MELCO Dare to Dream | Inspiring budding chefs through culinary arts program

Pierre Marty

Last November, Macau was voted and recognised by UNESCO as a Creative City of Gastronomy for its Macanese culinary legacy of over 400-years-old and emerging prominence as one of Asia’s leading culinary destinations. The Macao SAR government expressed that it has confidence the achievement will heighten awareness for the City’s gastronomical offerings, to help diversify the economy and continue Macau’s development as a unique and sustainable city.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment has announced the latest offering to its signature, local youth development program, Dare to Dream, to be focused on the culinary arts. Being home to the highest number of Michelin-starred dining establishments in all of Macau, it seems fitting for Melco to make this year’s offering all about food. The 2018 chapter of Dare to Dream is offering 18 third year students of the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) studying for a Culinary Arts Management Degree the chance to take part in a half-year culinary internship; which includes 5 and half months with the teams of world-renowned culinary maestros Alain Ducasse and Pierre Hermé at their outlets at Morpheus, City of Dreams, followed by two weeks overseas at the chefs’ eateries in Europe or Asia.

At the programme’s launch event, Chef de Cuisine of Alain Ducasse, Morpheus, Mr. Pierre Marty, and Executive Chef of Pierre Hermé, Morpheus, Mr. Sebastien Bauer, shared their experiences and career tips with the budding chefs, whose entries will be judged via creations produced at a cooking workshop. The winners will be announced in November, with internships set to commence in late January next year.

“We are thrilled to offer our latest Dare to Dream Culinary Program in collaboration with Mr. Alain Ducasse and Mr. Pierre Hermé’s teams, to enable aspiring culinary students in Macau the chance to learn from the masters, both in Macau at the recently-opened Morpheus hotel and overseas”, said Ms. Akiko Takahashi, Executive Vice President, Chief Officer of Human Resources and CSR.

Dare to Dream creates and supports inspiring opportunities for young persons in Macau by providing exposure to renowned world-class maestros of the arts. Launched in 2012, it was conceived to exemplify the vision of Melco’s Chairman and CEO, Mr. Lawrence Ho: to develop young talent in Macau, ignite interest and creativity, and inspire a diverse range career paths in the arts. The program offers exposure and opportunities to learn from the best in various fields, fueling that the “impossible” can be achieved.

The Dare to Dream program has gained international support from iconic creative legends in the fields of architecture, theatre direction and design, music and fashion design; such as through collaborations with the late ‘Queen of the Curve’, architect Dame Zaha Hadid DBE, Mr. Franco Dragone, creative genius behind the award-winning theatrical experience ‘The House of Dancing Water’, Mr. Yundi Li, the internationally-acclaimed pianist, and Mr. Barney Cheng, renowned fashion designer to the celebrities.

This article is sponsored by Melco Resorts & Entertainment