CGH Earth Experiences, Kerala’s pre-eminent hotel company has earned global acclaim for its core values etched in responsible luxury seeped in hyper-local experiences. These values are strictly and religiously followed in its F&B offerings as well. Chef Saiju Thomas, corporate chef of the hotel group, shares those values.
When CGH Earth group introduced 50-mile diet in its Spice Village property in Thekkady in Kerala a decade ago, it evoked rave reviews as it was a trend-setting decision which made the culinary world to think of the negative impact of the carbon footprint that the industry is generating in the process of creating culinary delight for guests by importing and procuring ingredients from distant places. The saga started from Thekkady and continued despite the group expanding its reach and footprint beyond the borders of the state, the core values are still held sacrosanct across the network.
“Only indispensable ingredients are procured from outside even today. We have our core values which celebrate local, seasonal and fresh ingredients. We are super local in our approach to food,” said Saiju Thomas, corporate chef of CGH Earth Experiences in an exclusive chat with HospitalityBiz India. Organic gardens are an integral part of every group property today, he added.
Associated with the group for nearly 15 years, Thomas said that the focus has always been in procuring the right seasonal produce locally and serving pure homely food to the guests cooked in the traditional way.
“If a recipe is spicy, we serve it in that way only. We don’t tweak or alter the recipe. Rather we try to explain the ingredients and the cultural roots of that cuisine,”
The hyper localisation of food helps Thomas and his team of chefs to offer “differentiated experiences” to guests staying with the group properties within Kerala itself.
“At CGH properties we break down the whole Kerala culinary story into different community stories that represent that destination,” chef Thomas said. When guests travel with the group and stay in its network properties, be it Kochi,Thekkady, Kumarakom, Marari or Aymanam, they get to taste the food of the place they stay and the community around it.
“For instance, at our Aymanam resort, guests get to taste authentic recipes of the Syrian X-ian community around it,” he said, adding, “Each property has its signature dish. The signature dish at Brunton Boatyard will be different from the signature dishes of Marari Beach Resort,” chef Thomas said.
He said that they follow and practice the cause of “conscious food” where selection of ingredients is quite important. While guests in a vacation mood tend to “splurge” in every way, it is critical for the chefs to be conscious about the food they offer. “We don’t allow the integrity of the ingredients to be lost in the process of cooking. We don’t deep fry nor we caramelize vegetables. We don’t use artificial colours, taste makers or synthetic vinegars. There are strict guidelines for storage of ingredients,” the chef said.
At ‘Prakriti Shakti’, a yoga retreat brand of CGH Earth, they follow the principles of naturopathy and therefore guests are by and large served with raw food over cooked food. “We are in the process of incorporating those concepts into other properties slowly and gradually,” he informed.
