Enrico Morselli, Head Chef at Hilton Garden Inn Bahrain Bay, shares exciting snippets from his one-year journey at the property, local inspirations and his signature dish – a smart twist on an Italian classic.

You’re close to completing a year at the Hilton Garden Inn Bahrain Bay. What has been the most exciting thing about this journey?
I would like to begin with New Year’s Eve Buffet, which was the first big event for me in this new role and it was amazing, great atmosphere and beautiful customers. Then, creating the new menu for Together & Co. Restaurant with the help and guidance of our regional team was an achievement.

How have local ingredients and flavours inspired your culinary aesthetic?
As an Italian, I was not used to spices, we only use fresh herbs, so I started to experiment and prepare dishes with different mixes of spices, and I found some of them very interesting, such as black lime to marinate meat and fish or to use in soups and stews.

How would you describe the dining experience at Together & Co.?
The ambience is enjoyed most in daylight with the Bay view. The food is international, some local dishes, Indian, Asian, Italian — a bit of everything to please everyone. My team and I are doing the best to keep all the recipes as authentic as possible for the best dining experience. On another aspect, to give our customers a different dining experience, I implemented the Italian theme night every Thursday, a buffet with a variety of Italian classics and some traditional dishes that are very regional and not very well-known.

Tell us about the creative process behind your signature dish.
My signature dish is the Tortino di Parmigiana, my twist on one of Italy’s famous classics. One day, I had to make a big tray of parmigiana for a special event. As the portions had to be square and perfect, we were required to trim them off. I took all the trimmings, chopped them, put them in mono-portion molds with some parmesan cream in the centre of the mixture, baked them, and served with tomato ragout, a drizzle of parmesan sauce, crispy eggplant skin and fragrant basil oil. ✤