Silvena Rowe sets out to launch her first Ottoman-inspired concept in Dubai and explains how girl power means it will definitely succeed:
When renowned UK chef Silvena Rowe’s people approached me with an interview opportunity in the run-up to the launch of her first Middle-East venture, I jumped at the chance.
For a start, she’s a female chef — a rare find in this industry; secondly, I find her commitment astounding when I hear she’s relocating her entire family to the UAE to be on the ground at her new restaurant. And thirdly, her big hair is quite honestly fascinating.
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Rowe herself claims “it scares most people off”, I want to find out if her bark is actually louder than her bite.
I caught up with Rowe quite early on in the process, while she was in town considering deals between a number of operators, at which point, she felt “a little torn” to say the least.
“I’m looking for the sort of partner that can extend my vision and make it grow,” says Rowe. “What I’ve found with all the operators I’ve discussed my plans with is the great potential they can see in the project and I’m overwhelmed by how forthcoming they’ve been with ideas and suggestions to drive it. This is what is making the whole journey so exciting.”
But she’s adamant she’s not just “another celebrity chef that sticks their name on a restaurant and that’s it,” and her decision to relocate has been sparked by her desire for the outlet to succeed.
She’s no stranger to the challenges of starting a restaurant from scratch following her stint as chef-patron at the infamous Quince at The Mayfair Hotel in London for three years. “The reason Quince was so successful was because I was there,” explains Rowe.
“Believe me, being in The Mayfair, it was hard. It is popular, it is always in the public eye, we have celebrities there constantly. It’s not easy to create something that stands alone but at the same time is an integral part of the hotel.”
But her decision to break ties with Quince — albeit on friendly terms — and start over in a city whose F&B industry is in its infancy is not one that has come easily.
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