4 minute read
Chocolate By Design
Every Chocolate Week at the Four Seasons launches a fresh phase in the Hotel’s pastry making, but the 2024 edition was decidedly different. The collaboration with leading chocolate pioneers placed the Colors Café team well ahead of the curve.
Chocolate Week is the calendar highlight, where the Hotel’s pastry masters enjoy a little playfulness with their craft. Each year, Four Seasons Executive Pastry Chef Demetris Hadjiyiannis and his team immerse themselves in a fresh cocoa-filled vision, with the result being invariably game-changing in the Hotel’s chocolate evolution.
Mission Accomplice
In 2024, the Four Seasons invited Panagiotis Samaras to lend his expertise to the annual chocolate extravaganza. Hailing from a Greek family of dessert-makers, Panagiotis has spent the last 10 years leading the instructors’ team at the Chocolate Academy of Dubai, the elite training centre for chefs and chocolatiers around the world. He is also the Senior Technical Advisor of Barry Callebaut Group, the oldest brand of French premium chocolate and cocoa products. Thanks to his longstanding friendship with Demetris, Panagiotis was on hand at the Four Seasons in November, to merge quality and expertise for the beloved Colors Café event.
Sweet Spectacle
Named the “Around the World Experience”, 2024’s Chocolate Week collection incorporated Barry Callebaut origin chocolate in a series of global desserts, with a twist. “We explored the most familiar treats from around the world, but decided to ‘revisit’ them through Panagiotis’ more modern approach,” explains Demetris. “People often ‘eat with their eyes’ and so, we changed the appearance and textures of household desserts to create more refined and elegant editions,” adds Panagiotis. The duo also updated ingredients to address present-day preferences. “We recognise that many dessert aficionados are also more health-conscious,” says Demetris, “therefore, we modified recipes like British banoffee pie by switching the fattier whipped cream with light mascarpone cheese.” The public’s response to the line-up was crucial, as the most popular Chocolate Week choices were then integrated into the 2025 Colors Café menu.
As ever, Chocolate Week included the dessert rituals now synonymous with Colors Café hospitality. Aside from the exclusive range of cakes, tarts and pastries, guests also indulged in an assortment of chocolate bon bons infused with world flavours such as the exotic spice of Tonka beans, and the enticing creaminess of pistachio and tangy cherries. The experimentation continued at the cooking station unique to Chocolate Week. The Colors Café terrace showcased a lavish chocolate counter where Hotel patrons and visitors savoured a personalised cocoa-packed experience. Starting with any of five types of luxury chocolate, participants enjoyed customised chocolate tablets, with toppings that included caramelised nuts, meringue and waffles. These were just some of the treats accenting the individual cocoa masterpieces. Accompanying them was an array of flavoured hot chocolate beverages, perfect for ushering in the winter season.
Ultimately, Demetris’ and Panagiotis’ collaboration was characterised by their mutual love of cocoa and its culinary qualities. “To work with chocolate is a love affair - you need to give it the correct level of attention and treat it with respect,” says Demetris. It’s this changeability and diversity of their craft that excites the duo on a daily basis, with the proof being always in the pudding!As ever, Chocolate Week included the dessert rituals now synonymous with Colors Café hospitality. Aside from the exclusive range of cakes, tarts and pastries, guests also indulged in an assortment of chocolate bon bons infused with world flavours such as the exotic spice of Tonka beans, and the enticing creaminess of pistachio and tangy cherries. The experimentation continued at the cooking station unique to Chocolate Week. The Colors Café terrace showcased a lavish chocolate counter where Hotel patrons and visitors savoured a personalised cocoa-packed experience. Starting with any of five types of luxury chocolate, participants enjoyed customised chocolate tablets, with toppings that included caramelised nuts, meringue and waffles. These were just some of the treats accenting the individual cocoa masterpieces. Accompanying them was an array of flavoured hot chocolate beverages, perfect for ushering in the winter season.
P
