Exclusive interview with Chef Luca Bertelloni, The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal

You have worked across a range of international culinary environments and cuisines. How has that journey shaped your approach to leading the culinary operations at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal?

Working in different kitchens and across different cultures has taught me the importance of adaptability, creativity and respect for culinary traditions. My Italian roots gave me a strong foundation in discipline and an appreciation for quality ingredients. At the same time, my international career has broadened my understanding of different cuisines and approaches to hospitality.

These lessons are particularly valuable at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, where I oversee eight distinctive dining outlets, each with its own culinary identity. My role is to maintain a shared commitment to quality and consistency while giving our chefs the freedom to bring their own creativity and expertise to the table.

I have also learned that successful kitchens are built on strong teams. I lead by example, build trust, and create an environment where chefs feel supported and encouraged to grow. Ultimately, good leadership brings people together around a shared vision while allowing individual talent to flourish.

What role does local produce, culture, and heritage play in shaping the resort’s culinary offerings, and are there particular UAE ingredients or traditions that you enjoy working with?

Local produce, culture and heritage play an important role in shaping our culinary philosophy at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal. For me, food is one of the most meaningful ways to connect with a destination, and the UAE has a rich culinary heritage worth celebrating. We are fortunate to have access to excellent local ingredients, from fresh seafood and oysters to dates and honey, and I believe in showcasing these products wherever possible.

We work closely with local farmers and producers and have our own vertical farm at the hotel, where we grow fresh herbs used across our kitchens. This allows us to incorporate locally grown ingredients into our menus while supporting more sustainable culinary practices.

I also draw inspiration from Emirati and Middle Eastern hospitality traditions, particularly the emphasis on generosity, sharing, and bringing people together around the table. At Mijana, our MICHELIN Guide-selected restaurant, regional flavours and culinary traditions take centre stage. At the same time, Li Jiang combines contemporary Asian cuisine with magnificent views of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Both offer guests a different perspective on Abu Dhabi’s rich cultural identity, something we aim to celebrate throughout our culinary offerings.

As guest expectations evolve, how do you see the relationship between luxury dining and sustainability changing? Can a more responsible approach also enhance the overall dining experience?

Sustainability and luxury dining are becoming increasingly connected, with guests more conscious of where their food comes from and how it is produced. Exceptional dining is no longer just about premium ingredients and presentation, but also about the responsibility we take in sourcing and preparing our food.

At The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, sustainability is central to our operations. Our on-site vertical farm provides fresh herbs for our kitchens, while responsible sourcing and food waste management remain key priorities. Between May 2025 and July 2026, our on-site food-waste digester processed 59,755kg of food waste, while our switch to Elephant Gloves for F&B colleagues has saved approximately two tonnes of single-use plastic gloves. The hotel also has on-site solar systems as part of its wider environmental efforts and recorded an 18% year-on-year reduction in gas consumption in 2026.

I believe a more responsible approach can enhance the dining experience. Fresh, locally grown ingredients bring quality and flavour to the plate, while reducing waste encourages greater creativity and respect for every ingredient. Sustainability should never mean compromising on luxury; it should be an integral part of exceptional hospitality

With several MICHELIN Guide-recognised dining destinations within the resort, how do you continue to challenge your culinary teams to innovate while staying true to the identity of each restaurant?

Each of our eight dining outlets at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, has its own culinary identity, and we continue to innovate while respecting the traditions, flavours, and standards that define each restaurant.

I place great trust in our chefs, encouraging them to experiment, share ideas and draw inspiration from their own backgrounds. We work closely together on menu development and new concepts, always keeping our guests’ expectations in mind. At Li Jiang and Mijana, both recognised by the MICHELIN Guide, maintaining this balance between creativity, authenticity and consistency is particularly important.

Our dining concepts are continually evolving, with the latest addition being the new Sunday Roast at The Forge. We have taken a much-loved tradition and introduced it to our award-winning steakhouse, with premium cuts and classic accompaniments prepared with precision. Innovation doesn’t always mean reinventing something; it can mean finding fresh ways to celebrate familiar favourites while staying true to each restaurant’s identity.

Sunday Roast is a familiar culinary tradition, but every chef brings their own interpretation to it. How are you approaching the menu at The Forge, and are there any particular elements you are especially excited about?

