Kien Wagner

Mr Sokoun Chanpreda, Managing Director of Hospitality Management and Development Asia (HMD Asia) and owner of Shinta Mani Hotels, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Kien Wagner as Executive Chef for Bensley Collection - Shinta Mani Wild, opening on 1 November 2018.

Kien trained as an Apprentice Chef at the Hotel Sullberg in Hamburg, Germany from 2004-2007 and for the next few years worked his way up in various culinary roles within hotels and restaurants in his native country. In August 2010 he moved to Australia as Chef de Partie at the upscale Hayman Island Resort in Queensland's Whitsunday region.

After a brief return to work in Germany followed by a year in Spain, Kien moved to Cambodia as Chef Trainer and Advisor for Friends International in Phnom Penh, an international social enterprise and registered non-governmental organization focusing on children's empowerment. Remaining in Cambodia, he held consulting Chef roles with The Blue Pumpkin and the Metropolitan Group before joining the Knai Bang Chatt Resort as Executive Chef in August 2015. Prior to joining Bensley Collection - Shinta Mani Wild, he was Executive Chef at Anantara Angkor Resort in Siem Reap.

Kien has developed a great passion for Cambodia and its people and it was there he learned that food is medicine and began his personal journey to explore the important relationship between nature, food and well-being. He only consumes fresh natural food, avoiding anything processed or with a barcode. He is adventurous and curious; drilling down to the origins of local cuisine to discover its history. He loves to explore local markets and discover new ingredients and incorporate them into his skillfully created dishes with the utmost attention to detail.