The Doha-based airline is official co-host of the festival.
The Qatar Airways Cooking Theatre will take place at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) Park along with expanded activities and new attractions scheduled at the satellite venues in The Pearl-Qatar and Katara – the Cultural Village, from today until March 28.
Headlining the gastronomic experience are internationally acclaimed celebrities such as global lifestyle personality Martha Stewart; restaurateur and MasterChef Australia judge George Calombaris; Qatar Airways ambassador and multiple-award-winning chef Vineet Bhatia, and chef Massimo Capra, partner of Qatar Duty Free’s Soprafino Restaurant at Hamad International Airport (HIA).
Stewart will open the Qatar Airways Cooking Theatre at 5pm today, cooking four nutritious recipes live on the festival’s main stage at MIA Park. America’s most famous homemaker will cook a healthy menu featuring fresh salads and side dishes and her take on an energising booster juice.
Several Michelin star-rated talents will also be creating in the stage kitchen’s at MIA Park, Katara and The Pearl-Qatar: Japan’s Tagaki Kazuo; Magno Brasserie’s Paul Bentley joins the line-up from Mexico; Tim Butler of Eat Me Restaurant Bangkok fame; and Spanish pastry chef Jesús Escalera, who is known for his work at El Bulli and The Fat Duck.
The Qatar Airways Cooking Theatre’s line-up also includes ‘Queen of Qatari cuisine’ chef Aisha; Francisco Ruano, owner of one of the top five restaurants in Mexico and former chef at world-famous Noma Restaurant; and a number of chefs from the Arabic food channel Fatafeat, such as Daad Abu Jaber, Salma Soleiman, Mohamed Orfali and Wafa al-Kandari. Fatafeat chefs will be presented by Darine al-Khatib.
HIA, partner of FC Bayern Munich, has secured the football club’s head chef Alfons Schuhbeck to participate in the Qatar Airways Cooking Theatre, giving fans the opportunity to explore the favourite dishes enjoyed by the popular European team’s players.
Salam al-Shawa, Qatar Airways senior vice-president (marketing and corporate communications), said: ‘It is a great pleasure for Qatar Airways to welcome these extraordinary talents to Doha. The Qatar Airways Cooking Theatre at this year’s festival has an exciting line-up of stellar international chefs, whose unique creations will take guests on a globe-trotting journey to taste delectable cuisines from every corner of the world.’
