By Bikramjit Ray
JW MARRIOTT, New Delhi Aerocity has two new chefs, both first timers in Delhi and India, who have joined them last month. We got an opportunity to meet both very different personalities to find out what their aims were for the coming season.
Half-Okinawan and half-Italian is how Corey E Asato (see photo right), Chef de Cuisine of Akira Back, at the hotel, introduces his background. Asato honed his kitchen skills in Las Vegas. So, in his words, ’a 700 person service isn’t really a big thing. I started off in banquets and in Vegas that can mean much more,’ he told us.
We can expect interesting things from Asato, who even during his stint in Vegas owned and operated his food truck.
Asato grew up in Hawaii so he has a very unique flavour palate growing up, but he really wants to get to know this new country which he has come to. ’The furthest I travelled before this was Mexico and Canada,’ he tells us.
Asato hasn’t really been introduced to the colours and tastes of India, but he is willing to really work on making his menu more streamlined and more suitable for clients in Delhi. ’One thing which I noticed with I arrived here was that everyone really insisted on a lot more spice and sauce in their food, which really kills the subtleties of the dish,’ Asato told us, adding that his job was to make sure that the balance of the dishes are perfect.
Asato began his career in January 2004 in banqueting, as the Kitchen Manager for UNLV International Gaming Institute Banquet Hall, Las Vegas, Nevada. In May 2009, he moved on to co-own his own company- Island Breeze Lunch Wagon and Catering- Las Vegas, NV. Following this stint, he worked as the Sous Chef at Island Sushi and Hawaiian Grill at the Plaza Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, before moving to Kumi Japanese Bar + Restaurant By: Akira Back at Mandalay Bay Hotel. Corey is also a certified mixologist from ABC Bartending Schools of Las Vegas, which could translate to some interesting dishes at Akira Back.
In comparison to Chef Asato, Chef Giovanni Ricci (see photo left), the hotel’s Italian Chef de Cuisine is much more of a journeyman, having travelled the world from Italy, where he grew up right in the middle part of the country in Marche (in the calf part of the Italian foot), in the small fishing village of San Benedetto del Tronto. Ricci has worked in as far off places as Beijing, China, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Blagoveshchensk in the eastern part of Russia, in a career which began in 1992.
’I am working on the new a la carte menu at the restaurant and want to make it contain more simple dishes,’ Ricci tells us. His food philosophy, much like Asato’s is about being able to taste the ingredients in the food.
’The first thing I want to do is work on the pasta here, it is one of the most important cornerstones of Italian cuisine,’ he tells us. Ricci, is still a seaside dweller at heart and really enjoys his seafood. His best dish is one his mother used to make, ’It is very popular where I grew up, a seafood soup called a Brodetto, soured with vinegar,’ he said. It’s something which we all hope he will make at the JW Marriott’s K3 restaurant as well.
JW MARRIOTT, New Delhi Aerocity has two new chefs, both first timers in Delhi and India, who have joined them last month. We got an opportunity to meet both very different personalities to find out what their aims were for the coming season.
Half-Okinawan and half-Italian is how Corey E Asato (see photo right), Chef de Cuisine of Akira Back, at the hotel, introduces his background. Asato honed his kitchen skills in Las Vegas. So, in his words, ’a 700 person service isn’t really a big thing. I started off in banquets and in Vegas that can mean much more,’ he told us.
We can expect interesting things from Asato, who even during his stint in Vegas owned and operated his food truck.
Asato grew up in Hawaii so he has a very unique flavour palate growing up, but he really wants to get to know this new country which he has come to. ’The furthest I travelled before this was Mexico and Canada,’ he tells us.
Asato hasn’t really been introduced to the colours and tastes of India, but he is willing to really work on making his menu more streamlined and more suitable for clients in Delhi. ’One thing which I noticed with I arrived here was that everyone really insisted on a lot more spice and sauce in their food, which really kills the subtleties of the dish,’ Asato told us, adding that his job was to make sure that the balance of the dishes are perfect.
Asato began his career in January 2004 in banqueting, as the Kitchen Manager for UNLV International Gaming Institute Banquet Hall, Las Vegas, Nevada. In May 2009, he moved on to co-own his own company- Island Breeze Lunch Wagon and Catering- Las Vegas, NV. Following this stint, he worked as the Sous Chef at Island Sushi and Hawaiian Grill at the Plaza Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, before moving to Kumi Japanese Bar + Restaurant By: Akira Back at Mandalay Bay Hotel. Corey is also a certified mixologist from ABC Bartending Schools of Las Vegas, which could translate to some interesting dishes at Akira Back.
In comparison to Chef Asato, Chef Giovanni Ricci (see photo left), the hotel’s Italian Chef de Cuisine is much more of a journeyman, having travelled the world from Italy, where he grew up right in the middle part of the country in Marche (in the calf part of the Italian foot), in the small fishing village of San Benedetto del Tronto. Ricci has worked in as far off places as Beijing, China, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Blagoveshchensk in the eastern part of Russia, in a career which began in 1992.
’I am working on the new a la carte menu at the restaurant and want to make it contain more simple dishes,’ Ricci tells us. His food philosophy, much like Asato’s is about being able to taste the ingredients in the food.
’The first thing I want to do is work on the pasta here, it is one of the most important cornerstones of Italian cuisine,’ he tells us. Ricci, is still a seaside dweller at heart and really enjoys his seafood. His best dish is one his mother used to make, ’It is very popular where I grew up, a seafood soup called a Brodetto, soured with vinegar,’ he said. It’s something which we all hope he will make at the JW Marriott’s K3 restaurant as well.
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