Kandooma Table leads new culinary direction at rebranded Kandooma Maldives
Kandooma Maldives has officially begun operations under its new brand, placing all-inclusive dining, beach barbecues, sunset dinners, themed island nights and 24-hour food service at the centre of its refreshed guest experience.
The South Malé Atoll resort, known for the past 17 years as Holiday Inn Resort Kandooma Maldives, adopted the Kandooma Maldives name on 1 October 2026 as part of a wider repositioning built around five experience pillars.
For chefs and food and beverage professionals, the key pillar is Kandooma Table, which is designed to make dining part of the resort experience rather than simply a series of meal periods.
The concept includes beach barbecues, sunset dinners, themed island nights and informal social dining, alongside the resort’s all-inclusive breakfast, lunch, dinner, drinks and snacks.
Kandooma Café has also moved to 24-hour operation, creating a round-the-clock dining option for guests arriving late, departing early or looking for food outside conventional restaurant hours.
For the culinary team, continuous service requires careful menu planning and mise en place. Overnight menus need to remain manageable while still offering sufficient choice, with staffing and food safety procedures structured around service that no longer stops after dinner.
The resort’s new Beach Club, due to be completed in the coming weeks, will add another all-day food and beverage venue. Designed as a social hub for families, couples and teenagers, the space will transition from daytime relaxation into cocktails and evening gatherings.
Beach barbecues and sunset dining will meanwhile take the culinary programme beyond conventional restaurant settings. Outdoor service requires close coordination between kitchen and front-of-house teams, particularly around temperature control, transport, live cooking and replenishment.
Themed island nights also provide scope for chefs to bring Maldivian ingredients and culinary traditions into the wider all-inclusive experience, while creating variety for guests staying several nights.
“Food becomes part of the experience rather than simply somewhere to stop between activities,” the resort said in outlining Kandooma Table.
General Manager Andrew Drummond said the new all-inclusive concept was intended to go beyond the traditional meal plan.
“For us, all-inclusive was never going to be simply a meal plan. We wanted it to change the way guests experience the island,” he said.
“A family shouldn’t spend its holiday constantly deciding what something costs or whether to add another experience. We want them out on the water, trying something new, sitting down together over dinner, slowing down at the spa or discovering a little more about the Maldives.”
Kandooma Table is one of five signatures introduced under the new brand. The others are Kandooma Blue, centred on ocean activities; Kandooma Flow, focused on wellness; Kandooma Social, built around music and gatherings; and Kandooma Ways, which explores Maldivian culture, nature and local experiences.
For F&B teams, the positioning means food and drink will often intersect with those wider activities. Sunset sessions can transition naturally into cocktails and dinner, while island events and social evenings create opportunities for informal dining and live culinary formats.
The move to all-inclusive also brings additional importance to menu engineering, purchasing and stock control. With meals, selected beverages and snacks included throughout the day, kitchens and bars need to forecast demand carefully while maintaining variety across longer stays.
The resort continues to position families at the heart of its offering, with children staying and eating free under the new concept. This adds another dimension to culinary planning, requiring menus that work across age groups while also accommodating different dining times and preferences.
Kandooma Maldives features 146 villas across garden, beachfront and overwater settings.
As the resort begins its new chapter, Kandooma Table gives the culinary and beverage operation a defined role within the broader brand — using shared meals, outdoor dining and round-the-clock service to make food part of how guests experience the island.
