Mokhtar Mohamed Ekholy has been appointed as Cluster Executive Chef at Yas Island Rotana
Yas Plaza Hotels has appointed Mokhtar Mohamed Ekholy as cluster executive chef at Yas Island Rotana. Ekholy will lead kitchens at Choices, Blue Grill, Rangoli, Aquarius and Y Bar in Yas Island Rotana and oversee future development of menus, events and offers.
Ekholy had his first taste of the culinary world in Egypt. In the year 2000, he started working as a demi chef de partie at Movenpick Hotel in Doha, followed by Intercontinental in Abu Dhabi.
Ekholy's previous experience also includes Intercontinental Abu Dhabi, The Palace Dubai, The Oberoi in Sahl Hasheesh Egypt, Fairmont Ajman, Fairmont Baku Flame Towers and Four Seasons Alexandria.
In 2019, he accepted the role of cluster executive chef opening Boutique19 Hotel and Art Gallery Hotel in Baku, Azerbaijan. in 2020, he decided to go back to the UAE. He began working as executive chef of Saadiyat Beach Club Abu Dhabi before finally taking on his latest challenge at Yas Island Rotana, managing its kitchens that cater to 308 rooms, five F&B outlets and seven meeting rooms.
Ekholy has played roles in mentoring junior chefs, managing sizable teams as well as conducting performance advancement classes to grow talents' abilities in the kitchen. He has completed fundamental training courses like advanced food hygiene, performance management systems and was educated in the Institute of Tourism and Hotel, in which he learned about the disciplines required to run a commercial kitchen at global standards.