Alshaya Restaurants Scoop 18 Culinary Awards at HORECA

Restaurants operated by M.H. Alshaya Co. – including Asha’s, Dean & Deluca, IHOP and Bouchon Bakery – helped themselves to 18 awards at Kuwait’s leading food and beverage competition, Hotel, Restaurant and Catering Awards (HORECA), last week.

Asha’s signature flair won them one gold, two silver and five bronze medals in the Asian and Mystery Basket categories, while first-time entrants IHOP won a gold medal in fresh pasta category. Dean & Deluca collected silver in the traditional Kuwaiti dish category, along with four bronze medals. Presenting an array of freshly baked goods, first-time participants Bouchon Bakery won four bronze medals in various categories, including bread creation, morning goods, best eclairs and themed celebration cake. 

In all, more than 300 chefs from some of Kuwait’s best-known restaurants participated across 17 categories. They were judged by a jury comprising 12 international cooking experts, including Head of the World Association of Chef Societies (WACS) Chef Thomas Gugler, former Le Notre’s head chef Samaan Hilal (the head of the largest culinary and restaurants advisory company in the region), TV cooking show presenter Chef Maroun Chedid, and the ambassador of the French Academy in the Middle East, Chef Charles Azar.

“The awards are a testimony to our teams’ passion and commitment to culinary excellence, and their dedication to providing a memorable dining experience to our guests,” said Ian Toal, President of Alshaya’s Food Division. “Awards like these are also testimony to our commitment to promoting the advancement of the culinary arts and the development of culinary professionals in the industry.”

Alshaya offers customers a choice of more than 25 food brands across the Middle East – including Starbucks, The Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang’s, Shake Shack, IHOP, Babel, Pizza Express, Bouchon Bakery, Katsuya, and 400 Gradi.