“ If tomorrow I have to stop doIng thIs , I would love to go back to beIng a corporate chef . but I would not mInd beIng a chef de cuIsIne . that ’ s the beauty of beIng a chef , as long as you have passIon for your guests .” laugh . The biggest issue , and the most important one for someone who oversees the kitchens of a hotel that Condé-Nast Traveler named the best hotel in the world in 2011 , is safety , particularly in a country where scandals and fatalities around tainted , outdated and outright fake foods have made international news . “ Fifty percent of my job is finding the right supplier ,” he says . But in a city that has amazed him with its progressive moves to cut pollution and energy consumption — he says you have to be careful on the street because you can ’ t hear the electric cars coming — he sees progress on the food front , as well .
Special RepoRt : Change Makers
“ If tomorrow I have to stop doIng thIs , I would love to go back to beIng a corporate chef . but I would not mInd beIng a chef de cuIsIne . that ’ s the beauty of beIng a chef , as long as you have passIon for your guests .” laugh . The biggest issue , and the most important one for someone who oversees the kitchens of a hotel that Condé-Nast Traveler named the best hotel in the world in 2011 , is safety , particularly in a country where scandals and fatalities around tainted , outdated and outright fake foods have made international news . “ Fifty percent of my job is finding the right supplier ,” he says . But in a city that has amazed him with its progressive moves to cut pollution and energy consumption — he says you have to be careful on the street because you can ’ t hear the electric cars coming — he sees progress on the food front , as well .
A close second for Gamba is how it all tastes , and for that his mastery of French
Chef Sandro gamba has adjusted to the frenetic pace of Shanghai and his new home , The ritz-Carlton , Shanghai . and diverse cuisines comes into play as he manages four restaurants that serve Italian , Malaysian , Japanese and other specialties . He relishes his role as ambassador of the hotel rather than as a star chef .
He sees stars elsewhere : Michelin stars , to be exact . The restaurant guide is making its first visits to China this year , and Gamba wants to be ready . More than menu refinement , it ’ s about training his staff and evolving the culture to pursue a prestigious but still little-known award .
In the meantime , he continues to feed the Chinese customer ’ s enthusiasm for social media : Customers will be able to scan codes next to menu items in the Italian restaurant , Scena , and watch videos of dishes being prepared . It helps that Samba is comfortable around a camera , a passion that he says helps determine his career . “ When I want to take a new job , I always ask , what will it do for me as a chef and as a photographer ?"
Those twin pursuits have led him around the world . “ Before I go to work in a country , I go there to live . That ’ s very important to how I conduct my career . I live here ,” he says of Shanghai . “ I ’ m going to make friends , be in a relationship , go back to my roots . But in a Chinese way .”
HiS rOLES : He has spent time in the kitchen as a sous-chef , chef de partie and worldwide executive chef ; as a consultant and as an F & B director , developing culinary programs for international hotels
HiS gOaL : Earn a Michelin star – or two – for ritz-Carlton Shanghai Pudong ’ s restaurants
HiS aLTErnaTivE : a small place of his own . “ But not fine dining . i would have a restaurant close to a market . i buy everything i need , i know where it ’ s coming from , i know the story . That for me is the best food .”
www . hotelsmag . com April 2016 HOTELS 53