believes that his independent restaurant, Street Almakan by Zubabar, has managed to make a “quick and deep mark” on the F&B scene in Kuwait by offering something different and tapping into the younger generation. The chef-driven, fast, casual dining concept blends a variety of influences into its menu, including a strong focus on Korean cuisine and the staff educate customers about the dishes on offer. “We try to encourage interest in what we know best and inspire young people by interacting with them on how we prepare our food,” says Al Nashmi, adding that many restaurateurs fail because they rely too heavily on trends. “There’s a big shift in trend-based places, creating what is big in the Western world and adapting it very well locally. However, the scene is still very immature and needs a slight upgrade to offer a wider variety of choice rather than similar concepts,” he comments. Over the next year Al Nashmi is working on a second independent concept, Table Otto, a New Yorkinspired brasserie, to be located in AlShaheed Park, however the main challenge he expects to face, as with other restaurant start-ups, is becoming accepted on the F&B scene rather than simply being the flavour of the week. In addition to local restaurants, there has been a recent increase in the number of local producers and Harnois is a proponent of this, using local buffalo mozzarella in his Street Almakan by Zubabar restaurants, in addition to locallyproduced honey and milk. “The older generation is still very traditional but the young generation of Kuwait is very entrepreneurial, whether that means developing their own restaurant concepts or importing products, and some of them are going into farming and producing local products,” he says.
Talent As with other Gulf states, staffing is a challenge in Kuwait. There is a dearth of local talent in service level positions since Kuwaitis are generally very well educated and seek upper managerial roles or tend to set up their own businesses, meaning that immigrants are relied upon for service positions. The abundance of restaurant openings in the country means that it is difficult to retain staff and to train them up to the right standards. “We have to bring in people who are not very well trained so we train them up and then they move along so staffing is a huge problem,” says Rezidor's Harnois, who adds that long notice periods present a double-edged sword
for the industry. “It takes a while to bring [staff] into Kuwait—a minimum of three months—and if someone is leaving or joining there’s a three-month resignation period, which is a good and a bad thing.”
Population: 2.9 million people 73% non-Kuwaiti
27 73 27% Kuwaiti
Euromonitor: Kuwait City Review
Market Update
CONSUMER LOYALTY Kuwait has a larger local population than neighbouring Dubai, and Kuwaitis tend to have high disposable incomes and dine out regularly. A fashion-forward, welleducated and well-travelled population, Kuwaitis are fascinated by what is new and trendy, so it can be a challenge to turn them into loyal, returning customers. To win them back, some restaurants resort to discounts, however Kuwaiti consumers are generally not very price sensitive so this method isn’t always effective. Hotel restaurants in particular struggle to keep consumers interested with the variety of standalone restaurants available on the market. And since alcohol is banned in the country, hotels don’t benefit from the extra footfall generated
Radisson Blu Kuwait’s Peacock is still popular after more than 25 years
by having an alcohol license in the way that neighbouring Gulf states like Dubai and Qatar do. For Harnois, who is at the helm of Chinese restaurant Peacock in Radisson Blu Kuwait, which is still popular after 25 years on the market, the key has been to maintain high standards of product and service, and to avoid resorting to discounts. “Peacock has been loved and cherished by a lot of generations for more than 25 years. It’s an establishment because it was there before everything else. We haven’t changed anything – the recipes, chef or restaurant manager. People eventually come back to us because we are probably better at keeping up our standards so that’s where we gain.”
Fine dining
Fine dining is a hugely underrepresented sector in the Kuwait F&B scene, particularly considering the hefty disposable incomes many Kuwaitis enjoy. Only 4% of restaurants on the market are considered fine dining. Harnois comments: “Kuwaiti people are not into fine dining, they are more into casual American concepts and are the market leader for these in the GCC.” And while neighbouring Dubai enjoys a wealth of restaurants branded by celebrity chefs such as Jason Atherton, Jamie Oliver and Marco Pierre White, Kuwait doesn’t see this trend. “There are no big names here. One or two tried to come in but it didn’t work out, it wasn’t viable,” Harnois says, suggesting that perhaps in a few years’ time, Kuwait will begin to see more celebrity chef-led restaurants on the market as it catches up with Dubai.
