British native Mr Selves has joined Anantara Mai Khao after almost 20 years with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, where most recently he was General Manager of the Keraton at The Plaza, a Luxury Collection Hotel in Jakarta, and before that Hotel Manager for the pre-opening team of Thailand’s first St Regis hotel in Bangkok.
During his career he has led restaurant and bar development for Starwood Hotels and Resorts in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, including developing the culinary concepts for W hotels in Barcelona, London and St Petersburg, and also helped to reshape Le Merdien hotels’ coffee culture.
Now Mr Selves brings his extensive food and beverage expertise to Anantara Mai Khao, where he plans to develop a chic new culinary journey for locals and visitors alike.
“Our existing restaurants and bars at Anantara Mai Khao are deservedly renowned among global travellers and connoisseurs of fine cuisine,” he said.
“We’re enhancing our culinary offerings and introducing new features that will also appeal to the many residents of Phuket who seek exceptional dining experiences in luxurious surroundings.”
Anantara Mai Khao’s signature restaurant is the beachside Sea.Fire.Salt., where unique and innovative menu offerings prepared on Himalayan salt bricks are accompanied by a tableside Salt Sommelier to advise on subtle flavour enhancements with a range of bespoke salts.
An undisputed gourmet jewel in the hotel’s culinary crown is The Tasting Room, an elegant retreat housing hundreds of bottles of fine wine, which hosts interactive gourmet dining, including specialty cheese and charcuteries paired with wines selected by a resident Wine Guru.
The move to enhance Anantara Mai Khao’s culinary reputation launches on 19 November, when the hotel hosts an exclusive gourmet Wine Dinner at Sea.Fire.Salt with select fine wines presented by Berenger Le Boursicot of the highly-respected Bouri-Manoux French winery.