Portfolio
A selection of some of my work, both written and broadcast, which I will continuously update. For an extremely intensive look at my work, click here.
Dough domination: Pitfire Pizza co-founders
Spinneys 05/06/2023
Michele and Bill Johnson are coming up to a decade of serving some of Dubai’s best-loved pizzas with Pitfire Pizza. In a free-wheeling conversation, they discuss all things dough, high-quality ingredients and new launches.
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Nothing dirty about ice cream, with Ambeth Ocampo
Nourish by Spinneys podcast 28/02/2023
This week, co-host Devina Divecha sits down with food historian Ambeth Ocampo, who has been exploring Filipino art, culture, and food going back to the 19th century. This is one for the history & culture lovers, as Ambeth shares nuggets from his extensive research, including about a national hero of the Philippines, Jose Rizal, and his work that spans 35 books and an on-going bi-weekly editorial column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
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In 2022, I thought a lot about how to live alongside a cat
ithoughtaboutthatalot.com 03/12/2022
“The night my ex (temporarily) migrated to another country, I dropped him off at the airport and I drove home with a disoriented 5-month-old kitten. I joke that I switched one male out for another that night.”
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Hospitality development in Saudi Arabia surges ahead
Hospitality Investor 08/06/2021
Keen to make a mark on the global tourism stage, Saudi Arabia has opened the country to international tourists and is working towards its goal of 100 million visitors annually by 2030 – part of the country’s Vision 2030 programme. Buoyed by the government’s support in developing giga-projects and tourism destinations, hotel and tourism companies have flocked to the market.
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Calling The Shots: Serial Entrepreneur Gbemi Giwa On Doubling Down In The Face Of Challenges
Entrepreneur Middle East 28/09/2020
Gbemi Giwa looks at me straight in the eye, and says: "Can I be brutally honest?" And that is how my freewheeling conversation about entrepreneurship with the 26-year-old began in the café at StudioRepublik, where DanceBodyDXB, a brand she co-founded, offers choreography classes.
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10 innovations spearheaded by the regional hospitality industry
HotelierMiddleEast.com 24/03/2019
The hospitality industry needs to innovate constantly in the pursuit of keeping its guests, colleagues and owners happy - while also hitting revenue targets. So in this feature, we take a look at a number of different initiatives in the regional hospitality and food & beverage industry that shows the resilience and innovation championed by hoteliers and restaurateurs – ranging from HR initiatives through to community engagement, and from engineering systems to investment decisions.
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Interview: SBE CEO Sam Nazarian
Hotelier Middle East 08/04/2019
In an exclusive interview with Hotelier Middle East, sbe founder and CEO Sam Nazarian talks about the debut of SLS in the Middle East, the importance of food & beverage in lifestyle hotels and what is on the horizon
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Feature: Where is the Middle East’s mid-market pipeline?
HOTELSmag 08/11/2018
Largely known for its 5-star and luxury hotel offering, the Middle East has slowly but surely been waking up to the mid-market trend. But will this segment dominate supply eventually?
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VIDEO: Inside Jumeirah Group's new brand, Zabeel House by Jumeirah
Hotelier Middle East 05/06/2018
Hotelier Middle East tours Zabeel House Mini by Jumeirah, located in Dubai's Al Seef, with area general manager Alessandro Cabella.
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Interview: Akmal Anuar
Caterer Middle East 01/04/2018
By all accounts, unless you have deep pockets or an investor who has them, opening one’s own restaurant can be challenging. So when a chef or restaurateur makes it in a tough market, it’s hard not to applaud their success. Akmal Anuar, the chef and founder of 3 Fils restaurant in Dubai, is a chef-preneur who has seen the lows and highs of running his own restaurant.
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Interview: Edition Hotels' Dan Flannery
Hotelier Middle East 01/10/2017
The first thing you notice about Dan Flannery, the senior vice president and managing director of Edition Hotels, is how he towers over you. And then it’s his infectious grin and easy-going nature. The unassuming hotelier joined Marriott in 1981 at the age of 18, at the opening of the original Gaithersburg Marriott. And from bussing tables in one restaurant and waiting tables in the other, he’s now grown to helm the operator’s luxury boutique brand, Edition Hotels.
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Interview: Virgilio Martínez
Caterer Middle East 01/04/2017
Peruvian cuisine has been in the global spotlight for a few years now, and Dubai has been no different. At 2016’s Caterer Middle East Food & Business Conference, it was predicted that no less than 14 Peruvian concepts would be open by the end of the year. It’s in the shadow of this Peruvian emergence that celebrated chef Virgilio Martínez opened his first restaurant in the Middle East, with Lima Dubai in City Walk Dubai.