Meyyafushi’s new Overwater Padel Tennis Court might be the most neo-Maldivian feature in a long time – a trendy activity placed overwater:
Santa might be delivering Christmas goodies to all the good little girls and boys tonight, but “DJ” delivers ice cream goodies to everyone all the time at Sun Siyam Olhuveli. He pedals around the property full-time to make sure that a tasty, cold treat is always on hand for the guests. Merry Christmas!
The Maldives is not only one of the best places in the world to snorkel, but at Siyam World it is now definitely, verifiably the biggest place in the world to snorkel:
Happy Thanksgiving! Not a turkey’s favourite day, but not a problem for the gobblers at Siyam World who live the pampered free range life not just with a home on the animal sanctuary, but also able to wander freely around the island (we stumbled upon them at the spa one day – photo at bottom).
Joy Island also features a home grown ingredient made from milk – mozzarella – used in its extensive Italian station at its buffet restaurant and other outlets.
For the complete coconut experience Veligandu welcomed chef Cristian Marino to craft a completely coconut experience to celebrate World Coconut Day this past year.
“To honor this day, Chef Cristian Marino created a special culinary journey for guests at the resort. The menu was simple in concept yet rich in flavor:
The dining room itself joined the celebration. Palms and coconuts were used as decoration, with tropical flowers set between the buffet stations. It was not just a menu but an atmosphere, an experience shaped around one ingredient.”
He talked about his experience in the Maldives on his own blog as well – Experience Sabato Italiano: An Italian Dinner in the Maldives – Cristian Marino.
On most islands, landscaping staff will readily find a coconut for you direct from the trees, and some resorts have special stands to serve up free coconut, but at Siyam World guest get their coconut the Maldivian way. Coconut stands are the equivalent of the “water cooler” on local islands where locals gather to chat and hang out. Not only does Siyam World have a typical coconut stand, but they also recruited an actual coconut seller from a nearby island who was lured out of retirement to take his trade to the resort.
When visiting the Maldives, I always a appreciate when the F&B has injected a bit of tropical twist to their often conventional offerings on the buffet spread. I was particularly fond of the Mango Chou at Joy Island featuring my fav tropical fruit.
In the rise of the super-luxury offerings in the Maldives, I’ve often mused when the gourmet outlets might someday reach Michelin star quality. Certainly, a few I’ve sampled seem to have reached that exalted bar, but the Guide simply didn’t cover the Maldives geography. A number of resorts have touted their guest chefs who bring with them Michelin-starred credentials.
Perhaps no one has had more Michelin-star chefs in their kitchens than Soneva. In fact, in partnership with the guide itself, they are hosting an unprecedented series of 10 starred chefs at their properties. Soneva not only has both of its Maldives properties featured in the guide, but they Soneva Jani receives an elite 2 stars and Soneva Fushi receives the coveted highest accolade of 3 stars (well “keys” for hotels) which translates to “worth a special journey”. Indeed, a very special journey!
Sun Siyam Olhuveli not only serves up amazing sushi, but also will teach you how to make it yourself at their sushi class. Taught by sushi chef (not to be confused with “sous chef”) Namal, he takes you through the process of making sushi, maki rolls and sashimi. Our son, Chase, once gave me a gift of such a class in London and it was as much fun as it was insightful. So, Lori did the classwork and I concentrated on quality control (to which I can attest she passed with flavourful flying colours). If you want a more pampered way to enjoy sushi, Olhuveli’s “Theo’s Coffee Shop” offers 100 varieties in total including a range of dessert sushi made with fruit.
