A tete-a-tete with Antonio
Tardi, Executive Chef at Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru
Antonio Tardi, Executive Chef at Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru brings over two decades of culinary
experience in five-star hotels and luxury hotels. He believes that hard
work and dedication throughout his career has been the mantra for all the
success he has achieved.
A
native of Napoli, Italy, Chef Tardi honed his culinary skills at the
prestigious L. De Medici, Ottaviano, Napoli and holds a certification on food
service management from Cornell. Chef Tardi has also been an honorary inductee
for Italian Cuisine Master Chef (ICMC), Barilla Academy, Italy (2013) and for
Master Chef, World Gourmet Summit, Las Vegas Nevada (2006).
Chef Antonio Tardi in an interview, spoke about his experience with
Shangri-La Hotels, his style of cooking, what the food aficionados of Bangalore can expect from his kitchen,
his experience of working with renowned master chefs and an inspirational
message to all the budding chefs and amateur cooks.
Q) How long you have been
working with Shangri-La Hotels? How has the experience been so far?
The
journey started in 2010 when I joined Shangri-La Taipei in Taiwan, following
which I moved to China and finally, in 2014, I joined as a part of the
pre-opening team of Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru. While working with Shangri-La
I have experienced numerous cultures and it brings in a dynamic and powerful
perspective in my culinary journey.
Q) Everyone has their
idol/inspiration in life. Who is yours?
My
father Giusseppe is my inspiration. He introduced me to the real culinary world
and also gave me a lot of good advice which made me the person I am.
Q) What is your style of
cooking? Which is your signature dish?
I am a strong believer
of nature and my cooking style varies according to nature’s cycle. I belong to
a farmer family in Italy, and since my childhood, I have been very close to my
Grandfather’s land in the lovely Naples country side. Because of that, I prefer
to pick seasonal ingredients for my recipes. My culinary style is traditional,
yet modern. I love to cook fresh seafood & seasonal vegetables, so I just
need a few ingredients to make something dream-like.
Q) Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru
is the group’s first property in south of India and the expectations of food
enthusiasts will be riding high. Do you think this adds more responsibility and
challenge on your able shoulders?
Yes of course. But at
the same time I do not encourage imitating what others are already doing in the
market. As said before, my focus is to incorporate primarily local produce in
my menus. And I am sure the hard work and research that we have done in the
last 2 years to develop the largest F&B in south India will pay off soon.
At the same time it is a huge responsibility on us to deliver the right product
with consistency and it’s a challenging project but at the same time challenges
motivate one to deliver and achieve the goal. Ultimately my team and I are
committed towards that.
Q) What can the food
aficionados of Bangalore expect from the kitchen of Chef Tardi?
“You name it and you
get it here” is the name of the game. We have the largest culinary team at
Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru representing 7 different nationalities and food
cultures. Our offerings are wide in terms of cuisines which include authentic
Indian, Italian, Mediterranean, Japanese, Chinese, a host of vegetarian options
across the menus and, needless to say, a collection of the finest pastry
products. It’s not only about serving various cuisines but also about creating
memories & experiences which guests can take home and linger over even long
after their meal.
Q) Please take us through your
kitchen at Shangri-La, Bengaluru? The ambience, the chefs, ingredients and
other things…
As mentioned, we have the
largest number of F&B outlet with 8 different restaurants along with 02
floors of banquet facilities with a total of 12 kitchens, each with an individual
restaurant. The latest technology is used in these kitchens, and so far, this
is the best project I have been with. I am not following any specific trend, the
goal is to set the trend. At Shangri-La Hotel, Bengaluru, the cuisines are
healthy and simple, with modern presentations following the respect of the
products and their seasonality.
Q) You had the privilege of
working under various renowned chefs, including Chef Gualtiero Marchesi, Chef
Davide Oldani and Chef Jean-Louis Nomicos. What was the experience like with
each one of them?
Well actually, it was a
privilege to work with these master chefs that made me a better professional
chef. I would also like to introduce here my Grandma and Mom as my chef mentors
who brought the real flavour in me and is still alive.
Q) In 2005 you moved to
Caribbean. How did it add flavour to your professional life? What are the new
things that you learned there and have incorporated in your kitchen & life
ever since?
Caribbean was the
turning point in my life because there I encountered Monique, the mother of my
beautiful children.
Caribbean inspired me
with its Mediterranean and Caribbean influences which made my life hot and
spicy!
Q) Here in India, people love
Italian, French and other cuisines. Do you think Indian food is accepted and
loved in other countries? Which is your favourite Indian cuisine (if any)?
I absolutely agree on
that. Indian cuisine is gaining popularity everywhere in the world, and India
has given the world some of the best chefs who have also received the Oscar of the
culinary world, ‘The Michelin’, like Chef Atul Kochar, Chef Vineet Bhatia, Chef
Gagan.
My favourite Indian
cuisine is the Mangalorean cuisine made with fresh seafood.
For me, Food is not
only a substance which gives nutrition to the body. I believe food is the key
to open your senses.
Q) You bring over two decades
of culinary experience in five-star hotels and luxury hotels. What has been your
success mantra? Any message for budding chefs and amateur cooks?
My success mantra
includes hard work and dedication throughout my career. Respect to the people who
I work with. Humbleness is the key in hospitality industry. Last but not the
least, I never under estimate anybody around me.
For budding chefs I
would suggest to go back to the basics and build up the fundamental experience
before starting to fly high.
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