CHEF’S JAM — A Night of colour, taste, and the best cuisine from Cayman’s top chefs

By Christopher Tobutt

The evening began in the Brasserie’s garden, where the last light of the day settled over the trees like a soft curtain and the first glasses of Gonet Blanc de Blancs were poured. Guests wandered in along the garden path, greeted by that unmistakable Brasserie ease —the feeling of being in a real garden, and a home, not a restaurant. The Caribbean Sunrise cocktail — rum, garden mango, lime, pimento leaves — glowed in the glass, a small prelude to the flavours ahead, a kind of opening movement before the orchestra tuned.

From the top of the steps leading down from the restaurant, the chefs introduced themselves one by one, but also introduced one another — a gesture that said as much about the spirit of the night as any dish would. They spoke of where they came from, the culinary traditions they carried, the textures and colours and aromas that shaped them. Some have been in Cayman for decades, others only a handful of years, but each has left a mark on the island’s evolving food culture.

As they moved through the crowd, relaxed and talking with guests, the canapés began to circulate — not afterthoughts, but miniature works of art, each one a signal of the collaboration to come. They were bright, precise, and full of intention: Chef Ervin Horvath’s mahi mahi ceviche with pickled Nelson mango on a baked organic corn tortilla; Chef Thomas Tennant’s land crab salad with boniato vichyssoise and caviar puri; Chef Davide Sannia’s panissa crowned with whipped salt cod, black garlic aioli and orange gel; Chef Dylan Benoit’s Wagyu & wahoo surf and turf crudo with roasted pumpkin and coconut; and the deeply comforting braised lamb breast with summer corn tahina and spicy date adobo from Chef Artemio Lopez and Chef Dean Max. Each canapé tasted impossibly fresh — as if the ingredients had been gathered only moments before — and each one carried the signature of its maker.

Inside, the dining room felt transformed into a working studio for the night. Six chefs — Dean Max, Arte Lopez, Davide Sannia, Ervin Horvath, Thomas Tennant and Dylan Benoit — had come together from different restaurants, different countries, different culinary philosophies, to build a single menu. It’s the sort of thing that sounds simple until you realise how rarely it happens, and how much trust it requires.

Chef Dean Max, the Brasserie’s founder and a pioneer of Cayman’s farm to table movement, brought the quiet confidence of someone who has shaped the island’s culinary identity. Chef Arte Lopez, with more than 25 years of international experience, carried the precision and warmth of a chef who knows how to let local ingredients speak. Chef Thomas Tennant, long a champion of sustainable seafood and Cayman’s farms, added his deep sense of place. Chef Ervin Horvath brought the bold, regional soul of Mexican cuisine; Chef Dylan Benoit, restaurateur and television host, the creative energy of someone who builds worlds as much as dishes; and Chef Davide Sannia, trained in Italy and Spain, the modern Mediterranean clarity that has become his signature. Together, they formed a kind of culinary sextet — distinct voices, shared purpose.

The first course, a clean and confident tuna tartare, set the tone. Then came the Sardinian culurgiones, handmade and filled with Caribbean lobster — a dish that quietly bridged continents. The roasted day grouper followed, paired with a mole verde that deepened without overwhelming. The Wagyu striploin arrived with a gentle smokiness, rich but never heavy. Each course found its companion in the wines — Friuli, Bordeaux, Piedmont — chosen to widen the flavours rather than overshadow them.

Dessert brought the chefs back into view: a Cayman mango and white chocolate cheesecake created by Arte Lopez and Dean Max, a final collaboration in miniature, bright and delicate.

What stood out most, though, wasn’t just the food — though the food was exquisite, fresh, and prepared with a precision that felt effortless. It was the camaraderie behind it. You could feel it in the room: the ease between the chefs, the shared pride in Cayman’s ingredients, the pleasure of working together rather than apart. Cayman’s culinary scene is small enough to be close knit, but Chef’s Jam made that closeness visible.

Simone Ragusa, The Brasserie’s Hospitality General Manager, put it plainly: “Events like Chef’s Jam highlight the strength and maturity of Cayman’s culinary industry… bringing that talent together under one roof reinforces Cayman’s reputation as one of the Caribbean’s leading culinary destinations.”

Chef Dean Max echoed the sentiment: “Chef’s Jam was never just about creating a menu. It was about showcasing the incredible talent we have on this island and demonstrating what is possible when creativity and collaboration take centre stage.”

And as Deidre Redfern noted, “What made Chef’s Jam truly special was seeing six chefs collaborate so seamlessly while guests experienced the diversity and quality that define Cayman’s dining scene today.”

Guests left talking not only about their favourite dishes, but about the experience of seeing six chefs bring their perspectives into one kitchen for a single evening — a reminder of what Cayman’s culinary community can create when it cooks as one.