Five minutes with Sofitel's executive chef Paul Franz

With Sofitel Abu Dhabi recently launching their Friday Brunch, the hotel's executive chef Paul Franz speaks about his favorite culinary experiences.

My earliest memory in the kitchen goes back to 1983 in a Bavarian Forest, Germany. I was doing my apprenticeship program. I was tediously washing pots and cleaning the kitchen.

The first dish I remember making was a homemade "grandma style" beef roulade with bread dumplings. It was one of the signature dishes highly demanded on a daily basis in the restaurant where I was an apprentice. Along with this, I made a "Malakoff Torte" (Malakoff cake) which was requested by a certain family for a special occasion and an Austrian Kaiserschmarrn – a dish which is famous in  Austria and South of Germany. People around the world love it –  it is made of sponge mixture, sugar, hazelnut and almonds – like a thick pancake. I remember being very excited when I was putting all of these together. I was bursting with interest to increase my knowledge in the culinary arts. Knowing that what I prepared was appreciated by customers made me happy.

 If I could choose one dish for my last meal it would be Wiener Schnitzel with Bratkartoffeln – which is a breaded escalope. It is utterly delicious and reminds me of home. I had memories of having this meal when I was growing up.

I feel happiest whenever my team successfully completes a big event. We then usually go out to celebrate..

For me, the culinary scene in the UAE is a stiff competition amongst esteemed chefs specially in the five star hotel industry. The diners here in Abu Dhabi have sophisticated tastes with high expectations and standards.

Sofitel Abu Dhabi has launched their Friday Brunch in the in-house restaurant Corniche. The buffet meal features a variety of Middle Eastern and French cuisine including Thai delicacies and seafood options from Sofitel Abu Dhabi signature restaurants Silk and La Mer respectively. Brunch prices begin from Dh245 ++ including soft-drinks. For details, click here.