Summary 3: Kuwait City Household budget structure by consumer expenditure item, % of total, 2009, 2014, 2019 Expenditure Item
2009
2014
2019
Food and NonAlcoholic Drinks
18.5
18.3
17.1
0.5
0.6
Alcoholic Drinks, 0.4 Tobacco etc.
Euromonitor: Kuwait City Review
The Future The food and beverage scene in Kuwait is growing fast and testament to this was the launch in 2015 of the open-air Q8 Food Festival, which celebrates the diversity of Kuwait’s culinary community. This year the event, which took place in March at Marina Crescent, featured chefs from around the world, including Tim Hollands from Australia, well-known pastry chef, Eric Lanlard from France, and Indian TV chef, Reza Mahammad. Broad, who was at the event, says that it was very well attended and highlighted the quality of the Kuwaiti F&B landscape. “Kuwait is delivering extremely well,” he comments. “I think the quality and consistency you get in Kuwait is phenomenal, it’s almost market leading. I think people generally are doing a really good job.” The key to developing Kuwait’s food scene further according to Street's Al Nashmi is for entrepreneurs to take more risks with the types of concepts they open, rather than sticking to what has worked before. “One thing we lack compared to Dubai is creativity and a more serious approach to food rather than having the same menus everywhere,” he comments. “We need to open new places that are different from the norm. Our restaurant scene is very well developed compared to other regional countries such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman and what sets us apart is the passion of the local labour in perfecting their craft. Local concepts have become more impactful than any franchises.” Looking to the future, Al Nashmi believes that fine dining is likely to develop further and that as more Kuwaiti chefs emerge, as well as local suppliers, products and platforms, the food scene will continue to evolve. “I seriously believe the F&B scene in Kuwait is growing rapidly,” he comments. “Kuwait is a very hungry market and people strive to seek out what is next in the local creation of restaurants and concepts.”
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
43
Products
Nuts & Snacks
Catering News showcases some of the newest products for mini bars and bar snacks
Pulsar Foodstuff Trading As part of its new Gourmet Olive Market retail launch, Pulsar Foodstuff Trading has recently introduced a number of olive and antipasti products that will be available in both mini bar and bar snack sizes. The Chili and Herb Snack Pack olives is one of the newest launches in the range and features aromatic flavours and a succulent texture of the finest olives, a rich source of phytonutrients, packed in cold pressed oils. Pulsar takes pride in the flavours available in its range, from Hot Piri Piri Olives to aromatic Cumin and Coriander, which are popular in the Middle East market.
Luxury
Gourmet Olives
Distributed by:
from around the world Distributed by:
Telephone: +971 56 480 6518 Email: ross@tgom.me
Personalised Products • Professional Service • Personalised MiniBar Snacks • Gourmet Snack Foods • Fresh Olives • Airlines Snacks • Hotel Amenities • Corporate Gifts • Italian Coffee • Tel. no. : +971 4 346 7494 • Mobile: + 971 50 476 0068 Email: info@pulsarfoodstuff.com • P.O. Box: 450258 - Dubai- U.A.E 44
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
thegourmetolivemarket.me #thegourmetolivemarket @tgom.me
w
w
w .
t
g
o
m
.
m
e
Products bateel Bateel has just launched the date nougat, available in pistachio, almond, cashew and hazelnut and assorted nut varieties. The company also offers a range of nuts and nut-filled dates, with kholas filled with macadamia the latest addition to this range. Bateel also uses organic dates as a sweetener and date syrup instead of refined sugar, meaning that the products are suitable for businesses looking to offer healthy snack alternatives. Another new launch for 2016 is a full range of wrapped chocolates, carefully developed for Middle Eastern clients, combining the French savoir-fair of artisanal chocolate with regional flavours. The origin chocolates are made using a rare cocoa bean from South America, along with fine nuts and pure cocoa butter.
Umm Ramoul, Next to Emirates NBD Tel : +971 4 284 3322 / 04 284 3966 Email: info@falconkitchen.com www.gelatotek.com
August 2016 Catering NEWS ME
45
Marketplace
Cream of the crop
The Middle East’s dairy suppliers present their best-selling products and discuss the trends driving the market
AL RAWABI
Dr Ahmed Eltigani, chief executive officer introduces Al Rawabi’s 2-litre full fat fresh milk
PAYSAN BRETON
Séverine Le Cler presents Paysan Breton UHT Whipping Cream
What is your best-selling dairy product? Al Rawabi’s best-selling product is our 2-litre full fat fresh milk. The product is widely consumed, especially for children and for cooking.
