Awards glory for chef at The St. Regis Saadiyat

Junior sous chef Thamara Kumari from The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort in Abu Dhabi has won the chance to represent the UAE at the Global Chefs Challenge Final in Greece.

Kumari works at the hotel's Mediterranean-influenced restaurant Olea and was judged the winner in the Africa/Middle East regional semi-final of La Cuisine at SIAL Middle East, held last month.

“This is a fantastic win for Thamara and for the hotel, and is a testament to her passion and dedication to competition cookery and to providing an elevated dining experience to our guests.

"We are excited to see her compete on the world stage in Athens at the finals, and representing both the UAE and The St. Regis Saadiyat Island,” said Malcolm Webster, executive chef at the hotel.

The Global Chefs Challenge welcomes the world’s best chefs to compete against each other in three categories: Global Chefs, Global Pastry Chefs and Young Chefs Challenge.

Competitors must first get through their national selection to go further to the regional semi-final before reaching the world final stage to be held and Worldchefs Congress in Athens 2016.

Kumari previously won Best Cuisine at Gulfood 2015, and will be representing the UAE Culinary Guild in Frankfurt, Germany at the 2016 Culinary Olympics.

She was selected as the UAE contender for the Global Chefs Challenge by the UAE Culinary Guild during the La Cuisine competition held during Abu Dhabi’s SIAL Middle East in December 2015.