Middle Eastern Delights at St Moritz Gourmet Festival 2023
St Moritz Gourmet Festival 2023
This year’s St. Moritz Gourmet Festival was a roaring success! The festival’s theme for 2023 was Middle Eastern cuisine. A food which is bursting with colour, flavour and texture and made from wonderful fresh ingredients. There were dinners, Gourmet Safaris, Kitchen parties and lots more. Each day there was something new to discover and explore. The food was amazing and everyone I met there was overjoyed at experiencing this incredible celebration of food in the unique mountain resort of St Moritz.
An International Food Festival With Chefs From All Over The World
The St Moritz Gourmet festival brings together top chefs from all over the world. It’s an opportunity for them to demonstrate their cuisine and to showcase specialities from their country or region. Each chef had been invited by one of the chefs in the top hotels in St Moritz to work alongside them in their hotel kitchen for the festival.
The Chefs & Their Guest Kitchens Were as Follows:
Najat Kaanache, Nur Restaurant, Fes, Guest of Executive Chef Janko Glotz, Nira Alpina (photo above)
Silvena Rowe, Omnia by Silvena, Dubai, Guest of Executive Chef Kari Walker, Hotel Saratz (photo above)
Sami Tamimi – Ottolenghi, London – Guest of Executive Chef Fabrizio Zanetti, Suvretta HouseZineb (photo above)
“Zizi” Hattab, Restaurant DAR & KLE, Zurich, Guest of Executive Chef Maxime Luvara, Badrutt’s Palace Hotel
Tomer Tal, George & John Restaurant, Tel Aviv, Guest of Executive Chef Gian Nicola Colucci, Grand Hotel des Bains Kempinski
Alan Geaam, Restaurant Alangeaam, Paris, Guest of Executive Chef Fabrizio Piantanida, Grand Hotel Kronenhof
Athanasios Karagatzidis, Baron Restaurant, Beirut/Lebanon, Guest of Executive Chef Mauro Taufer, Kulm Hotel
Musa DaĞdeviren, Istanbul, Ciya Restaurant, Guest of Executive Chef Gero Porstein, Hotel Waldhaus Sils
Gal Ben Moshe, Prism Restaurant, Berlin, Guest of Executive Chef Rolf Fliegauf, Hotel Giardino Mountain
Raz Rahaw, OCD Restaurant, Tel Aviv, TEL AVIV, Guest of Executive Chef Fabrizio Crespi, Carlton Hotel
Hotel Nira Alpina Hosted Chef Najat Kaanache from Restaurnat Nur in Morocco
I was staying at the wonderful Hotel Nira Alpina which is located in the Corvatsch area of St Moritz right next to the ski slopes. The hotel’s chef Janko Glotz had invited Chef Najat Kaanache (photo above) from Restaurant Nur (voted the world’s best Moroccan restaurant!) and together they had created a wonderful dinner in the hotel’s restaurant with Middle Eastern highlights. Chef Kaanache has both Maroccan and Spanish roots and I had the honour of talking to her before dinner about her approach to cooking and her style in the kitchen. A further article to follow soon!
The Legendary Kitchen Party at Badrutt’s Palace
Another highlight for me was attending the legendary Kitchen Party event at Badrutt’s Palace. The enormous kitchen of this most grand hotel was filled with international chefs from all over Europe and the Middle East. Each had their own station, serving up the most amazingly delicious specialties. All the portions are kept quite small, so that you’re able to taste a number of them and the food was simply out of this world. Whilst the chefs were still getting ready we were able to chat to them before all the guests arrived. As I spoke to Chef Alan Geaam he handed me a hot, freshly cooked morsel – it was mozzarella in a filo pastry case with truffle – it sounds simple but it was utterly divine!
The choice and qaulity of the cuisine was amazing and there was even a special room dedicated to desserts and all things chocolatey and sweet !
Meeting The Chefs In Person at the Kitchen Party
The Kitchen Party is a wonderful dining experience as there is so much choice and guests can watch as the chefs prepare their food in front of them. You also have the opportunity to chat to the chefs (and to some of the producers) and to learn about their cooking techniques and their produce. If you’re lucky the chefs will also pass on some of their top tips too!
The St Moritz Gourmet Festival is one of the top “bucket list” events in Switzerlnad attracting foodies from all over the world. So make sure you’re part of the next year’s edition and save the list of chefs and their restaurants above so that you can do some tasting until the 2024 edition of the festival comes round!
Hotel Nira Alpina St Moritz
With special thanks to the beautiful Hotel Nira Alpina for hosting me. The hotel is super friendly and welcoming and has wonderful facilities! As well as a great restaurant (photo above) with great views and gourmet food, the bedrooms all have mountain views and a balcony and there is a relaxing spa and wellness area. What’s more, it is located right next to a ski lift. A perfect location for skiers!
Looking forward to the 2024 edition of The St Moritz Gourmet Festival! See details below:
St Moritz Gourmet Festival 2024
Where: In a selection of luxury hotels in St Moritz Switzerland
When: January 2024 ( dates to be announced mid March 2023)
For more information visit the St Moritz Gourmet Festival Website here.
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