What is your best-selling dairy product? Paysan Breton UHT Whipping Cream is one of our best-selling products and is distributed in Dubai by Lifco Dubai.
What is unique about it? Al Rawabi was the first company in the region to introduce plastic bottles for dairy products, and 2-litre bottles of full fat fresh milk. It comes straight from the farm in Dubai at Al Khaweneej, which has 12,500 cows, and it is delivered daily to more than 12,000 stores in the UAE, Oman and Qatar. It is completely free from any additives, preservatives or powder.
What is unique about it? It is a premium whipping cream made in France and offers a very unique lactic taste and an excellent whipping rate. It is a natural product made from pasteurised milk, and requires a lot of skill to process.
What should chefs consider when selecting dairy products? The key consideration should be the taste that comes from fresh and locally produced products. What are the latest trends in dairy? There is a shift toward organic products, with consumers and chefs opting for healthier varieties. In dairy products, you can see an increase in low fat and skimmed options, as well as formulas enriched with vitamins, minerals and proteins. Al Rawabi is also proud to have recently launched a new Vitamin D milk, enriched with 2000iu of vitamin D3 per 250ml, the recommended dosage for good health. The new vitamin D milk is available both in full fat and low fat varieties and has been created following extensive market research.
What should chefs consider when selecting dairy products? One key consideration for chefs should be to offer great taste and offer guests an amazing dining experience. Dairy products used by chefs are often very technical, so it is imporPaysan Breton UHT tant that they are created Whipping Cream with skill.
Al Rawabi 2l full fat milk T: +33 (0)1 45 60 01 61 E: international@laita.fr W: www.laita.fr UAE distributor: Lifco Dubai
46
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
What are the latest trends in dairy? Professionals want high performance products but are more often asking for natural, sustainable varieties. Consumers are also looking for natural products with great taste. Paysan Breton, brand owned by a cooperative group of farmers from the west of France, is very committed to offering high quality, natural products.
Marketplace
AGRIFORM
Chiara Giussani, export manager, Agriform says Grana Padano PDO cheese is the company’s best-seller What is your best-selling dairy product? Founded in 1980, Agriform is a cooperative of dairies producing, ageing and exporting Grana Padano PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) cheese all over the world. Our best-selling product is Grana Padano PDO cheese, which represents about 60% of total production. We also export other typical Venetian PDO cheeses like Piave and Asiago. What is unique about it? Grana Padano is a high quality Italian hard cheese, typical of Northern Italy. Produced from partially skimmed cow’s milk, it is a semifat hard cheese. The body is straw yellow, finely granular, with a strong yet delicate flavour, which is never sharp. Agriform carefully selects
E: agriform@agriform.it T: +39 045 8971800 W: agriform.it / agriformcheese.eu
Grana Padano
its three classical aging steps: min. 10 months, over 16 months and over 20 months (Grana Padano Riserva). Today Grana Padano is the most widely sold PDO cheese in the world. What should chefs consider when selecting dairy products? PDO cheeses are a healthy choice thanks to the excellent balance of energy content and quality and quantity of the nutrients they contain. They are perfect for every occasion: an aperitif, a buffet, a brunch, an afternoon snack for kids or a daily meal. Grated, slivered or sliced, Grana Padano can be used both as an ingredient in meat or vegetable fillings, quiches or in “au gratin” dishes and as a condiment over dry, fresh and stuffed pastas, rice dishes, risottos,
UAE Distributor: Promar Trading T: + 971 4 285 9686 W: promartrading.com
soups and grain salads. Besides dressing up first courses and making them more savory, it’s a cheese that can be used for every meal, enhancing any dish without covering the other ingredients. What are the latest trends in dairy? There is a growing awareness of quality and safety of food products. Agriform is strongly focused on these aspects, particularly when it comes to packaging. We offer innovative packaging, such as “Twist & Grate”, Grana Padano in a cheese grater ready to use. Cheese that is grated or shaved is also growing in demand. The Agriform range includes cheeses produced with Halal rennet fit for Muslim consumers.
