Firestarters
July 15, 2025 - When the food you love becomes a celebration of scent, spice, and sizzle, every bite loves you back. A season of bold flavors begins with our hottest chefs in Oman, Fiji, and Thailand.
Three countries. Three cultures. Three culinary masterminds behind a Thai thriller, smoky Fijian lovos, and plates piled high with stories in Oman.
Heart-led island flavors from Executive Chef Braden at Six Senses Yao Noi
Martinis shaken or stirred against cinematic views, Wagyu grilled under the stars, and street market feasts served with the heat turned to bold. Chef Braden turns every table into a 007-worthy adventure. Raised on a farm in Pennsylvania and sharpened in top kitchens in New York and San Francisco, he’s part fisherman, part storyteller, all heart.
“I believe in honest food that should move you and connect you,” says Braden. “Just bring your appetite for life.”
His culinary theatre opens with the James Bond Dinner at Mai Thai Beach, framed by the limestone peaks from The Man with the Golden Gun. The Wondrous Wagyu Dinner follows at The Hilltop, with buttery slow-cooked beef and starlit views over Phang Nga Bay. The Street Market Buffet brings the soul of Koh Yao Noi to your plate with grilled fish, zesty papaya salad, and sizzling satay all made fresh to order.
Fijian fire from Executive Chef Winston at Six Senses Fiji
Born on Vanua Levu and trained in Sydney, Tuscany, and Lizard Island on the Barrier Reef, Chef Winston is no stranger to foraging for exactly the right ingredients for each dish.
“I’m island-based and my food reflects that,” he says. “When you start with the food around you, it becomes infused with a generous Bula spirit. Fijians love a dance as much as a feast.”
His Fijian lovo skips the steaming, using salt and coconut leaves for a smoky, earthy hit. Light, fresh bowls loaded with garden greens and superfoods headline the new menu, with seasonal shellfish and signature dishes incorporating amaranth spinach, kumquat juice, and just the right bite of chili.
Spice, soul, and zero-waste spirit from Executive Sous Chef Liliana at Six Senses Zighy Bay
Combining her Mexican upbringing with skills shaped by kitchens from Cambodia to the Caribbean, a respect for food traditions and regional variations is something Chef Liliana has come to appreciate and reflect in her cooking. Raised in a family where food was a celebration, ritual, and source of belonging, she learned early that every gathering deserves its own culinary moment, and that nothing in a kitchen should go to waste.
“I grew up watching my grandmother make mole pastes on a metate stone and cook dishes that brought the whole family together,” says Liliana. “That’s what food should do: make us happy and truly enjoy the moment.”
Her cooking philosophy remains as grounded as it is global: use everything, waste nothing, and honor each ingredient’s second life. “The ease with which we throw things away knowing that so many people go without food deeply disturbs me. Especially in this industry, where the customer must receive only the best, I make sure the dish presented is top quality, but I incorporate as much of the whole food as I can into the dish itself, avoiding waste.”
This coming season, expect pop-ups that bring her Latin touch to the shores of Six Senses Zighy Bay, along with garden-fresh greens, spice-rich sauces, and beachside feasts under the stars.Don’t be surprised if you encounter Mexican tortillas, a layer of Omani muhammara (red pepper dip), Indonesian babi guling (suckling pig), Cambodian vegetable char kadao (sizzling stir-fry), or a Grenadian yellow chili sauce.
“Every country I’ve worked in has left a flavor in my cooking,” Liliana adds. “It’s never about one perfect dish. It’s about dishes that carry stories.”