JulianWaterer Chef's World written by Janie Conley
As Julian Waterer approaches the 25th year of his life in the Caribbean he takes time to look back on why he made the 4,000 mile journey from England to the sundrenched shores of Antigua, and to reflect on his career challenges, throwing in his chef’s jacket, and his love of community spirit.
in the world. Julian downed his chef’s jacket and became general manager for this remote island hideaway. “It was a super high-end resort, completely off the grid and self-sustaining. It is the only place I’ve worked where Barracuda fish was served on the menu, because the waters of the Grenadines are so pristine.”
“I was headhunted” Julian says, “That’s how I came to Antigua. I had to ask the headhunter where Antigua was – I had no idea!” At the time Julian was happily working as a chef in a small town called Hatfield, a leafy suburb of London. One day he received a phone call that forever changed his career path. “I went to the interview in central London and the job was to be the executive chef for Clouds Restaurant at Halcyon Cove, a Rex Resort property in Antigua.” Never one to turn down a challenge, Julian packed his bags and arrived in Antigua during the luxurious heyday of the 80s.
After two years away from the kitchen Julian and Marie returned to Antigua and opened their second restaurant, Julian’s Alfresco at Runaway Bay. The exceptional menu was a balance of exotic
Julian managed the newly opened Clouds Restaurant, perched high above the resort on a lush tropical hillside. “In those days it was really difficult to get ingredients, especially for a classy à la cart menu. I soon discovered the joys of shopping in the local markets, and learnt to use local produce in interesting and modern ways.” Within a short period of time he became executive chef for the entire resort. Julian’s next move, still within the Rex Resorts empire, was to the new flagship hotel in St. Lucia, The Royal St. Lucian on Reduit Beach. When completed, the Royal St. Lucia was a luxury resort with two beautiful restaurants, both under Julian’s management. During this period he also trained new chefs for the Rex Resort in Tobago, Turtle Beach Hotel. Returning to Antigua in the early 1990s, Julian fulfilled his ambition to open a restaurant of his own. He transformed a historic courtyard space in a quiet corner of St. John’s into an intimate restaurant called “Julian’s”. He says, “The restaurant had great atmosphere, and every year we made improvements. We even added a piano bar with a real grand piano - it was great. I was back in the kitchen cooking a fine dining menu with a twist of incredible local ingredients.” Julian and his partner Marie worked for seven remarkable years establishing “Julian’s” as one of the island’s most enchanting privately owned restaurants. Julian’s next momentous move was to the exclusive private-island resort Palm Island in the Grenadines, at the time one of the best resorts
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Caribbean flavours with hints of Asian, European and South American cuisines. “Culinary trends are much like interior design or clothes; if you don’t change with the times you become old fashioned and set in your ways. I love change and would hate to be considered old fashioned!” Julian admits. The next career change came in 2007, when Julian and Marie opened Antigua’s first and only one-stop kitchen shop, selling an impressive range of kitchen equipment, uniforms, tableware, kitchen gadgets and tools for the professional chef, hotelier, restaurateur and gourmet home cook. “Having worked in all areas of the industry, we knew what items were hard to source on island and what would make life easier in the kitchen.” Chef’s World offers design services, and will lay out a kitchen and import everything needed to furnish it. Looking toward the future Julian explains, “we would like to expand the business, with more domestic cookware items for home cooks.” Julian Waterer is a remarkable man; he has enjoyed a rewarding and demanding culinary career, and was the first recipient of the Caribbean Hotel Association’s Caribbean Chef of the Year award. He is a classically trained chef, and has contributed to various culinary publications, including Jane Grigson’s historic books. He spends much of his spare time involved with the industry that has supported him. Julian sponsors local events such as the annual Food & Drink Industry Party and the Mango Menu Professional Chefs and Bartenders Competition. He is an expert judge and has his own award, the Julian Waterer award for Most Promising Chef, given by the Caribbean Hotel Association. Occasionally you will be lucky enough to find Julian in his chef’s jacket, working behind the scenes as a guest chef at a local restaurant. “I’m so lucky to be here,” he says. “Not a day goes by where I don’t meet someone I know, it’s all part of the charm of Antigua and Barbuda.”