Two-star chef David Martin signs exclusively with top caterer Gourmet Invent for two years. The top chef and owner of La Paix** (Anderlecht) will assist Gourmet Invent in the further development of retail brand Tom & Della's.
Just over a year ago Gourmet Invent launched Tom & Della’s, a retail brand of premium salads for parent company Compass Group Belgium. In order to secure the development of new product ranges, Gourmet has enlisted the aid of two star chef David Martin.
Bart Vandendooren, CEO Gourmet Invent: “The development of Tom & Della’s has been ongoing this past year. We continue to focus on product development and product innovation. Quality and premium levels are the keywords. To help us in further developments, we have solicited the aid of David Martin to support our own chefs.”
David Martin and Gourmet Invent already have a mutual history. Recently, the company teamed with Martin and Filip Claeys (De Jonkman **) for the development of The Experience Box: a home-delivered box culinary meal for the past holiday season. But of course Martin is best known for his work at La Paix ** in Anderlecht. With his attention to details and techniques and with surprise flavour combinations, he transformed his in-laws top brasserie into a two star restaurant. For his work at La Paix, Gault&Millay also named him Chef of the Year in 2019.
David Martin: “I am known to go against the current and to try new things against the reigning trends. That is the only way to keep ahead of those trends and to deliver truly cutting edge work. The collaboration with Gourmet Invent presses me to think differently about the things I create, the techniques I use, the products, etc. So I’m really looking forward to working with them on new creations for a wider audience.”
For Gourmet Invent, this marks the third major announcement in a few months time. The company moved to a brand-new production unit in Nazareth (Ghent) early in 2021, and just last week it announced a structural collaboration with fellow top caterer Amalthea.
Bart Vandendooren: “The past year was just horrible for a lot of industries, including ours. We have use this down-time to push our boundaries, and not only in a culinary sense. There is a lot going on in the hospitality business, in food, in retail, … The opportunies for cross-fertilisation are numerous. And we absolutely want to play a major part in that transformation. And we share David’s vision: if you’re really top you don’t follow the trends, you create them.”
About Tom & Della’s
Tom & Della’s is Compass Group Belgium’s premium retail brand. Launched in March 2020, Tom & Della’s range is expanding rapidly and consists of top level meal salads. Product development and production is handled by Gourmet Invent. All Tom & Della’s salads are handmade at our new production hub in Nazareth. Tom & Della’s uses only quality products, without further additives.
About Gourmet Invent
Gourmet Invent has been in the top 3 in the Belgian catering world for years. The company has over 30 years of experience and has an excellent reputation in private events, hospitality catering and corporate events. Gourmet Invent is primarily known as house caterer at Waregem Koerse, Jumping Mechelen the Ghelamco Arena (AA Gent), the Jan Breydel stadium (Club Brugge), the Rainbowstadium (Zulte Waregem) and the Bosuilstadium (Royal Antwerp FC). It has ongoing collaborations with over 70 partner locations across Belgium, a.o. ICC Gent, Hippolggia, Brussels Expo and Flanders Expo.
Gourmet Invent has been a part of Compass Group Belgium since 2019. Recently (January 2021), the company move to brand new production facilities in Nazareth, near Ghent. The company employs 60 staff and has a yearly turnover of 13 million euros.
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