With a penchant for cooking that he has nurtured from a very young age, Marco Braun always knew that he would become a chef. After numerous impressive stints at five-star hotels in several countries, he is now the executive chef at Padma Hotel Semarang, combining premium ingredients with authentic local flavours.
E: What made you get into the culinary industry?
A: I started cooking already from a very young age to help in the family kitchen. It was also to help my mum with the lunches for the family. In the beginning, I was only helping, but later on, I completely took over the family lunches. I knew at that time I wanted to be in the culinary industry. I am here basically because I chose to be here.
E: As the culinary leader at Padma Hotel Semarang, how would you define the culinary offerings here at the hotel?
A: Our concept at Padma Hotel Semarang is to put great emphasis on elevated Indonesian cuisine – we embrace the local flavours and products. However, we also do have a wide variety of luxury and gourmet products you would expect in a luxury hotel like this, for example, truffle, caviar and even foie gras. We have a very good balance of both, and we put great emphasis on sourcing the right products – qualities come first.
E: Your career has taken you to many cities and countries around the world. What is your favourite and least favourite thing about moving around?
A: My most and least favourable thing when I move places is basically one and the same. Saying goodbye to friends and good colleagues is my least favourite thing, while I also embrace the new journey ahead.
E: What or who has been the biggest inspiration when it comes to creating your art in the culinary world?
A: In a few places in my career, nature inspired me a lot. Especially in my last position as the executive chef in Switzerland, it was for a place up in the mountains. I started to implement elements of the surrounding area into my food. We had items with tree roots, we even had some locally produced wild honey from the forest. So, nature is one thing. If I have to name one inspirational idol, I would say Paul Bocuse. He’s my role model for being unapologetic when it comes to quality. He puts quality on the plate, and I admire that.
E: What do you think a good executive chef should have?
A: A good executive chef is never a one-man show, because everything he achieves is basically done through his team. So, he must have a good team and he must always put the team first before anything else, before ego and before himself. Besides that, a good sense of humour will help an executive chef combat challenges along the way.
E: What do you think about Semarang’s culinary scene at the moment and what would you like to see in the future?
A: Here at Padma Hotel Semarang, I feel that we are the trendsetter in the city among many eateries around the area. I feel like there’s a big potential to have a healthy competition when it comes to the F&B scene in this city. I would like to see more restaurants focusing on quality rather than quantity, but overall, it’s a very good development and it has a great future.
E: You have mastered different kinds of cuisine, but for a nice meal at home, what kind of comfort food do you like to make?
A: I know one dish from Ghana, Africa, where they cook a lamb shoulder with freshly ground peanuts, it’s like a curry.
I like to eat it with rice and with habanero. I like to put the habanero into the curry but not chopped. When you eat it, you just take out the habanero and squash it a little bit over the lamb curry with peanuts, and then you eat it. I try to cook it whenever I have some time at home.
Exquisite Taste Volume 42
Padma Hotel Semarang
Jalan Sultan Agung, Candisari
Semarang 50252, Indonesia
T: (+62) 2433000900
E: reservation.semarang@padmahotels.com
IG: @padmasemarang
