Julie Mautner reports.
South America and the Caribbean Marina Carluccio has been promoted to resort chef at Four Seasons Resort Carmelo (Uruguay), replacing José Salas, who left to open his own restaurant in Mexico. • Carl Goldner is now exec chef at the Westin Casuarina Grand Cayman. He comes most recently from Punta Cana Resort & Club in the Dominican Republic, where he has been replaced by Henry Horne, who comes from Pepperoni's and Marocha's restaurants, also in the DR. • Guillaume Brard is the new exec chef at 9 Beaches in Bermuda, following five years with Inter Continental in Cleveland and Beirut. He replaces John Pritchard.
British Columbia Rafael Gonzalez is the new exec chef at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver. He worked in New York City with David Bouley, Eric Ripert, and Jean-Georges Vongerichten before joining Four Seasons as restaurant chef at The Pierre (NYC). Gonzalez replaces Wayne Martin. • Maxim Ridorossi replaces Perry North as chef at King Pacific Lodge. He previously worked at West Restaurant, Sooke Harbour House, and Cafe Brio. In late May, Emad Yacoub and Shannon Bosa Yacoub opened Sanafir (Arabic for "meeting place"), a bi-level Vancouver restaurant with 130 seats and a 12 seat bar. Eastern/Arabic details include rich upholsteries, Egyptian amber urns, and harem-style draperies. Along with corporate chef/partner Sean Riley, Sanafir exec chef Heath Cates has created a global tapas menu. The Yacoubs' company, Glowbal Restaurant Group, also operates Glowbal Grill & Satay Bar and COAST Restaurant in Vancouver.
France Nicolas Sale replaces Hervé Sauton as chef at Le Monte Cristo, which Sauton helped create in 2002, in the four-star Hotel du Castellet in Le Castellet, Provence. Sale comes from the Hyatt Regency Paris Madeleine and, before that, Lucas Carton, Pierre Gagnaire, the Four Seasons Georges V, and the Meurice.
Pascal Bardet is the new exec chef at Bar & Boeuf, Alain Ducasse's Michelin one-star in Monte Carlo. This is Bardet's third go-round in the same kitchen: he was second de cuisine in 1999 and came back as chef de cuisine a year later. Most recently, he's been at Hotel Les Ambassadeurs in Menton. He replaces Philippe Gollino, who has become exec chef/trainer at Alain Ducasse Formation, the cooking school for professionals in Paris.
United Kingdom In London, chef Anthony Demetre and his partner, Will Smith, both formerly of the Michelin one-star Putney Bridge, have opened the 72 seat Arbutus in Soho on the site of 1990s hangout Bistrot Bruno, where Demetre worked with Bruno Loubet before the pair launched L'Odéon in 1995. Gutsy dishes such as lamb's trotters and tripe, braised pig's head, saddle of rabbit, and burgers made from squid and mackerel are served along with more traditional steaks, roasted chicken, and Dover sole.
Jamie Oliver has opened his third Fifteen restaurant, this one at Watergate Bay in Cornwall. Head chef Neil Haydock was most recently chef de cuisine at Sandy Lane on Barbados. Like other Fifteen restaurants, Fifteen Cornwall creates career opportunities for disadvantaged local youth and funnels all profits to charity. With a modern Mediterranean menu that's 80 percent locally sourced, the 112 seat restaurant has been designed to minimize environmental impact with low-energy lamps and toilets flushed with collected rainwater. The next Fifteen opens in Melbourne, Australia, in September.
The London Hilton on Park Lane has paired with chef Chris Galvin and renamed its restaurant Galvin at Windows. Keith Hobbs of United Designers (London) handled the redo; it now has 100 dining seats and 98 in the bar. The food is modern French, and Galvin has brought in André Garrett, from the Michelin one-star Orrery, to be head chef. Galvin also owns Galvin Bistrot de Luxe on Baker Street, which he opened with his brother Jeff in September 2005. Prior to that, he was exec chef of The Wolseley and at Orrery. Meanwhile, Allan Pickett, former head chef at the Great Eastern hotel's Aurora restaurant, has replaced Garrett at Orrery. And Pickett's replacement at Aurora is Dominic Teague, formerly of L'Escargot.
Asia Martin Michalik is the new f&b director at the JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa (Thailand), replacing Theera Kanjana, who has been promoted to resident manager. Michalik's last post was hotel project manager at the new Hotel De La Paix in Siem Riep, Cambodia. • Laurent Le Deu is the new f&b at The Repulse Bay in Hong Kong, a Peninsula hotel. He comes from the Al Bustan Palace in Oman but worked previously in Hong Kong at the Excelsior. • Jean-Christophe Basseau has joined the Méridien Bora Bora as exec chef. He held the same position at the Legends Resort in Mauritius following two years as exec chef at Udaivilas in Udaipur, India. At Legends, Basseau has been replaced by Fabio De Poli, who came from Saint Anne Resort in the Sey chelles. • Jean-François Pelaez is the new exec chef at the Imperial in New Delhi. He comes from the Oberoi (New Delhi) and, before that, was exec chef at Udaivilas. Pelaez replaced Paolo Petris.
Send your international restaurant and hotel f&b news to Julie Mautner at WhiskNews@aol.com
