Our New Head Chef - Paul Tugwell
We’re excited to announce the appointment of a New Head Chef at Sunset Beach Club, Paul Tugwell. Originally from Cardiff, Paul has been involved in the hotel and catering business for many years and will undoubtedly bring a wealth of experience to the team here at Sunset.
I had a chance to catch up with Paul earlier on in the week to find out a little bit more about him and what his plans are for Sunset’s kitchens; here’s a summary of what I found out:
Paul started his career by studying at the Barry Island Hotel School. After two years of intense training he headed off to London where he began work as a Commis Chef at the famous Savoy Hotel; it didn’t take long for Paul to establish himself as an integral part of the team, allowing him to work his way up to the position of Sous Chef in the 5 years he spent at the Savoy.
After an intense 5 years in London, it was time to move on and Paul spent the next 9 years in Bath; first at the Royal Crescent hotel and later at Combe Grove Manor. His time in Bath allowed Paul to learn, explore and apply new cooking techniques (this was at a time when Nouvelle Cuisine was revolutionising the industry).
In the mid 1980’s, family commitments – Paul’s wife is Spanish – meant it was time to move to Spain. The Costa del Sol was his chosen destination and has been his home ever since.
Since arriving on the Coast Paul has worked as Head Chef in several well known restaurants; however, one of his most challenging positions was when he was asked to become Head Chef and Lecturer at the Les Roches Hotel School in Marbella. For over 5 years he was responsible for training future hotel managers and chefs at this highly respected hotel school (I’ll tell you a secret……. he even trained our Operations Director, Miguel Marcos!).
For the past 5 years, Paul has been Head Chef at the boutique hotel, La Posada del Torcal, located in the mountains behind Málaga.
Now it’s time for a new challenge here at Sunset Beach Club! Wasting no time at all, Paul is already busy with several projects: The daily menus for half board guests are just about ready (I’ll be sure to post about them as soon as they are!) and the team are busy preparing two special dishes for a charity event and cooking contest next weekend; I’ve seen the dessert they have prepared at it looks fantastic!
The next objective is a completely new dessert menu…..ñuuuummm! I’ll definitely have to report back to you about those,; pictures and all!
Something to look forward to next summer is the plan to include a BBQ buffet in the evenings by the main pools. This will be a welcomed addition to the hotels dining facilities and will no doubt prove to be a hit.
Welcome to the team Paul! I look forward to tasting some one of those new desserts!
