This April, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts will mark the global roll-out of its culinary sustainability initiative, Rooted in Nature, by hosting a month-long celebration of the group’s most exceptional food purveyors.
From small farms in the Maldives to fishing villages in Malaysia, the hotels will recognise the farmers, fisherman and ranchers that make dining at Shangri-La not only delicious but also sustainable.
Special Rooted in Nature events and promotions taking place at all Shangri-La and Kerry hotels will highlight sustainable sources of produce, fish, and meat that can be found on the hotels’ menus year-round and celebrate the purveyors who responsibly steward the land and sea to provide Shangri-La chefs with the best possible ingredients. Dishes on offer will include produce and herbs grown on hotel grounds, locally-sourced organic vegetables and fruits, line-caught fish, free range poultry and beef, honey from a hotel’s own beehive, and more.
On the island of Borneo in Malaysia, diners at Shangri-La’s Rasa Ria Resort and Spa can enjoy oyster mushrooms grown by the visually-impaired residents of the Wallace Shelter in nearby Tuaran. The locally-grown mushrooms will be served at the resort’s Coffee Terrace Restaurant.
In the bustling capital city of the Philippines, Meliomar Inc. provides the chefs of Makati Shangri-La, Manila with yellowfin tuna fished in accordance to marine council-certified guidelines. Meliomar works directly with community-based coastal fisheries representing over 3,000 fishermen who have a combined total of 1,000 small fishing boats. The sustainably-fished tuna can be enjoyed by diners at Circles Event Cafe in the kilawin tuna with crackling pork, the tuna tataki with palm heart salad and the tuna sushi and sashimi.
In the home of the terracotta warriors in China, Shangri-La Hotel, Xian buys directly from apple farmers in Chunhua County, the first certified GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) county in China. The mountainous region has ideal growing conditions for apples, but the area’s remoteness makes it difficult for the farmers to find markets for their exceptional fruit. By purchasing directly from small family farms, the hotel’s pastry chef ensures that he has the best apples for his apple strudel and French apple tartlets served at Yi Café.
Shangri-La Hotel, Toronto celebrates Canadian products throughout the menu of its standout restaurant Bosk. Chef Damon Campbell’s signature creation, the caviar doughnut, uses Northern Divine Caviar which is produced by a Western Canadian fishery and is recognised as sustainable by the Ocean Wise Programme. It is the first certified organic caviar produced in Canada and the only in the world that is certified to not contain added hormones, antibiotics, pesticides or GMO’s.
In the idyllic islands of the Addu Atoll, chefs at Shangri-La’s Villingili Resort & Spa, Maldives worked with farmers on neighbouring Meedhoo Island to create a farmer’s cooperative. As the first luxury resort on the southern atoll, Shangri-La wanted to create a sustainable local source of produce for the hotel’s restaurants. During April, diners at Fashala Restaurant will be able to enjoy a chef’s degustation menu featuring melons, basil, and tomatoes grown by the cooperative and in the resort’s own garden, alongside Maldivian lobsters caught by local fisherman and sold directly to the resort at its own jetty.
While organic farming may not be the first thing that springs to mind when thinking of Hong Kong, the chefs of Kowloon Shangri-La, Hong Kong and Island Shangri-La, Hong Kong have found a local source of organic produce for the hotel kitchens. Chefs from both hotels work with 616 Farm, an organic farm in the New Territories certified by the Hong Kong Organic Resource Centre, which supplies a variety of vegetables including radishes, bok choy, beetroot, celery and tomatoes for Shangri-La restaurants throughout the year. Dishes featuring 616 Farm produce can be enjoyed at cafe TOO’s fresh salad station at Island Shangri-La and at Café Kool at Kowloon Shangri-La.