Velaa’s Gastronomy Month to feature French chef Olivier Limousin
Chef Olivier Limousin will join Chef Gaushan de Silva at Velaa Private Island’s Aragu restaurant for two four-hands dinners on 25 and 27 November 2026, bringing his experience in French gastronomy to the resort’s Gastronomy Month programme.
The collaboration will centre on a tailored menu combining classical technique with international influences. Limousin’s approach draws on seasonal ingredients, craftsmanship and precision, developed over a career spanning more than 25 years in kitchens across Paris, London and Bangkok.
For chefs working in the Maldives, his visit brings together two aspects of contemporary restaurant cooking: a grounding in French culinary methods and experience applying those methods across different dining cultures.
Limousin’s career includes leading roles at La Table de Joël Robuchon in Paris and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in London, where his work was associated with two-Michelin-star recognition. He subsequently led L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Bangkok, extending his work with Robuchon into Southeast Asia.
His previous accounts of kitchen management and menu development provide context for the forthcoming collaboration. In a 2017 interview with Aspire Lifestyles, Limousin described working closely with his sous chefs through workshops and discussions to develop dishes.
“I believe a chef must always have an open mind to try new ideas and experiment,” he said. He also explained that direct conversations with guests in L’Atelier’s open kitchen helped him understand their expectations and find ideas for the menu.
Ingredient sourcing has also featured in his culinary thinking. Speaking previously to TOP25 Restaurants about his Bangkok kitchen, Limousin described looking first to local farmers and fishermen, while sourcing imported produce from small family businesses. He identified reducing food waste, leadership and maintaining a motivated team as priorities for restaurant kitchens.
At Aragu, Limousin will collaborate with de Silva, whose contemporary European cooking incorporates Asian influences. The restaurant also places emphasis on ingredient sourcing and sustainability, providing a shared point of interest between the visiting chef’s previously expressed priorities and the resident kitchen’s approach.
The two dinners will follow other culinary events announced for November at Velaa. These include Mark Lundgaard’s visit from 6–8 November and a Billecart-Salmon Champagne dinner hosted by Alexandre Bader and Sébastien Papin on 18 November. Together, the scheduled events bring visiting chefs and wine specialists into the resort’s dining programme.
