Hotel Okura Amsterdam Opens ‘Taste of Okura’ Culinary Center

Tuesday, 06 October 2009 08:54

In a new cooking studio, guests can prepare the Okura's chefs' dishes, while the sommeliers explain how to pair wine and sake with the food.

Amsterdam, October 2009 - In December 2009, Hotel Okura Amsterdam will be celebrating the festive opening of ‘Taste of Okura', a culinary center where people can learn how to prepare the Okura's chefs' dishes themselves. In addition, the sommeliers will explain how to pair wine and sake with the food. Workshops held there will be based on the recipes of the Okura's chefs. ‘Taste of Okura' is situated on the hotel's lowest floor and provided with the latest high-tech Miele equipment. In addition to a kitchen, the culinary center also has a Wine Room, a shop and a trendy lounge where the self-made food can be enjoyed.

Tjeerd Blom, formerly of restaurants Greetje (Amsterdam), Aujourd'hui and Christophe, has been recruited specially for the new center. Under his supervision, guests can participate in various gastronomic sessions. "Cooking and top chefs are hot topics at the moment. People want to cook more professionally and with greater variety at home. I am excited to be able to share the knowledge and techniques of the Okura's chefs with our guests in this way."

As a result of the culinary diversity within Hotel Okura Amsterdam, workshops will be organised for Japanese (traditional and teppanyaki) and French as well as internationally oriented cuisine. In addition, the workshops will be held at different levels of proficiency, including sessions for amateur, semi-professional and professional chefs.
The hotel's sommeliers will be responsible for the wine and sake tastings held in the Wine Room, where participants can among other things learn more about tasting wines and paring wines and food.

The culinary center can also be hired exclusively for use by groups, in which case specially tailored workshops will be held. In addition, on a regular basis cooking workshops will be organised, for which people can sign up individually through the hotel's website. The center can also be reserved for business meetings or parties.

About the Restaurants of Hotel Okura Amsterdam
Hotel Okura Amsterdam has four restaurants. The traditional Japanese specialty restaurant Yamazato has been the proud holder of a Michelin star since 2002. The French Ciel Bleu Restaurant has been the holder of two Michelin stars since 2007. Le Camelia Brasserie has been awarded a Bib Gourmand. Teppanyaki Restaurant Sazanka recently published the first Dutch-language book of teppanyaki recipes.

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For additional information and/or visual materials please contact:

Tamara Tong Sang / Public Relations Manager
T: 020 - 67 87 487
E: tongsang@okura.nl, W: www.okura.nl