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With a commitment to support Bangkok as a leading international culinary destination, the 16th World Gourmet Festival being held in the Thai capital brings global culinary experts on one platform

With an impressive line-up of leading international chefs, the 16th World Gourmet Festival has recently opened its doors at Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel and will continue till September 13, 2015. Since its inception, the World Gourmet Festival has grown in prominence to feature an extraordinary line-up of some of the best chefs, winemakers and food experts from across the globe. This year a lineup of these experts gather together at the Thai capital for a week-long celebration of outstanding cuisine and excellent wines, at the same time demonstrating their support for Thailand and commitment to Bangkok as one of the world’s leading culinary destinations.

The full line up of chefs at the 16th annual World Gourmet Festival includes Chef Francesc Rovira, Fonda Xesc, Gombrèn, Girona, Spain (1 Michelin Star); Chef Jean-François Bérard, Hostellerie Berard, La Cadière d’Azur, Provence France (1 Michelin Star); Chef Francesc Gimeno Manduley, Bohemic Bistro, Barcelona, Spain; Chef Pierre Crépaud, LeCrans Hotel & Spa, Crans-Montana, Switzerland; Chef Patrick Raingeard, Cap Estel, Èze-Bord-De-Mer, French Riviera, France (1 Michelin Star); Chef Sean Connolly, Sean’s Kitchen, Adelaide, Australia; and Chef Hirofumi Imamura, Kazuo Okada Restaurant, Kowloon, Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star);

The event is coordinated and overseen by Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel’s executive chef Nicolas Schneller, along with Shintaro chef Satoshi Sawada, Biscotti chef Daniele Bettini and Madison chef Anchalee Pongrungsit. Each guest chef will host two evenings in one of the hotel’s restaurants. This year’s World Gourmet Festival will also see the introduction of an exclusive sake tasting and pairing with Thai dishes event with the sake master, Keith Norum, an American who has worked with Miyasaka Brewing Company in Japan since 2005 educating their clients across the globe on sake. Also a first to the festival is the High Tea event with tea pairing by world-class master tea-blenders from Mariage Frères, France.

The famous World Gourmet Brunch, one of the most popular events of the whole festival, will take place on the last day of the event, on September 13, 2015. If you miss some of the chef’s dinners, this is your chance to sample some of their creations.

To celebrate this years festival, Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel has created a special package, ‘World Gourmet Festival package’ wherein the guests can enjoy the festival dinners and can retire to their guestroom afterwards. The package includes overnight accommodation in a deluxe view room, access to Kasara lounge including buffet breakfast, evening canapés, and tickets to any selected World Gourmet Festival dinner with the exception of the Japanese dinner, for two persons.

Eat for a cause

This year the festival is also supporting HRH Princess Soamsawali’s ‘Save A Child’s Life from AIDS Project’ under the auspices of the Thai Red Cross Society which provides medicine for pregnant mothers who are afflicted with AIDS. Proceeds from the auction for the duration of the event plus the dinner ticket sold will be donated to the charity.

With a commitment to support Bangkok as a leading international culinary destination, the 16th World Gourmet Festival being held in the Thai capital brings global culinary experts on one platform

Chef Francesc Rovira, Fonda Xesc, Gombrèn, Girona, Spain

Michelin-star Chef Rovira learned the art of cooking at a young age from his mother, working at the family owned village inn ‘La Fonda’ specialised in traditional Catalan cuisine. On graduating from culinary academy, Chef Rovira worked in a number of restaurants alongside many famous chefs, most notably the legendary Santi Santamaria, the first Catalan to be awarded three Michelin stars. Like many chefs today, Chef Rovira likes to use local ingredients in his cooking. Mushrooms are a vital ingredient in Catalan cuisine as the local area has 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, Chef 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 Lenotre School in Paris and consequently gaining a lot of work experiences with various master chefs at Michelin starred restaurants such as Frederic Anton at 3 Michelin star Pre catelan, Helene Darroze at 2 Michelin star la table d’helene, Roger Verger – serge Chenet at 3 star Moulin de Mougins, Jacques Chibois at 1 star le gray d’albion and Guissepina at 2 star Balsi rossa, Chef Berard’s culinary skills were honed to the fullest.

Chef Francesc Gimeno Manduley, Bohemic Bistro, Barcelona, Spain

Chef Francesc Gimeno Manduley transmits emotion, passion and sincerity– qualities which are expressed in every one of his creations. Through his dishes, he transports the diner back to their childhood, when everything was still open to discovery and there was no time for worrying. Chef Manduley’s Bohemic restaurant plays on high-concept miniature presentation of a variety of dishes for the diners to choose from after a pasta sized appetizer and complete the meal with a dessert.

Chef Pierre Crépaud, LeCrans Hotel & Spa, Crans-Montana, Switzerland

Describing himself as simply a cook, Chef Crépaud’s cuisine is mainly dictated by Mother Nature. A staunch supporter of the local farmers, he selects the best vegetables and regional products which are the basis for the creation of his recipes revealing dishes with playful tastes, colours and shapes. His cuisine is based on flavour with theatrical presentation. Honing his culinary skills working with various hotels and restaurants in France and Switzerland, he finally settled at Crans-Montana and has been the chef de cuisine at Restaurant LeMontBlanc at LeCrans Hotel & Spa which received a Gault & Millau award in 2010.

Chef Patrick Raingeard, Cap Estel, Èze-Bord-De-Mer, French Riviera, France

Inheriting his love for cuisine from his grandmother, Chef Raingeard at a very early age, liked watching her while she prepared sautéed potatoes, being fascinated by the foaming of butter on the stove, scorching but not burning. Working side by side with renowned chefs such as Alain Passard of the 3 Michelin Stars L’Arpège and Jacques Maximin of the 2 Michelin stars Ledoyen and The Elysée Lenôtre, the experiences gave him confidence and motivation which resulted to his first Michelin star award for the Zebra Square restaurant in Monaco.

Chef Sean Connolly, Sean’s Kitchen, Adelaide, Australia

Chef Connolly is one of Australia and New Zealand’s most well-respected chefs, with a growing list of accomplishments and awards to his name. A true visionary with a wealth of experience and his latest endeavour is the opening of his first restaurant in Adelaide, South Australia named Sean’s Kitchen. A New York inspired Brasserie restaurant offering mouth-watering dishes with a focus on showcasing the outstanding local produce, Sean’s Kitchen located in Adelaide Casino, has won Best New Restaurant in The City Awards within a year of its opening. As any other master chefs, Chef Connolly got his inspiration from his grandmother which influenced his food today: generosity, imagination and a healthy respect for excellent produce.

Chef Hirofumi Imamura, Kazuo Okada Restaurant, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Born in Japan, Chef 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 his fundamental cooking skills at his hometown Fukujima’s Japanese restaurant Kawashou then journeyed to New York where he excelled as a sushi chef after gaining his Fugu license in 2001 and promptly moved up to become an executive chef at Sakagura New York. He now heads the One-star Michelin Kazuo Okada restaurant in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Chef Imamura is admired for the way he imbues each dish with uniqueness. Firmly committed to the idea that every dish should have its own seasoning, he searches the world over to source the perfect seasoning for his dishes. He also matches his creations with different dishware for an ideal presentation of the food across the seasons.