The Caterer Middle East Awards 2014 took place last night at The Ritz-Carlton, DIFC, in association with presenting sponsor Du, with more than 400 guests in attendance.
The F&B industry turned out in full force, with representation from both front-of-house and back-of-house roles, along with suppliers, to honour the efforts of their peers over the last 12 months.
The award structure stayed the same as last year, though the industry saw the introduction of a new category: Restaurateur of the Year, which went to Markus Thesleff of Whissle Group, while Aline Kamakian from Mayrig Restaurants was highly commended for her work.
Teams were congratulated for the success of their outlets - The Doha Marriott Hotel picked up the Events Catering Team of the Year award, Zanzi Bar from Kempinski Ajman was named Restaurant Team of the Year - Hotel-managed Outlet for the first time, as was Asia Republic from Atlantis for Casual Dining Team of the Year.
It was a double celebration for The Ivy Dubai, which picked up the Restaurant Team of the Year - Independent Outlet for the first time, with its head chef Ben Tobitt snagging the Head Chef of the Year - Independent Outlet title.
"It is an old saying that there is no I in team, and I am a massive believer. I am standing with this now because of my guys, not because I am out of this world, but because I have an amazing team behind me, back and front of house. If you don’t all work together it doesn’t happen," said Tobitt.
The restaurant's general manager Nicola Robinson, who was Highly Commended in the Restaurant Manager of the Year category, added: "This is the most proud I've ever been in a work environment. I don’t know where you go from that... it’s amazing and it’s a huge testament.. It’s been a massive struggle; a fun one, but we've been lucky we've found some of the best people ever so it’s an extraordinary experience."
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The Restaurant Manager of the Year title went to Hillary Mathema from Frevo at Fairmont, The Palm, while the Waiter of the Year title went to La Serre Boulangerie & Bistro's Jenny Ahlqvist.
It was a big night for Media One Hotel, with its individuals and teams being shortlisted in four categories, and collecting two awards and one highly commended. The Dek on 8 scooped the Bar Team of the Year title, while its bartender Nica Alexandru Calin was named Bartender of the Year. The hotel's cafeM was Highly Commended in the Casual Dining Team of the Year.
The Dek on 8 bar manager, Stephen Mannin was delighted to receive the award, attributing the success of the venue to his hard-working team: "We are right in the centre of Dubai in Media city and the regulars love my staff so that’s why they come back. The staff believe in the site; they believe in The Dek on 8 because we don’t just do the same thing all the time. We do pop up parties on level 41; we’ve got level 9 this summer, we’ve got the World Cup there. The staff are working on the venues and how can they set them up so it’s giving them ownership to do what they can."
Jumeirah also had a great night - it was shortlisted in five categories, and apart from The Ivy Dubai's success, whisked off two other awards. Jumeirah at Etihad Towers' Ian McEvoy took home the award for Sommelier of the Year, while Paul Hayward from Madinat Jumeirah was honoured with the Pastry Chef of the Year title.
The Head Chef of the Year - Hotel-managed Outlet 2014 was Amrish Sood from Rang Mahal by Atul Kochhar at the JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, who was recognised for his ability to lead his team from the front and maintain a level of impeccable consistency. When asked about why he won, he said: "The important thing is to have a team of people with a different mix so they can contribute what they have in their pocket; giving them full charge of their section and believing in them and working together. When we’re in the kitchen we don’t believe in a hierarchy."
Emirates Flight Catering' cleaning services manager David D'Souza was the winner of the Chief Steward of the Year category, and was recognised for his skill in handling a large volume of operations, and doing so without breaking a sweat. The Kitchen Hero of the Year 2014 was awarded to Tarun Dogra from Salero Tapas & Bodega at Kempinski Dubai, Mall of the Emirates.
The Caterer Middle East team received nearly 300 award nominations, which it whittled down to 75 shortlisted entries across 15 categories. A group of independent expert judges then debated and deliberated over the shortlist before deciding their winning list.
Commenting on the success of the evening, Devina Divecha, editor, Caterer Middle East said: "The competition was really tough this year; I noticed a definite rise in the quality of the nominations we received this year. The whole team was impressed with the information shared about the efforts of individuals and teams, there's so much talent in this region, and we are proud to be a part of its development.
"The final 15 winners really show off the amazing concepts and people out there, and it's clear the industry is only moving up from here. I'd like to I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate all of last night’s winners and the highly commended nominees."
Click through to next page for full list of winners...
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