Fusion food is on its way out as restaurants worldwide focus on foods dedicated to one theme.
International style restaurants in particular are gradually losing favour as diners become more specific in their requests, whether for Italian, Mexican, vegetarian or a steakhouse.
“While there is still a market for fusion food, people are becoming more educated about what they want,” commented Theo Randall from Theo Randall at The Intercontinental Park Lane London.
Opening his first restaurant at The InterContinental Park Lane after working at The River Café for 10 years, chef Theo serves Italian cuisine, working directly with Italian suppliers.
“Italian food makes a lot of sense, it is a very logical cuisine and it is amazing at how diverse it is from region to region, so for a chef it is always interesting; but always Italian,” added chef Theo.
In the Middle East, Bice at the Hilton Abu Dhabi prides itself on its authentic Italian offering, serving dishes including bresaola with arugula and marinated artichokes, pepper sesame crusted blue fin tuna with roasted potato and sautéed sweet bell pepper, and dry linguine with pesto Genovese, feta cheese and fresh tomato.
Working closely with niche suppliers, including Classic Fine Foods and Middle East Trading, Bice Abu Dhabi also offers diners more than 32 olive oils as part of its olive oil trolley, and a selection of Italian cheeses that rotates every seven to 10 days.
“People think Italian cheese is just Parmesan, but there are more than 4200 Italian cheeses from all over Italy,” commented Luciano Gandolfo, Bice chef, Bice at the Hilton Abu Dhabi.
In Dubai, a number of new restaurants have opened offering food dedicated to one theme, including Magnolia at Talise Spa. Part of the Madinat Jumeirah, it is a fine dining vegetarian restaurant dedicated to healthy eating, with the majority of ingredients sourced from organic producers.
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