After several years of building their innovative culinary initiatives, Valor Hospitality Partners has realized their ambition to take its food and beverage company to new heights, officially launching the sector as SAVOR. Headed up by industry experts and masters of culinary, Matt Gray, Chris Martha, Roy Brett, George Jardine, and Andrea Frignani will lead all food and beverage components for Valor global regions of Americas, UK & Europe, Africa & Middle East.
The three Scotsmen, hailing from Edinburgh and Glasgow, are all leading culinary figures in their respective markets.
Glaswegian, Matt Gray, Head of Culinary for the Americas region was formerly Executive Chef at the world-famous Inverlochy Castle Hotel, Fort William, Scotland. Under Gray’s direction, the hotel was awarded Michelin Star ratings for nine consecutive years, being voted ‘Restaurant of the Year’ by Decanter Magazine in 2003.
Later recruited in 2009 to the United States by world-renowned French Chef, Albert Roux, as Executive Chef to open Roux’s first American restaurant, Chez Roux at La Torretta Lake Resort and Spa in Houston, Texas. Under Gray’s leadership and direction, Chez Roux was voted ‘Best New Restaurant’ in Houston 2009 prior to joining Valor where he has globally led the company’s culinary for 11 years.
During his tenure at Valor, Gray has created numerous high-street restaurant concepts for their managed hotels in both the USA and UK, garnering multiple awards and recognition for high quality dining in globally branded and independent hotels. Working closely with Valor Global co-founder and CEO, Euan McGlashan, himself a Scot native and having grown up in food and beverage, together they developed and grew the Valor F&B Company. Both were determined to bring what they call High Street Dining experiences into hotels, bringing local guests back in for unique dining experiences, after years away, choosing to dine at standalone restaurants as opposed to hotels.
"SAVOR is the pinnacle of Valor Hospitality’s culinary aspirations, bringing together 3 Scottish Chefs to collaborate and drive forward Valor’s culinary offering across our Global operations," said Matt Gray, vice president of culinary, Americas. "I am honored to be part of this project and to work closely with two such storied Chef’s as Roy Brett and George Jardine in the next chapter of my 11 years with Valor."
Edinburgh native, Roy Brett, one of the leading figures in Scotland’s food revolution and a real champion of quality seafood cut his teeth at the world-famous Savoy Grill in London before becoming Executive Chef at Glasgow’s One Devonshire Gardens at age 21. His move back to England included working at some of the UK’s finest restaurants before leading the team at Le Caprice. Further switching time between Scotland and England, Roy became Executive Chef at Malmaison Hotels overseeing the food and beverage operation for over seven years, opening five hotels during that time. Next was joining world renowned Rick Stein in Padstow, Cornwall, and over the next five years oversaw the successful openings of The Bakery, Deli, Patisserie & the Fish & Chip Shop.
A final move back to Scotland in 2007, Brett led each of The Grill restaurants at the new brand Dakota Hotels where under his leadership, besides numerous ‘Best in Scotland’ ratings, Dakota became the first Scottish restaurant to earn an accreditation for sustainable sourcing from the Marine Stewardship Council. Finally in 2009, Roy achieved his lifelong ambition of opening a world-class seafood restaurant in his home city of Edinburgh. Ondine was born and since then, is widely regarded as one of Scotland’s finest seafood restaurants that achieved critical acclaim. In addition, Brett has earned a string of awards including Chef of the Year, AA Restaurant of the Year and holds a regular place in the UK list of Top 100 Restaurants. A true leading industry figure, Brett has advised the Scottish Government on sustainable seafood issues and has represented Scotland at major food and cooking events in Ireland, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore.
Valor, through a purchase of a substantial stake in Ondine, has partnered with Brett to also head culinary of the UK & Europe region while continuing to oversee Ondine Edinburgh. Currently, Brett is developing the opening of the latest and newest Ondine, St. Andrews at the under construction, Seaton House, opening later this year, 100 yards from the 18th green of the historic and iconic Old Course.
"This is a milestone for myself & for my peers at Valor. I am proud to be able to work alongside George, Matt, Euan, Chris, Andrea & all the great people in this initiative through a leading hospitality group in the world. Our opportunity to create & collaborate is irresistible," said Roy Brett, Head of Culinary, UK & Europe. "I recently heard the most beautiful quote in regards to respecting the values of what is relevant in world cuisine – 'It’s not simple cooking, it’s respectful cooking.'"
Another Edinburgh native, George Jardine was born into a family of chefs. His grandmother was a pastry chef at Holyrood Palace and throughout the generations various family members chose to hone their skills in kitchens across Scotland.
After sharpening his skills and craft in Scotland, Jardine moved to London, working under Michelin Star Chef, Jean Christophe Novelli at The Four Seasons Hotel and later Maison Novelli Restaurant. In 1997, Jardine moved to Cape Town, South Africa to open Novelli at The Cellars Hohenort Hotel in the Constantia Winelands. Under his leadership, the restaurant was named one of Conde Nast’s Top 50 Dining Destinations in the World, garnering many local and international awards and accolades during his three years at the helm.
Jardine then moved to Asia, holding Executive Chef roles at such iconic properties as the prestigious Dharmawangsa Hotel in Indonesia where the restaurant was named Asia’s Hottest New Restaurant in 2001 by East Asia Magazine. More travels led him to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where he opened the Adam Tihany designed (Spago and Le Cirque 2000 fame) Lafite Restaurant for the newly renovated, flagship Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur Hotel. Lafite was an instant success and won many industry awards, notably, best restaurant at the Hospitality Asia Platinum Awards. Four years on, Jardine made the move to Australia to open the Altitude Restaurant at Shangri-La’s newest hotel in Sydney, Australia. The Australian Hospitality Association named Altitude Restaurant Australia’s 'Restaurant of the Year' in 2005.