A traditional Sunday Roast is all about generous portions, familiar flavours and bringing family and friends together around the table. At The Forge, we wanted to honour those traditions while incorporating the premium ingredients and precise cooking techniques our steakhouse is known for.

Our Chef de Cuisine, Nazerke Kossaliyeva, has led menu development, drawing on her extensive expertise in preparing premium meats. Guests can enjoy roasted prime beef striploin or a herb-marinated half chicken, served with Yorkshire pudding, goose-fat roasted potatoes, and rich homemade gravy.

We are not trying to reinvent a classic; we’re focused on getting every element right, from the tenderness of the meat to the perfectly roasted potatoes. The result is a traditional Sunday lunch that we hope will become a regular favourite among our guests.

Sustainability is becoming an increasingly important part of luxury hospitality. From your perspective as a chef, what does responsible dining look like in practice, from sourcing and seasonality to reducing food waste?

Responsible dining begins with understanding where our ingredients come from, working closely with local farmers and suppliers, and choosing seasonal produce at its best. It is about making decisions that benefit both the quality of our food and the environment.

At The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, our vertical farm provides fresh herbs for our kitchens. At the same time, careful menu planning, responsible purchasing and portion control help us manage food waste across our eight dining outlets.

As chefs, we must lead by example, encouraging our teams to respect every ingredient and minimise waste. Often, the small decisions we make consistently every day have the greatest impact, without compromising the quality our guests expect.

Exclusive interview with Eti Bhasin, Executive Director at Majestic Hotels, UAE

As Executive Director of Majestic Hotels, what are your key priorities in overseeing the group’s operations, growth and long-term direction?

Representing as the Executive Director of Majestic hotels, key priorities:

• Bringing in strategies for forecasting the demand and simultaneously liaise with operations teams to meet objectives laid out for the year.

• Values and ethos foundation laid out to be consistent amongst all team members working at Majestic Hotels, whether at different properties or within different tiers of management
• Expansion possibilities and generating sources of revenue generation

Majestic Hotels announced its fourth Dubai property, Majestic Central Hotel, in 2026. The 68-room, three-star property is near Sharaf DG Metro Station and caters to business and leisure travelers, with flexible monthly stays?

With the war situation that occurred in March 2026, we were amidst the opening of our 4th property Majestic Central Hotel, and it was a challenge posed to us to function with the best strategies for survival and monthly long terms contracts were introduced for the locals residing here in UAE. Being right in front of the metro station proved advantageous to our local crowd and that brought our occupancy levels to over 75% within 2 days of opening.

Having built F&B concepts such as Dhaba Lane and The Permit Room, what have been the biggest lessons from your entrepreneurial journey, and how have they shaped your approach to hospitality?

One of the biggest learning lessons that I received from my F&B journey so far, is to be consistent and persistent towards your goal. Each day in hospitality is a new learning. No two days are the same and service industry humbles you in that way.

Most importantly, to be relevant whether in terms of digital awareness or even latest food trends, guests demands are ever evolving. Also, it’s necessary that restauranters need to be up to date with latest technologies and be able to translate the same into their business.

In 2026, Majestic Hotels marked two decades of operating in Dubai, reflecting on its homegrown identity, returning guests and the memories created through its properties.

When Majestic started, Dubai was a very different destination. Today, it is one of the world’s most competitive hospitality markets. We have seen the city change, guest expectations change, technology change and the way people travel change. Through all of that, we moved from one hotel to four, but our strongest asset has remained the same: people who know us and choose to come back.

For us, 20 years is therefore not about looking backwards. It is about proving that a homegrown brand can evolve without losing its personality.

Your 20th-anniversary campaign combines staycation offers with discounts on dining. How do you see such experiences helping hotels connect with residents as well as international visitors?

A staycation allows us to become part of the guest’s life rather than simply part of their travel itinerary. For Dubai residents, it is an opportunity to rediscover their own city. For international travelers, it gives them an opportunity to experience more than the traditional hotel stay.

Dining plays an important role because food creates memories in a way very few things can. A guest may not remember every detail of their room, but they will remember a dinner, a celebration, a conversation or an evening spent with family.

That is why our anniversary campaign is not simply about putting a discount on a room. It is about giving people a reason to walk through our doors and creating enough of an experience for them to want to return.

