As a pioneer in offering Bangkok diners a sneak peek of what's going on in the worldwide gastronomic scene, the annual World Gourmet Festival is returning to the city with culinary sensations as usual.
Ever since it was inaugurated in 2009, the week-long event held at Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok has continued to depict the dynamic evolution of dining spheres across the globe. It has welcomed more than 150 international big names including master chefs, winemakers and mixologists, to showcase their outstanding talent and expertise.
This year, the 16th edition will take place on Sept 7-13 at the same five-star location though under a different brand.
For the first time under the Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel, the 16th World Gourmet Festival promises to delight keen gastronomes with a line-up of kitchen virtuosos from Europe, Australia and Asia.
"Despite the hotel rebranding, the formula and concept of the event will be the same as previous years," said Nicolas Schneller, Anantara Siam's executive chef.
"We will continue to introduce rising chefs from different regions, while glorifying time-honoured maestros. There will be four chefs with one Michelin star and three new cooking prodigies; each will host two dinners in one of our restaurants," he said.
The star-studded chefs to grace the 2015 affair are Francesc Rovira of Michelin-starred Fonda Xesc restaurant in Girona, Spain; Jean-François Bérard of Michelin-starred Hostellerie Berard restaurant in Provence, France; Patrick Raingeard of Michelin-starred The Table of Patrick Raingeard restaurant in the French Riviera; and Hirofumi Imamura of Michelin-starred Kazuo Okada Restaurant in Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Meanwhile equally highlighted are chef Pierre Crépaud of LeMontBlanc restaurant at LeCrans Hotel & Spa in Crans-Montana, Switzerland; chef Francesc Gimeno Manduley of Bohemic Bistro in Barcelona, Spain; and chef Sean Connolly of Sean's Kitchen in Adelaide, Australia.
This year's festival will also see the introduction of exclusive sake tasting and food pairing sessions conducted by sake master Keith Norum from Miyasaka Brewing Company in Japan.
It's also the first time the festival will hold a high tea event by world-class tea blenders from Mariage Frères, France.
As a veteran driving force of the festival, Schneller said the upcoming affair promises to be as impressive as ever.
"Over the past 12 years since I first worked here, the festival has gone through a series of the city's political turmoils and natural disasters," he said. "Yet it has always been going strong and well received by food lovers. Actually we've had bookings for some of this year's dinners already.
"Even with the recent Ratchaprasong incident, all seven master chefs have already confirmed participation. And since the event is just around the corner, each of them is working closely with me and the hotel F&B team to make sure their culinary dexterity will astound the guests. Personally I think the event will help bring back to Bangkok happiness and confidence."
Just like all previous years, part of the proceeds from ticket sales and money raised from auctions will go to HRH Princess Soamsawali's "Save A Child's Life From Aids Project" under the auspices of the Thai Red Cross Society.
The 16th World Gourmet Festival will be from Sept 7 to Sept 13 at Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel. For reservations, call 02-126-8886. Individual dinner tickets may also be booked through wgf.asia@anantara.com or log on to www.worldgourmetfestivalasia.com for more.
Chef Francesc Rovira
Fonda Xesc, Gombrèn, Girona, Spain
Francesc Rovira learned the art of traditional Catalan cooking at a very young age at the family-owned La Fonda village inn in Gombrèn, a picturesque town in the Catalan Pyrenees.
After graduating with a culinary degree from Escola d'Hosteleria de Barcelona academy, he began to work in a number of prestigious restaurants alongside many famous chefs, including the legendary Santi Santamaria, the first Catalan to be awarded three Michelin stars and a great influence on Rovira's cooking approach.
Upon returning to La Fonda, he began introducing new dishes to the inn's kitchen. Later on, together with his sister, he finally took over and elevated the small, family-run eatery into an acclaimed restaurant which was awarded one Michelin star in 2009.
Rovira loves to use local ingredients in his cooking. Mushrooms are a vital ingredient in Catalan cuisine as the local area has a plentiful supply and they are probably his signature ingredient.
Chef Jean-François Bérard
Hostellerie Bérard & Spa, La Cadière d'Azur, Provence France
Coming from a family whose passion is focused on hospitality and gastronomy, Jean-François Bérard had his first culinary exposure at his parent's boutique hotel, Hostellerie Bérard and Spa, located on a hilltop village instilled with the magic of Provence, La Cadière-d'Azur.
