Each chef brings forth a delectable menu at the city’s BOCA restaurant.
Behold! For seven weeks, seven uber-talented chefs are taking over this Dubai restaurant to bring forth a culinary experience of a lifetime.
Each week, a different chef will take the reins at UAE’s Sustainable Kitchen of the Year 2022, BOCA as part of 50 Best Discovery – a travel and experience-focused platform.
The chefs promise to present a multi-course menu cooked to perfection. The dining experience aims to showcase the chef’s journey and their thought-process behind the items on the menu.
The chefs’ narrative pays tribute to BOCA’s long history of supporting local sourcing and waste reduction in the kitchen.
Here’s the complete list of chefs participating in 50 Best Discovery:
Célia Stoecklin
24-26 January
Célia began her career at the Michelin starred restaurant Le 7eme continent at the age of 14 and most recently served as the chef at the Jumeirah Al Qasr Hotel’s French Riviera. Celia served a four-course French-Mediterranean menu at BOCA, featuring seasonal and fresh ingredients from land and sea.
Bethany Kehdy
7-9 February
Bethany Kehdy is a Dubai-based celebrated chef, two-time best-selling cookbook author, presenter and founder of culinary experience, Taste Lebanon. Featured in numerous publications and on various TV programmes, she has been leading the WANA (West Asia and North Africa) food and associated tourism scene for over a decade. Bethany takes over BOCA’s kitchen, introducing a menu of West Asian and North African favourites made with locally sourced ingredients.
Sara Aqel
14-16 February
Sara Aqel earned a culinary arts diploma from the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts in Les Roches before interning at the prestigious The Hong Kong Jockey Club. She managed the Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant Fi’lia in Dubai and led to its international expansion. She brings her knowledge of regional Italian cuisine to the kitchen with her own style and heritage.
Penelope Diaz
7-9 March
Penelope, who began making ceviche at a young age, decided to stake her future on her Peruvian heritage and passion. In less than a year, her restaurant Fusión Ceviche became a hit. Now, you can watch Penelope prepare a menu of ceviches, a tribute to BOCA’s favourite oyster from Dibba Bay, and arroz de mariscos among others.
Gabriela Chamorro
14-16 March
Chef Gabriela is a Latin American chef, passionate about creating one-of-a-kind and intimate dining experiences. She was self-taught at first, inheriting a culinary legacy from her grandmother, but later specialised from the Culinary Institute of Barcelona, Spain. She has run the acclaimed Girl and the Goose, a Nicaraguan supper club well-known in Dubai’s foodie scene and will now present her story of a rich cultural heritage told through food, colour and myth.
Sheerin Ghaffar
9-11 May
Sheerin Ghaffar’s open and honest approach to cooking has earned her a reputation as a trailblazing, multifaceted female chef. With a distinct flavour profile refined by her global travels and Singaporean Chinese-Pakistani roots, she is best known for her belief in the power of simplicity. She recently joined the Michelin starred restaurant Hakkasan in Dubai and you can expect an extended pastry and dessert session during her BOCA takeover.
Trisha Henault
23-15 May
Born and raised in Delhi, India, in a household where every meal was full of surprises and infused with her mother’s love, Trisha currently serves as the Executive Pastry Chef at 25hours Hotel and Tandoor Tina’s Creative Culinary Director. As part of the BOCA takeover, you can expect a Tandoor Tina tasting menu of some of her star dishes.
Taking place until May 2023, each chef will be featured for three nights only. Reservations only and packages start at AED 545 per person.
Date & Time
Until 15 May
7pm-10pm
Location
BOCA, Dubai
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