F&B industry calls for more celeb outlets

Celebrity chef-endorsed outlets have done great things for the Middle East restaurant scene, but the region could do with more, according to industry professionals.

At Atlantis, The Palm — where celebrity chef-backed outlets include Nobu, Ronda Locatelli, Rostang and Ossiano — vice president, culinary Mark Patten said such enterprises increased “the overall quality of restaurants and dining experiences”.

“It also shows visitors that we are serious about driving variety and quality, through bringing in top names,” he added.

Mike Nalborczyk, general manager of Hilton Dubai Creek — home to Verre by Gordon Ramsay — said the arrival of more big names had “helped accelerate the growth of the culinary scene in the region, both with regards to service and the dining experiences on offer”.

“Gordon was the first celebrity chef to take notice of Dubai’s potential; Verre helped put Dubai on the culinary map and then others followed suit,” he noted.

Michelin-starred chef Vineet Bhatia, patron-chef of Indego at Grosvenor House Dubai, agreed that such outlets had raised the region’s culinary profile to an extent, but pointed out that this was very Dubai-centric so far.

“Dubai has led the way for everybody in the GCC and I think Abu Dhabi will strive to come up to that level very soon,” he asserted.

“But apart from these two cities I don’t see much else coming up in the GCC; there’s still a way to go in that respect.

“There are so many fantastic chefs around the world who would love to come here, and I’m sure they will. I would love to see the likes of Alain Ducasse and Joel Robuchon — hopefully they’re already looking at options.

“Dubai should be very proud of what it has here, but I’m sure there will be much more coming down the line,” he predicted.