Chef Davide Pugliese at Wali Nikiti, Scrub Island (Photo credit: Holger Eckstein)

Chef Davide Pugliese instructs sous chefs at a dinner he hosted at James Beard House, NYC. Photo: supplied

Davide, who joined the resort for a year, was responsible for the kitchen, menus, and management of the resort’s functions and four restaurant outlets.

Davide is based at Wali Nikiti, the Scrub Island home and culinary retreat owned by him and his wife, Cele. Expanding his professional career as a restaurant and event chef, Davide will be sharing his expertise with the domestic cook by offering cooking classes to individuals, couples and small groups.

“It has always been a dream of mine to share what I learned with people who want to create extraordinary meals, simply,” says Davide. “While the kitchen at Wali Nikiti is designed for instruction, lessons can actually be given equally well in other set ups.”

Davide, whose original recipe dishes marry Caribbean flavours with Italian recipes, explains that his perspective on food has been influenced by his apprenticeship in his mother’s Tuscan kitchen and by his first career as a fashion photographer:

“I am guided by the culture I came from and the culture I live in. My philosophy is to cook simple using everyday ingredients and to create anticipation of a dish through visual presentation, aroma, taste, and texture. Colour combinations, complementary flavours and contrasting textures are key elements in my dishes.”

Customized to meet the dietary preferences of the participants, classes will demonstrate a combination of cooking methods from macrobiotic to sous vides and molecular cooking to meals created on a wood fire, slow cooked, or grilled. The ingredients will be based on what is available during provisioning and will include local vegetables, herbs and spices.

Davide, who along with Cele also owns Capriccio di Mare in Road Town, can be contacted at davide@walinikiti.com.