Companies, hotels and resorts across the industry, including Atlantic Hospitality and Cape Resorts, have hired or promoted F&B leaders.
Atlantic Hospitality
Maine-based hotel investment, management and design company Atlantic Hospitality appoints Joe Schafer as culinary director. Schafer will bring over two decades of restaurant industry experience to his new role, leading the food and beverage programs across the company’s collection of hotels, restaurants and hospitality ventures. This includes The Asticou along with The Dunes, The Claremont, The Lincoln, The Wanderer, Salt Cottages and Sandy Pines.
With a focus on quality, creativity and guest satisfaction, Schafer will work closely with chefs, general managers and F&B teams to ensure consistency and innovation throughout the portfolio. Before joining Atlantic Hospitality, he played an integral role at Kennebunkport Resort Collection, where he advanced from executive chef of Earth at Hidden Pond to overseeing eight distinct restaurant concepts. His leadership experience also includes time at renowned Relais & Châteaux properties such as Blantyre in Massachusetts, The Lodge at Glendorn in Pennsylvania and The White Barn Inn in Maine.
Bahia Hotel & Beach House
Bahia Hotel & Beach House, a Preferred Hotels & Resorts Lifestyle Collection member located in Cabo San Lucas, appoints chef Mariano Takinami as executive chef of Bahia’s signature restaurants: Bar Esquina and SUR Beach House.
Mariano brings more than two decades of experience across five countries and multiple kitchens. A corporate executive chef, he’s held leadership roles at Belmond Hotels in Peru and Thailand, served as general director for Sabor a Madera Restaurant Group, where Carbon Cabron and Nao both earned Michelin Guide recommendations under his direction, and served as general manager of Napasai in Koh Samui, Thailand—earning industry-leading guest satisfaction rankings and international acclaim. He’s also helmed the kitchens at Cabo spots like Toro Latin Kitchen by Richard Sandoval and Templo Grill Wok Bar.
Cape Resorts
Cape Resorts makes three key F&B leadership appointments.
Alysha Siddiqui joins chef Todd Ruiz at The Pridwin Hotel & Cottages, taking on the role of chef de cuisine at The Terrace restaurant. With a background in kitchens such as Prune, Rolo’s, Colonie and Frenchette, she has been drawn to a New American sub-genre defined by a respect for beloved classics, accented by nostalgic international influences.
Ronald Johnston transitions from his previous role as director of food and beverage at Cape Resorts to general manager of Baron’s Cove in Sag Harbor, New York. With experience leading food and beverage programs for some of the largest hospitality groups in New York City and Long Island, he has developed expertise in optimizing operations, enhancing guest experiences, and leading high-performing teams.
Bobby Will assumes the role of executive chef at Beach Plum Farm in Cape May, N.J., bringing a background that has led to him earning an “Excellent” rating from The New York Times, being named one of 12 “Millennial Chefs Changing the Face of the Industry” by Thrillist.com, and winning Guy’s Grocery Games on the Food Network.
La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club
La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club appoints executive chef Ananda Bareño to lead all culinary programming across the 21-acre beachfront resort. In addition to overseeing daily operations at the existing restaurants, she will guide the concept and development of a new restaurant, bar and market launching as part of a $60 million resort-wide transformation currently underway.
Most recently she served as executive chef at Alila Marea Beach Resort in Encinitas, where she led all food and beverage operations across three dining outlets, banquets, catering, and in-room dining. She will work alongside the Club’s director of food and beverage Amanda Cohen to oversee the development of the property’s newest dining concepts central to the resort’s reimagination.
Marriott Marquis Houston
Marriott Marquis Houston names chef Edgar Maldonado as its new executive chef. In this role, Maldanado will lead the hotel's culinary operations, overseeing the day-to-day management of five distinctive on-site restaurants and 52 banquet facilities across the 1,000-room property.
Maldonado joins Marriott Marquis Houston with over 27 years of culinary experience, most recently serving as the executive chef at several renowned Marriott properties across the country. Originally from Venezuela, his passion for food began at a young age cooking with his mother. He moved to the U.S. to attend Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Orlando, and began his culinary career shortly after at the Sawgrass Marriott Resort and Spa in Ponte Vedra, Fla.
Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk
Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk, Chicago, names chef Denis Ehmig as executive chef. A veteran of Chicago’s hospitality scene, Ehmig will steer culinary operations for the hotel's expansive meetings and event space, in-room dining, and all five on-site restaurants: Shula’s Steak House, Riverside Café, CHI Bar, Chicago Burger Company and Link Café.
Ehmig’s career began at Le Cordon Bleu Chicago, but his culinary education started long before that, washing dishes and learning by doing in steakhouses and hotel kitchens. He’s steadily risen through the ranks at JW Marriott Chicago, McCormick Place, and Marriott Marquis Chicago, where he most recently served as executive sous chef. In his new role, Ehmig oversees a team of more than 130 culinary and operations staff, with a focus on mentorship, consistency and hospitality.