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Chef News

In St. Lucia, London-based                  

chef Orlando Satchell is helping                

to put the Dasheen restaurant            

at the top of the list             

 

 

        Orlando Satchell was born to West Indian parents in Birmingham, England. Most of his adolescent life was spent in England, except for a five-year period spent in his mother’s homeland of Jamaica. Those five years were to influence the rest of his life. His brief exposure to the Caribbean fascinated Satchell, so it is not surprising that when he chose to become a chef later in life, he focused his attention on mastering the art of Caribbean cuisine.

            Graduating from culinary school in England, he spent some years apprenticing in various hotels, specialising in banquet catering. After working his way up through the ranks, Satchell was offered the opportunity to help establish the very first West Indian restaurant in Singapore. Having successfully accomplished this, he soon found himself heading towards America.

            It was in Miami that Satchell would hone his skills in Caribbean cuisine - an invaluable preparation for his current post as part-time executive chef at St. Lucia’s renowned Dasheen Restaurant. The restaurant, located at one of the island’s most acclaimed resorts, the Ladera, gave Satchell the forum he needed to expose his talent. Backed by a team of friendly and professional staff, he soon had put Dasheen at the top of the island’s “hottest tables” list.

            “My duties were to train the staff at Dasheen and help create a truly unique culinary experience,” Satchell explains. “The rest of the year, I had time to concentrate on my other business in London.” When he is not busy in St. Lucia, he lives in England with his wife and two children, and working as a consultant chef for other upscale hotels and restaurants.

            No stranger to television exposure, Satchell has appeared on networks in countries such as Canada, where he was featured during a daytime series, and most recently, on channel Four’s Light Lunch and the BBC’s Good Food Show in England. In February of this year, he was a guest chef at one of the world’s most prestigious culinary events, the James Beard Foundation Annual Awards in New York. His tables were among the first to be completely sold out. Satchell is the only St. Lucian-based chef to have achieved such an honour. “The experience of just being there with some of the top chefs around the world was wonderful, and to profile Caribbean cuisine at that level was indescribable,” he enthuses. One guest who had the good fortune to get a sitting for Satchell’s presentation described the dining experience as “simply heavenly”.

            When Island Life caught up with Satchell, he was busy planning St. Lucia’s very first culinary week, due to launch in May 2003. “The idea is to bring guests around the island and allow them to experience a variety of Caribbean lifestyles and flavours,” he says. “The whole aim of my concept is to bring Caribbean cuisine to an international level and recognition.”

            For Satchell, flavours and presentation are the key ingredients for success in his kitchen. Coming from mixed cultures, he sees the opportunity for fusion in every aspect of Caribbean cuisine. There is little room for error in his kitchen. “Sometimes my staff find I am tough on them, but what we must constantly bear in mind is that Ladera attracts very prominent guests, which gives us the opportunity to really bring out the cuisine and shine; so we need to give our very best all the time.”

            Working at Dasheen has given him the opportunity to do exactly that. “It’s not just about the ingredients, but about what you do with the ingredients, and how the final product tastes and is presented. This is why we spend quite a bit of time and resources developing the flavours that come out in our cuisine,” he says.

            He also wants people to experience the romance in Caribbean cuisine, the courtship of so many flavours, something he refers to as “sexy cuisine”. Satchell explains, “I call it that because it is important to make the food as attractive and tasty as possible for those who may have never been exposed to it before.” His “sexy cuisine” is certainly attracting a great deal of attention, since he will soon be packing his bags to join the Windjammer Cruises, where he will be appearing as the Celebrity Chef.

            When asked about his demanding and unusual lifestyle, Satchell replies, “Although many might think this is an ideal lifestyle, it is also difficult, because I have a love affair with my wife and a love affair with my kitchen, a difficult balance to keep.” However, he emphasises, his success so far would not have been possible without the support of his family.

            Satchell showed off his incredible skill by inviting Island Life to sample the following mouth-watering treats.

            First on the menu was an incredible rainbow soup with three distinct varieties of flavours, coconut christophene, ginger pumpkin and spicy calaloo, a journey that takes you from refreshingly mild to playfully hot all in one mouthful. A Soufrière Jangas Salad followed. Grilled shrimps with a gentle hint of lime jerk seasoning, cleverly presented in a plantain basket, with a side serving of saltfish and cucumber salsa brought out a variety of flavours that lingered an the palate.

            Cocoa Lamb garnished with balls of christophene and pumpkin was the first main course presented. This unexpected dish prepared with pure cocoa was both unusual and delightful. Accenting this was a stalk of deep-fried plantain stuffed with christophene and green papaya gratin. Also prepared was Lobster in a Cream of Jerk Sauce, garnished with deep-fried crispy spinach and served on a bed of breadfruit mash. To finish off,  a fusion of rum banana, ginger papaya and mint chocolate crème brulées sealed the gastronomic experience.

            It’s no wonder that Satchell is considered one of the hottest chefs in St. Lucia.

 

 

 

Written by Cathy Walker for Island Life magazine

(No. 20, Issue 2, 2003)