Culinary Couture: Elevated Dining With Quality and Elegance

The food and beverage industry is one of the most dynamic and competitive fields in business today. With the rise of foodie culture and the increasing demand for high-quality dining experiences, it can be extremely challenging for new players to establish themselves in the market. This is particularly true in the catering sector, where the stakes are even higher, as businesses must be able to deliver exceptional service and food quality on a large scale.

Despite this challenging landscape, some companies have been able to make a name for themselves and stand out in the crowded catering space. Culinary Couture is making its way vastly and definitely significantly, it has quickly risen to become one of the best catering service providers in the industry. Culinary Couture is an authentic top-notch catering service that focuses on providing a high-quality dining experience for all types of events. They take pride in their ability to tailor menus and individual dishes to meet the unique needs of their clients using only the finest quality ingredients to craft delectable menus that appeal to all of the senses, from elegant canapes to dazzling themed buffets. With a keen eye for creativity and attention to detail, Culinary Couture is sure to provide a memorable culinary experience for any occasion.

We sat down with Mariam Safa, CCC Managing Partner and Business Development, and took a closer look at the catering business and examined how Culinary Couture was able to achieve such success in a relatively short amount of time.

What inspired you to open a business in the F&B industry?

The F&B industry is one of the leading businesses in the world that is heading towards fast growth and new concept creations especially post the pandemic. The resulting impact had directed people towards more online delivery and in-house dining. Apart from that, Egypt is an attractive market for opening such a business due to the high concentration of population and the consumption level of 30% of the income on F&B. With that all said, Culinary Couture Catering is an extension of an established business in Beirut with 3+years of a diversified portfolio of events aiming with that to create a marking imprint within the Egyptian community.

How would you describe your work ethic, in a nutshell?

We enforce an ethical and fair work culture and ensure strong employee relations. We strive to build honest and direct relationships with clients to ensure delivering the utmost needs and satisfaction. We work around utmost safety and hygiene levels and apply quality control standards let alone producing clean and healthy food components. 

Share with us your various lines of work, from cheffing to art …

The chef prepares and cooks delicious food that is artistically arranged and presented. Chefs are somehow artists when they find a way to express their creativity and present it as a signature plate. The knowledge of ingredients, spices, and fresh herbs is essential to create a plate.

Chefs are artists and this is where “Culinary Artist” or “Food design specialist” convey the idea.

How did you develop your business over time?

It all started as a self-challenge by the Co-Founder, Mr. Mohamad Amhaz after his long journey and deep experience in the food & beverage business when he decided to step out from senior roles within different branded hoteliers and catering companies to a self-developed catering concept that emerged in Beirut during an unprecedented time.  Culinary Couture was brought to light in the summer of 2020 when COVID-19 was at its peak in Lebanon and the outer world. After a couple of years, his enthusiastic vision intersected with the investment strategy of the CEO, Mr. Walid Sewaydan wherein they both with their self-growth minds planned the extension of CCC into the heart of Cairo.  

Why culinary couture?

Culinary is the outmost of taste engineering while Couture is the creation of dishes with specific details. Both interpret our mission for details and artistic presentation. As quoted by our Chef “Cooking is a symphony where the main ingredient is passion.” Culinary Couture is mixing the technicalities of cooking with the art of presenting it.

Who is the team behind your business?

Our company is backed by a strong experienced team starting from the management that is represented by the Founder and CEO, Mr. Walid Sewaydan who holds a solid experience in financial institutions to the Co-Founder and the Executive GM, Mr. Mohamad Amhaz with 20+ years of operational experience in leading catering companies and branded hospitality firms. In addition, a feminine touch from the Managing Partner and Business Development, Mrs. Mariam Safa is incorporated into the business to ensure quality and continuous business growth ideas. And finally, to highlight our Culinary Specialist Chef, Mr. Tarek Hamadeh who holds 40 years of global experience in international cooking and his passion for creating artistic dishes with his magic hands. 

Where do you draw your inspiration from to stand out in such a competitive industry?

All that it takes for a catering business to stand out is persistence to maintain the utmost quality flavour, eye-catching presentation of food, and keeping an ongoing new trend in its menus. Our inspiration is drawn from our Lebanese culture and historical blend that has raised us for the love aromatic cooking and artistic and elegant touches. We also have a love for challenge and persistence to outgrow. Making an imprint in our life journey is what we aim towards and live for, driven by our passion for success.

How is the F&B market different from Lebanon to Egypt?

They both differ in market size. Cairo is a huge city but is still considered to be a promising market and has big potential to grow especially with the economic reformation that has been happening in the last few years. There is a greater competition scale in the Egyptian market as we are trying to position ourselves within competing real players.  

Can you walk us through a typical working day?

We run daily managerial and operational meetings. We discuss operational issues such as customer follow-ups, conduct daily strategic marketing meetings with our partners, and sales update meetings to plan our sales approaches and ensure daily quality controls.

What has been the most difficult obstacle in starting your own business?

The most challenging obstacle is the economic turbulence that is engulfing the world in general and Egypt in particular. We are going through unprecedented times of inflationary pressures which is causing price volatility and economic instability. 

Is there an element of your work that you love the most?

Yes, seeing the reaction of people and hearing their comments when they experience the flavours of our food. 

How valuable is the online community to your business?

With the influence of the internet and the growing multi-channels of communication with audiences, online communication has become a crucial part of mega marketing in every business. The marketing methods have relied extensively on social media to attract hyper-target audiences and build client data history. Instagram as an example is a highly occupied social media platform with billions of active users. Having said that and especially in a big country like Egypt, the online community is very valuable to our business. 

What have been your business highlights so far?

We do have lots of carried forward business highlights but one of the best and latest is being able to penetrate the Egyptian market among a list of catering tycoons and make an imprint among our audience in such a short period of 3 months.

Contact:

Central Kitchen New Cairo Industrial Area Loft 216