Chef Mohammad Chabchoul has held the position of executive chef at Grand Millennium Hotel Business Bay for two years since the hotel opened in October 2018.
How did you become a chef?
I’ve always loved food! From a very young age, I have memories of being in the kitchen with my mother, helping her prepare meals. From then on, I started buying cookbooks and trying out recipes at home for my family.
I then went on to culinary school to study the art of cooking, working hard to develop the necessary skills and turn my passion into a career. Being a chef is a very rewarding and exciting job – and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else!
What’s your signature dish?
One of my signatures dishes is Smoked Salmon Pearl, which includes two types of fish – smoked salmon being the main ingredient, along with seabass, which is used as a stuffing. It’s a healthy and well-presented dish which uses lots of great ingredients such as potato, sage, lemon zest, capers, and fresh herbs, finished off sour cream and avocado mash.
What are your favourite ingredients to work with and why?
It’s so difficult to narrow it down to just a few ingredients as I love so many, however, the intense, mouth-puckering sharpness of tamarind makes it an amazing ingredient to work with.
If I had to choose just one culinary herb to use, it would be a tough battle between rosemary and fresh thyme.
What inspires you as a chef?
You have to have a real passion for cooking and always be willing to experiment in the kitchen. I love to make people feel happy and receiving great feedback definitely keeps me inspired. As I always say, having a unique approach fuels your efforts – constantly innovating and ensuring your customers have a delicious culinary experience is what motivates me most.
Tell us about the menu at Beau Rivage Bistro.
Beau Rivage Bistro at Grand Millennium Hotel in Business Bay is a European-inspired eatery. The menu is full of delicious dishes; we focus on fresh, seasonal vegetables and fruits which take the menu to a new level in terms of taste and value.
On the current menu, I have included everything that guests could want, from rustic sandwiches to healthy salads, pizza and lots of grilled items such as steak and seafood. For the dessert menu, we have some sweet favourites, as well as some exciting creations including smoking chocolate cigars and a cotton candy tree that’s entirely edible!