Attending Lenôtre School in Paris and consequently gaining a lot of work experience with various master chefs at award-wining restaurants such as Frederic Anton of Michelin-starred Le Pré Catelan and Roger Verger–serge Chenet of Michelin-starred Moulin de Mougins, Bérard's culinary skills were honed to the fullest.
Bérard's father René is also a master chef himself. The father and son team work only with the finest ingredients sourced in their garden and the locality. The Hostellerie Bérard restaurant has received various accolades including the ultimate Michelin star.
Chef Hirofumi Imamura
Kazuo Okada Restaurant, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Born in Japan, Hirofumi Imamura started dreaming of becoming a chef at the age of four when he first tasted the joy of cooking for his parents.
He mastered fundamental cooking skills at Kawashou in his hometown of Fukujima.
After gaining his Fugu licence in 2001, Imamura moved to New York to become a sushi chef and later excelled as an executive chef at Sakagura Japanese restaurant, where he honed his insights in pairing food and sake and later made the restaurant one of the most popular dining establishments in New York.
He now heads the Michelin-starred Kazuo Okada restaurant in Kowloon, Hong Kong. It's where he impresses dining guests with his mastery of teppanyaki, robatayaki, sushi and traditional Japanese kaiseki.
One of his culinary philosophies is the belief that every dish should stimulate each of the five senses, including sense of smell, texture of ingredients and the sounds while dining.
Chef Pierre Crépaud
LeCrans Hotel & Spa, Crans-Montana, Switzerland
The humble but highly talented Pierre Crépaud describes himself simply as a cook.
Growing up in the mountains of Drome, he spent his childhood days with his great-uncle growing vegetables and enjoying eating the produce they had grown.
Crépaud's path to becoming a chef wasn't really a desire to work with food, but more of transforming things from the basic ingredient to a finished product. His cuisine, exhibiting playful tastes, colours and shapes, is mainly dictated by Mother Nature and he staunchly supports local food producers.
Honing his culinary skills from various well-respected dining establishments in France and Switzerland, Crépaud finally settled at Crans-Montana and has been the chef de cuisine at Restaurant Le Mont Blanc, which received a Gault & Millau award in 2010.
Chef Patrick Raingeard
The Table of Patrick Raingeard restaurant at Cap Estel, French Riviera, France
Inheriting his love of cuisine from his grandmother, Patrick Raingeard pursued his interest and found his way to the culinary world where stellar chefs abound.
Working side by side with Michelin-starred chefs including Alain Passard and Jacques Maximin, the experience gave Raingeard confidence and motivation, which resulted in his first Michelin star for the Zebra Square restaurant in Monaco.
Raingeard practices his cooking instinctively in contemporary style and is a man of the soil and seasonality.
At his brainchild, The Table of Patrick Raingeard restaurant at Le Cap Estel Hotel in Èze-Bord-De-Mer, which received its Michelin star in 2013, he and his kitchen team are proud to use vegetables from the hotel's own garden.
Chef Sean Connolly
Sean's Kitchen, Adelaide, Australia
Sean Connolly is one of Australasia's most well-respected chefs, with a growing list of accomplishments and awards to his name. He also hosted a critically acclaimed television food programme and was the author of an award-wining cookbook.
His formal training began at 13 with an apprenticeship at five-star hotels and restaurants in the UK. A true visionary with a wealth of experience and uncompromising drive, his latest endeavour is the opening of his first restaurant in Adelaide, South Australia -- the aptly named Sean's Kitchen. The New York-inspired brasserie offers dishes with a focus on outstanding local produce and won Best New Restaurant in The City Awards within a year of opening.
Connolly got his inspiration from his grandmother which influences his food today: generosity, imagination and a healthy respect for excellent produce.
Chef Francesc Gimeno Manduley
Bohemic Bistro, Barcelona, Spain
Francesc Gimeno Manduley expresses emotion, passion and sincerity in every one of his creations.
Through the dishes, he transports the diner back to their childhoods, when everything was still open to discovery and there was no time for worrying.
At the end of 2006 in Spain's capital city, he opened a tapas bar, Bohèmic Bistro, which progressively became a restaurant in which he showcases his overflowing creativity in a variety of styles with inspiration drawn from his time in renowned establishments.
Manduley's restaurant plays on high-concept miniature presentation of a variety of dishes for the diners to choose, from a pasta sized appetiser to completing the meal with a dessert.