• Dubai’s hospitality market is highly competitive, with international chains, boutique properties and independent hotel groups competing for attention. How can homegrown brands differentiate themselves beyond brand name, pricing and location?

A homegrown hotel does not have the global footprint of a multinational chain, and it does not need to. What we have is something that is much harder to manufacture, local understanding and genuine relationships.

We know our market. We know our guests. We can make decisions quickly. We can adapt our products around what people actually need rather than waiting for a global brand strategy to change. But being homegrown cannot become an excuse for staying traditional. Local does not mean old-fashioned. International brands can offer recognition, homegrown brands can offer belonging. That is where we believe the real differentiation lies.

Exclusive interview with Boris Kofman, Founder, SANA

SANA brings the heritage of Uzbek cuisine into one of Dubai’s most established hospitality destinations. What does authentic Uzbek hospitality mean to you, and how have you translated it into the guest experience at SANA?

In Uzbekistan there is a saying that a guest is more important than your own father. That is the whole philosophy. When you walk into an Uzbek home, the table is already full before you sit down, the tea is already poured, and nobody asks if you are hungry. That generosity is what I wanted at SANA. But I did not want a museum. SANA is a modern Uzbek restaurant, built for how Dubai lives today. The soul comes from home: our chefs are from Uzbekistan, and the majority of our ingredients are imported from Uzbekistan, so the flavours are the real thing. The design, the music and the energy are completely now. In practice it means our team is trained to read the table, not just take the order. Bread arrives without you asking. Dishes are brought to share. We want you to leave feeling you were hosted, not served. That feeling is the thing I am proudest of.

The concept draws inspiration from the Silk Road, where food, culture and hospitality were deeply interconnected. How does this idea influence the way guests experience SANA beyond the dining table?

The Silk Road was the first great meeting place of the world. Merchants from China, Persia, India and Europe sat at the same table, traded stories, and took each other’s food home. Dubai is exactly that today, a city where every culture meets. So SANA is not only about what is on the plate. It is the music, the textures, the lighting, the way the evening moves from dinner into something more. We want guests to feel like travellers arriving at a caravanserai: you come for dinner, you stay for the atmosphere, and you leave having met someone new. When a table of Emiratis, Russians and Brits ends up sharing tea at midnight, that is the Silk Road happening again.

SANA also extends into private celebrations, curated dinners and experiences at Moon. How are you seeing demand for more personalised and experience-led dining evolve in Dubai?

Dubai has changed. People have eaten everywhere. A great menu is now the minimum, not the reason to go out. What people want is a night they will remember and talk about. That is why SANA was never only a restaurant. Moon is our space for that: private celebrations, birthdays, company dinners, buy-outs, live music and karaoke nights. Every event is built around the host, their guests and the story they want to tell. We are seeing more people book the whole experience rather than just a table, and more groups choosing to celebrate somewhere with personality instead of a hotel ballroom. I think that is only going to grow, and we built SANA for it.

The Uzbek tea tradition is naturally centred around gathering and sharing, with SANA offering its Samovar collection for communal experiences. How important are these cultural rituals in creating a sense of connection between guests?

They are everything. In Central Asia, tea is not a drink, it is an invitation. The samovar sits in the middle of the table and everyone pours for each other. Nobody is in a hurry. Conversations get longer, phones go down, and strangers become friends. In a city that moves as fast as Dubai, that ritual is a gift. Our Samovar collection is designed for exactly that moment, usually at the end of the meal, when nobody wants the evening to finish. I see guests lean in, laugh and order another round of tea instead of the bill. That is when I know SANA is working.

Sharing is an important part of many Central Asian dining traditions. How have communal dishes and table-sharing influenced the way you design the guest journey at SANA?

Completely. We designed SANA around the shared table, not the individual plate. The menu is built for passing dishes around, so a dinner at SANA naturally becomes a conversation. The big platters, the bread torn by hand, the salads in the middle, everyone tasting everything. The journey starts with small plates and bread, builds to the centerpiece dishes for the whole table, and ends with tea and our desserts, which are from a different world and constantly evolving, so there is always a reason to come back. Our layout and our service follow the same idea: generous tables, a team that brings dishes to the centre, and space for groups to linger. Sharing food is the fastest way to bring people together. My invitation is simple: come with friends, order too much, and stay longer than you planned. That is the Uzbek way, and that is SANA.