Chef Eugenio Vilafana
Nicole Bursey, Transat Tours Canada; Penny Martin, The Travel Agent Next Door; Sue Webb, VoX International
Teresa Pereira, Air Canada Vacations; Sue Webb, VoX International; Carolina Bellina, Occidental Hotels & Resorts; Dina Bertolo, Air Canada Vacations
Chef Vilafana's 'Tomatofest'
"Respect the ingredients. Work with the heart.”
That’s the culinary advice of Occidental Royal Hideaway Playacar Executive Chef Eugenio Vilafãna. But it could just as well be a recipe for life.
On a recent visit to Toronto, Chef Vilafãna demonstrated the passion he brings to pleasuring palates at the 200 room luxury property that is a member of Leading Hotels of the World, the Ensemble Hotel & Resort Collection and a Virtuoso preferred property.
Mexico’s all-inclusive resort cuisine has become very impressive in recent years, and Open Jaw has been wowed by the quality, sophistication and presentation of cuisine at other Occidental properties including Occidental Grand Nuevo Vallarta and Occidental Grand Xcaret.
At the 5 star Royal Hideaway Playacar, Chef Vilafãna has the budget to take things to another level – and 6 restaurants to play with - all of them á la carte. With a CV that includes time at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa and England’s Michelin-starred Waterside Inn, he’s clearly got the chops, but it’s his passion for great ingredients and local sourcing that really stands out.
Chef Vilafãna says 85% of ingredients in his cuisine are locally sourced and 95% of the food served at Royal Hideaway Playacar is cooked from scratch. Considering the diversity of the dishes served at the property, those are amazing numbers.
The Chef loves to feature indigenous foods from Mexico, including tomatoes, corn, cactus, vanilla and chocolate. A dish he called ‘Tomatofest’ was an amazing tribute to the fruit, using several different varieties and techniques including dehydrating, roasting and foaming to wring out more flavour than would seem possible.
The Occidental event was held in an attractive show kitchen/event room at One King West. Among the hosts were Carolina Bellina, the D.R.-based Occidental executive who oversees sales and marketing efforts in Canada, and Susan Webb, whose company VoX Travel Marketing has represented Occidental Hotels in Canada for 12 years. Occidental was Webb’s first client at VoX, and her passion for the product was illustrated by her attendance on the same day as having surgery on both wrists.
Webb described some of the luxury details that elevate the Royal Hideaway Playacar, like being greeted upon 1st entering your room with a drawn bath full of bubbles and rose petals. Or simply planting a flag in the sand by your beach lounger to signal a thirst.
“It’s a very special place and it’s the service and the cuisine that people remember and return for,” Webb said.
My guess is that the Chef’s Table Dining Experience, offered each night by Chef Vilafãna and his team – and one of the few things that comes with additional charge at Royal Hideaway Playacar – would be a meal to remember, and worth every penny.
