Arriving in Bermuda last March, Costa Rican chef Carlos Meléndez was immediately struck by the number of farms on the island.
The executive chef of The Reefs Resort and Club in Southampton, including its 140-seat flagship restaurant Solaris, said that was a welcome change from previous job postings in The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos.
“Farming in some other islands that I’ve been is a challenge, but Bermuda is totally different,” he said. “Farmers here have good soil, and they are so proud of what they do because they do a really good job farming. We use a lot of the produce that they grow.”
Cardinal Farms, J&J Produce, Bermy Fresh, Wadson’s Farm, Tucker’s Farm, Leo Seymour and Hakuna Matata Fishing supply produce, cheese, fish, seafood and honey to Solaris – integrating a Bermudian flavour into the restaurant’s menus featuring continental cuisine.
Mr Meléndez, whose 20-year-old son Gael attends culinary school in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, and is working hard to create his own culinary legacy, said: “Some of our responsibility, as a chef in a foreign country, is to respect first the local traditions, the local flavours and using locally sourced ingredients is a must!
“We bring our suitcase of flavours on our back, because we know how so many ingredients and preparations taste. When we get to a new place, we integrate all these flavours along with the local cuisine.”
Fresh Bermuda carrots make for a colourful roasted carrot salad, and are also served as a garnish, while sweet Bermuda onions are prepared as onion rings.
Mr Meléndez said: “We keep Bermudian traditions alive, like making the best fish chowder on island.
“If we’re going to do bread pudding, which is a really Bermudian thing, we’re going to do the best pudding and the best sauce to go with it.
“The same happens with cassava pie. The way we respect Bermudian traditions is to make the best possible version of them.”
Fishcakes, meanwhile, are topped by smoked salsa, and shrimp ‘ham’, “to take the delicious Bermudian fishcake to a next level”.
Mr Meléndez said his ‘right hand’, executive sous chef Pablo Cabrera, is “the big guy behind the day-to-day operation” of the Solaris kitchen, which has more than 20 staff, including two teenaged Bermudian apprentices.
He said the creative Mr Cabrera aspires to serve at least 85 per cent local fish and a large variety of seasonal, local ingredients.
The freshness of such fish is important – but Chef Carlos and his team also favour island suppliers for fair trade reasons, while also considering availability and harvesting seasons.
“We believe in fair trade. If we support the community by sourcing locally and we pay fair prices to the fishermen and farmers they can have good support and a healthy business, while we are always keeping in mind the business case.
“Fresh fish is something that people look for and we know that. We can achieve the best results with local fresh fish while also making sure that our guests know that we are making efforts to support the community too.”
Mr Meléndez said he enjoys the creative process that puts food on the table.
“I enjoy flavours and textures, and I enjoy working with the chefs that are part of the team here because they’re from all over the world, and they all have different flavours, different points of view about food, and different presentations.”
Mr Meléndez said entrees at Solaris arrive to the table whole.
“Our dishes come with the sauce, with the garnish, with the presentation. For us, every dish is unique. Every dish is a concept. All the flavours complement each other.”
Solaris serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, brunch on Sundays, and hosts a beach BBQ on Thursdays.