The art of great cooking
MKN Middle East & Africa Phone: +97 150 5 58 74 77 E-Mail: rac@mkn-middle-east.com
www.mkn.eu
The german specialist in professional cooking technology
marketplace
LAKELAND DAIRIES Paddy Darcy, regional manager Middle East & Africa at Lakeland Dairies showcases Millac Gold, a blended dairy cream versatile enough for hot and cold applications What is your best-selling dairy product? Millac Gold is our best-selling blended dairy cream across the Middle East and African markets. This is a blend of dairy cream, buttermilk and vegetable fat which is versatile enough for hot and cold kitchen applications and is the number one choice for professional chefs across the region. What is unique about it? Millac Gold is unique in its ability to outperform traditional dairy creams, giving pastry chefs increased volume and stability when preparing desserts. It also has an unrivalled ability to absorb high temperatures, acidic ingredients and additional fats when cooking, without splitting. It is an excellent all-round cream solution. What should chefs consider when selecting dairy products? Quality, consistency, and origin of the products. Our products are all sourced from Ireland where the provenance of the milk is second to none. With over 120 years of dairying tradition behind us, Lakeland Dairies is well positioned to move forward and adapt to the changing needs of the global market. What are the latest trends in dairy? Scientific tests across the food industry are providing new evidence that dairy products are a valuable part of a healthy, balanced diet. Also, the level of provenance demanded by customers continues to increase so that traceability, sustainability and quality are all highlighted in products.
ADV_HOST_CateringNewsMiddleEast_90x242mm_22Luglio.indd 1
22/07/16 11:03
Spill the beans Dusty's, DIFC
Spill the beans Dusty Tourani, owner, Dusty’s, DIFC
Please describe the concept of Dusty’s?
Dusty’s is a deli by day, resto-bar by night and a whole lot more in between. It’s a homegrown concept that portrays a mixture of different traditions and cultures with the design, ambience and food. Having lived in Singapore, Dubai, India and America, I am well-acquainted with diverse cultures and traditions so the interiors, set in a wide, industrial, rustic space, have been inspired by different countries around the globe.
Tell us about the menu?
I have taken the best dishes from my travels and brought them together in our breakfast, lunch and dinner menus so that you can have all the best international dishes in one place at a reasonable price.
You’ve recently launched your new airport inspired brunch. Please tell us about this?
There is a lack of themed brunches in Dubai. With Dubai bringing together such a diverse group of people, we felt the travel theme was a good fit and the airport brunch was a unique concept. The brunch includes our à la carte menu and the standard of the food isn’t compromised. The whole idea was to make it fun!
Your career has always centered on marketing. What are your secrets for driving business into Dusty’s?
Being in this industry, you have to look at 50
Catering NEWS ME August 2016
long-term goals, and at keeping abreast and ahead of competition. At Dusty’s we focus on three main factors: good ambience, good food and good service. I believe that as long as we keep evolving these three aspects and adapt along with the expectations of the market, then we will certainly be on the right track.
You’ve been open a year now. How has the restaurant performed?
The business has grown tremendously, we have been able to capitalise on the natural footfall from a business building as well as make Dusty’s a destination venue for evenings and weekends
What challenges have you faced launching a homegrown concept in Dubai?
We had the opportunity to create a brand and spread the awareness of that concept, without having to live up to preconceived expectations. We create our own concepts and implement them in our style. Being a new concept, we have to win our customers and through our promotional strategy and execution we believe we have achieved this.
What are your expansion plans for Dusty’s?
We are definitely looking at opening a few more branches in and around the Emirates and eventually hitting the global markets.
Dusty Tourani, Owner, Dusty's
Many happy returns. Quality Food Means Repeat CustoMeRs
Build your business on repeat customers. Keep them coming back again and again with delicious options and high-quality food. With food, labor and energy costs on the rise, Alto-Shaam provides versatile, consistent and efficient system solutions — including the industry’s first cook & hold oven, Combitherm® ovens, and more — that are essential to profitable foodservice operations around the globe. cooK · hoLD · c hi LL · Di s P LaY sY s t e M soLut i ons
Schedule a demo today at www.alto-shaam.com/alto-shaam-middleeast-and-africa
Wisconsin Manufacturer of the Year