The Hilton ship sets sail in the wake of Olivier Levasseur |14 June 2019
Luke Selby in his element
The Selby chefs are conquering Seychelles on ‘A Treasure Trail of Tastes’
Hilton Northolme Resort & Spa and Hilton Labriz Resort & Spa successfully started a culinary journey by hosting a series of gastronomic events. Following the footsteps of famous 17th century pirate, Olivier Levasseur, Hilton Seychelles has carefully selected and invited chefs from along Levasseur’s sailing routes - starting with three British brothers, the Selbys.
Luke Selby, winner of both National Chef of the Year and the Roux Scholarship in 2017, ran one of London's hottest Michelin kitchens at just 27 years of age. The now 29-year-old half Malaysian recently competed on BBC 2’s Great British Menu and has conquered the gastronomy sea of Europe as fast as “La Buse”. Now the super talent has disembarked his ship on the shores of Seychelles to share his Treasure of Tastes at Hilton.
This first foodie event was hosted at Hilton Labriz, where the trio served a six course ‘Diamond Dinner’ paired with exclusive wines. Guests and VIP visitors started with a mouth watering Citrus cured salmon and indulged in Poached loin of cod, mussel and lemongrass veloute, on cauliflower cous cous and Cardamom and ginger spiced roast lobster - the highlight of Hilton Labriz’s first event.
The open air candle light dinner was set up on the terrace of Portobello restaurant, overlooking the lagoon of Labriz, where the ‘Banquet on the Bridge’ will take place this evening.
General manager André Borg and his team started to plan the dinner on the bridge months ago.
“We have renewed the entire bridge and the team has worked for weeks on a floating stage, where local live musicians and some special surprise artists will perform throughout the night. The banquet dinner will be an amazing and a unique experience for hotel guests and locals alike,” said the GM. Residents from other islands will have the chance to come stay on Silhouette to also attend The Sunset Soirée tomorrow, Saturday June 15. At the second event on Silhouette, the Selby’s will serve a selection of Savories & Sweets by the beach and as the sun sets the Soirée will turn into a Bohèmian Beach Party for guests and friends to dance, dine and drink like Levasseur. (Sunset Soirée and King Beachfront Villa for 2 with breakfast, return boat, 60 min. massage and express manicure, 9000 SCR Tel. 429 3949).
As keen supporters of the local hospitality industry, Hilton Seychelles is working with the Seychelles Tourism Academy (STA) to ensure the younger resident talent benefit from having award-winning global chefs on the island. A select group from the Academy is already on the island shadowing the three brothers over the June dates, with the top student being chosen by Luke Selby after the last dinner at Hilton Seychelles Northolme Resort & Spa on June 19.
‘The Captain’s Dinner’ at the hotel’s fine dining restaurant ‘Les Cocotiers’ will be the grand finale of the first stage of ‘A Treasure Trail of Tastes’ and crowned by the attendance of a world famous celebrity actress (2000 SCR wine paired six course menu). Hilton Northolme general manager Daniele Fabbri said: “We are very excited to be hosting these amazing culinary events at both hotels and I can’t wait to experience ‘The Captain’s Dinner’ and finally meet and reveal our special surprise guest.”
Hilton Seychelles has also partnered with Levasseur Rum to offer the local, artisanal spirit throughout ‘A Treasure Trail of Tastes’. The local distillery creates a unique and rare blended rum which is centred around everything that is bold: the achiever, the conqueror, the go-getter – a fitting partnership for these events which celebrate a world-renowned chef as he takes over the Seychelles islands.
“I am not the kind of person to show off but rather take it easy with my brothers and friends. My job can be very stressful and I often leave the kitchen only after 20 hours. There is not much time left for other activities but I do try and play the guitar every night - Eric Clapton, Hendrix, Lennon help me relax!” he humbly explains. “Before I became a chef my mum forced me to take violin lessons and after ten years played professionally. She insisted for her four boys to have a classic education and of course in the end she was right as every mother always is. Today I am thankful as making music is my way to switch off.”
Hopefully the time at Hilton and serene surroundings of Seychelles will help him too, as everyone around him is getting all excited to experiencing the dinners to come.
By Judith Heede
Hilton Seychelles PR/ Media consultant