In 2006, Jardine returned to Cape Town to open his own restaurant & bakery, Restaurant Jardine, winning multiple awards over a three-year period. Having established both restaurants and a bakery with highly skilled staff complement to uphold the restaurant’s standards of consistency, Jardine expanded into the wine lands to open Jardine Restaurant at the magnificent Jordan Wine Estate in Stellenbosch. Over a 12-year period, including the opening of another small Jardine Restaurant in the town of Stellenbosch, Jardine at Jordan garnered significant accolades and awards, where it was widely regarded as one of the best restaurants in South Africa.
George retired Jardine’s after 12 incredible years and now joins Valor Hospitality as head of culinary for the Africa and Middle East regions with many projects awaiting his expertise, including a new, under construction luxury boutique hotel in Camps Bay, Cape Town.
"I am excited to share my culinary journey and help transform Valor F&B Co. team’s growth into SAVOR," said George Jardine, Head of Culinary, Africa & Middle East. "SAVOR will be my new home, where my passion for food meets innovative strategies and precision meets a personal touch."
All linked by their love of Scotland and food, this incredible story will soon unfold where the three will work closely together to collaborate and create incredible dining locations and guest experiences at Valor hotels around the world.
Originally from Pittsburgh, PA, USA, Chris Martha started working in hospitality at an early age. He developed a passion for the business at age 14, when he scaled the ranks from dishwasher, bus boy, and line cook to waiter while in high school. He went on to earn a business degree in Hotel Restaurant Management from Penn State University and studied abroad in Switzerland where he fell in love with food and its deeply rooted connection with family and culture. Throughout his career, he has worked in nearly all facets of the industry, from casual to fine dining, within both hotels and restaurants.
Martha’s career began with an internship with Hyatt Regency Resorts in Hilton Head, SC, which led to a permanent position at the hotel’s location in Beaver Creek, CO. Hyatt proved to be an excellent training ground, but his heart was in smaller, independent eateries. He moved to Atlanta during the tourism surge brought on by the 1996 Olympic games and spent seven years with Fifth Group Restaurants, including Atlanta favorites such as South City Kitchen, LaTavola and the Food Studio.
His extensive expertise has helped him focus on driving operational efficiencies without compromising the overall experience and satisfaction of his guests, an attribute that serves him well.
With this foundational experience, Martha opened his own venture and recently sold the restaurant of seven years – Scout – an Atlanta, Georgia neighborhood favorite.
Martha is well-versed in the industry and heads Valor’s Food & Beverage company. His expertise lands in concept development + branding, deep rooted commercial analysis, review and profitability, and beverage.
"Creating amazing food & beverage spaces requires unconventional thinking. With SAVOR you step into a space where there are no targets, rules, or limitations and ‘dreaming big’ is for everyone, every day," said Chris Martha, vice president food & beverage, Americas. "The pursuit of staying relevant is collaborative and achieving great results is driven through established culture and effective leadership. The secret to SAVOR is that we are deeply committed to delivering both."
Born in Italy, raised in Germany, Andrea Frignani served his first guests at his grandfather’s restaurant at the age of 15. Being surrounded by F&B establishments in the family, Frignani decided to take it a step further and explore the world of hotels. He pursued his passion in hospitality by enrolling himself in the César Ritz Colleges Switzerland, where he graduated in International Business in Hospitality and Tourism.
After collecting memorable experiences and embracing magnificent hospitality at the Baur Au Lac, Zurich, Frignani decided to continue his career in the Middle East and moved to Dubai.
Being part of the opening of the very first Armani Hotel Dubai, Frignani’s devotion grew him to Food and Beverage Manager. Leading a stunning F&B collection of restaurants and bars, spanning from refined Italian Dining, upscale Japanese and Indian fine cuisine, his strong, sleeves rolled up leadership led the restaurants to win multiple national and international awards across the years.
After an exciting experience in luxury environments, Frignani further moved to a key F&B role in of one of the largest F&B operations in the UAE, Emirates Flight Catering. Looking over a catering division and over 15 venues across the country, the expertise on commercials and volume operations became invaluable.
It was time to explore a different aspect of Food and Beverage once more. The World Expo took place in Dubai in 2021, and Frignani had the opportunity to be part of the F&B development team that created a unique destination of restaurants, bars and experiential events.
With Valor now, Frignani looks over a vast portfolio of F&B venues, whilst conceptualizing an ever-developing collection of new restaurants, cafés and bars for upcoming properties in Middle East and Asia.
"We have the advantage of combining experiences, ideas, and know-how from a team of experts across the world into this revitalized venture – SAVOR,” said Andrea Frignani, Food and Beverage Director, Middle East & CIS. "SAVOR is going to bring you a team that is very excited to create, evolve and set new benchmarks in the F&B industry."
SAVOR by Valor launches now with these exceptional industry leaders joining forces to create immersive dining concepts around the globe that is fueled by authenticity, creativity and passion. Savoring something is the end result of enjoying something to remember. Join the journey as our F&B experts strategically curate these quality experiences that tell a unique and engaging story, building a comprehensive portfolio of incredible international restaurants that owners around the globe will be thrilled to embrace within their assets. Most importantly, these award winning venues will provide hotel guests, local diners and travelers around the world with unique and beautifully curated food and beverage, rarely found in hotels.
