Mango House team competing in Taste of Hilton Flavour & Flair finals |02 November 2022
Members of the team fine tuning their menus ahead of their departure to Spain (Photo: Joena Meme)
The five-strong Koko Mango food and beverage team from Mango House Seychelles are presently in Barcelona, Spain battling it out against other finalists in the Taste of Hilton Flavour & Flair EMEA 2022 competition.
The competition is designed to bring together and showcase the talent that Hilton has across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Teams are required to compete against each other across three disciplines, with the finalists in each region going head to head.
This year’s theme is ‘Venture Beyond’.
Comprising sweet chef Merla Delorie, solid chef Chris Young Kon, mixologist Rahul Rawat, team captain Sravana Bhagavat and barista Michael Turysima, the Koko Mango team will be hoping to win the judges over with their Creole-themed feast, story and experience.
In order to qualify, the teams were required to design and submit their menus, as well as prepare it live online for the judges which led them through to the semifinals. The jury visited the property where they experienced the menu for themselves, the team were selected by the jury to go through to the finals.
Their Creole-themed feast is one which highlights the various uses of coconut, including a Koko-nut negroni, Koko-Nut spritz, Millionaire palm heart salad, fish curry 2.0, Creole fusion and medley’s Affogato, which swept the judges off their feet.
According to team captain Sravana, the winning formula behind their menu stems from its sheer simplicity which makes use of local staples and ingredients, coupled with its sustainability.
As for Merla Delorie, she said: “As a Seychellois I am already feeling proud, that as such a small island, we have been able to reach this stage of the competition.”
The team left the country on Sunday and arrived in Barcelona on Monday. They brought along with them a whole variety of ingredients including fruits, breadfruit and local spices, to create their menu.
Koko Mango is representing Africa and the Indian Ocean, and is up against Hilton Manchester Deansgate (representing the United Kingdom, Ireland and Israel) and Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona (representing Continental Europe).
The competition is taking place on Thursday November 3.
Taste of Hilton received an overwhelming response to this challenge with a staggering 94 entries from across the region.
The competition is open to luxury, full and focused service properties across Hilton EMEA. Teams are judged based on recipe composition preparation and hygiene, cooking techniques and culinary skills, innovation and creativity, time management, and presentation, among other criteria.
The accompanying photos show the Koko Mango team’s Creole-themed dishes.
Laura Pillay
