“With a strong passion for travel, I clubbed it with my career and trekked around the world working at some of the most luxurious establishments in the hospitality industry including 3 Michelin star restaurants Residence Heinz Winkler”, he tells us with much gusto.
“I always wanted to work abroad but did not know that I will end up in 14 different countries. That was never part of the plan,” he adds amused.
In his 30 years of culinary journey, Krampl has had the good fortune of working at some of the swankiest busiest hotels such as The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Sydney, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Jamaica, The Regent Hotel - Hong Kong, The Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok, The Grand Hyatt Mumbai - India, The Ritz-Carlton Bali - Indonesia, The Pre-opening office at The Ritz-Carlton - Dubai, International Financial Centre, The Ritz Carlton & JW Marriott Hotels - Beijing JW Marriott Hotel - Seoul, Regional Office Marriott International - Europe and now the Middle East and Africa.
He reckons that one will always keep meeting people who in turn further knows someone looking for a chef or it could be internal transfers within your own company that creates these opportunities. For him, it was all about being at the right place at the right time.
He says, “While I acquired many skills in my culinary journey, my basic techniques remained the same: simple, tasty and authentic food using the best seasonal ingredients and prepared with simple cooking methods. It is always more challenging to cook simple and minimalistic than making an elaborate dish with multiply ingredients.”
Simple is definitely more scrumptious Chef Andreas, we agree.
Entrusted with the basic tasks in the kitchen for making lunch for the family, little Andreas boiled the pasta, baked potatoes, reheated leftovers and made salads whilst his mom was at work. He was all about 11-12 years old then.
The turning point, however, was the dining experience at the Michelin star restaurant that had newly opened in his city. “I was amazed to taste a dish common in German households (Spaetzle with Jus), that I had eaten a hundred times before, taste so different. Sitting in a restaurant in that plush ambience was an experience so beautiful that I was completely hooked”, he recollects so vividly.
At 13 years, he did a month-long internship in a professional kitchen in his home town as part of a job experience activity from school which he enjoyed very much. Soon, basic lunches at home turned into elaborate meals on the weekends.
According to Krampl, he got his culinary talent from his grandmother. During the period before and after the war, there were few to no restaurants in the small towns and villages around Germany, and so the best cooks were called from around to cook for weddings and special occasions, and his grandma was always one of them. He fondly says, “She really enjoyed cooking until her late 80’s and it was always a delight to taste her food and speak to her about cooking.”
What unsurprisingly followed was a graduate degree from the Culinary Trade school Bad Ueberkingenin Germany. He has since then trotted across the Globe, spending most of his time in the Asia Pacific discovering the secrets of Authentic Asian cuisine.
Having the good fortune to travel to so many different places has its memorable moments and challenges too. For Krampl, Hong Kong was a terrific time as learning Cantonese food for a German was very special.
One of the other places that hold a special place is Grand Hyatt Mumbai which was his first job as an Executive Chef. “Suddenly I was in charge of 310 chefs and multiple restaurants”, recalling the feeling of overwhelm. Luckily for Chef Andreas, he had a very supportive F&B director (who used to be a chef), who helped him to cope and learn in his first year. “Without him, I would not be where I am today”, he gratefully acknowledges.
Bali was a living dream and working at the Ritz-Carlton was also very special. He also has a liking for Thai food and his first son was born there, so Bangkok takes the spot where special connections are concerned.
“Marriott has always been good to me, and I was lucky to work at some Key Hotels and be a part of many GM meetings, conferences, photoshoots, workshops etc… I had access to the top cooperate leaders and the cream of culinary talent. Being part of this circle has helped me to develop additional skills, knowledge and expertise to enable me to aim for a cooperate role within our company”, he tells us sounding well accomplished.
Speaking of accomplishments, Chef Andreas has several awards under his chef’s hat. Too many in fact to list it all here. The first one was when he was under 21 years, winning the Silver- Bailliage Regional, Commis de Cuisine at the highly regarded Chain de Rotisseur Competition.
When asked about his time onboard cruise ship – Crystal Symphony, a 6 Star Luxury passenger ship, with 960 guest capacity and 6 Restaurants, he points that this was real learning about organization and hard work. Travelling around the world on a ship, working with so many different nationalities, and cooking classical dishes to perfection for 1000 guests is monumental indeed. “I was in charge of the grill section and the head to cook up to 600+ steaks at temperature to order. That’s where I learned how to grill very fast”, says Krampl waving his hands in the air as though he is in the act right now.
Operating two luxury hotels with 300+ kitchen staff in China was a challenge he says. Then Hong Kong during SARS with occupancy levels of only about 3-5% was equally distressing. Also, the time in Seoul when the political scene between Seoul and North Korea caused businesses to drop by nearly 60% for 3-5 months.
“No matter what the time, a day without learning something new is a waste…. don’t waste your days. There is no shortcut to success and perfection, master your basics, practice your skills, work hard and learn from the very best”, is his advice to all his subordinates.
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Andreas also regularly appeared in the Korea Today Breakfast television program which was broadcast live across Asia showcasing traditional and modern Korean dishes. “That was a different experience altogether,” he says in exhilaration. He also categorically adds that there is no space for any mistake on a live show as there are no retakes and so everything has to be smooth and perfect, quite unlike a kitchen where there is the luxury of redoing things to make it great.
Additionally, he was Advisory Board Chef for all Marriott managed Hotels in South Korea and Japan, where he had around 18 hotels to look after and worked on programs and training for all Kitchen teams. Speaking of his mammoth responsibility, he tells us, “Korean and Japanese chefs are very disciplined, hard-working and always aiming for perfection, which of course is a dream for any chef to work with”.
Getting nostalgic about his time in Korea he remembers the amazing food culture, and the many local and authentic experiences he had, like making his own meju (brick of dried fermented soybeans) using his feet, to then let it air dry and eventually making soy sauce; salting and making his own Kimchi (traditional side dish of salted and fermented vegetables) are some of his most cherished memories.
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Now he enjoys spending time in the Properties and on the ground to share ideas with the culinary team on finding ways to push the culinary edge and lay the foundation to provide the best dining experience to the guests.
“Not sure what the future will bring. I have always wanted to broaden my knowledge and venture towards larger responsibilities. Marriott is 7000 + Hotels strong and we are always expanding. Will see where I can contribute in the best way moving forward”, says Krampl.
For his personal moments, he likes to get himself a motorbike to explore and experience the local surroundings and areas from where he lives and of course get a taste of the local food. Football also finds a place with him and he regularly follows his favourite team Borussia Dortmund. Weekends are spent watching Saturday league games of his elder son, something that he really values & treasures.
He has these words of wisdom to share with all the young chefs wanting to make it big,
“With a strong passion for travel, I clubbed it with my career and trekked around the world working at some of the most luxurious establishments in the hospitality industry including 3 Michelin star restaurants Residence Heinz Winkler”, he tells us with much gusto.
“I always wanted to work abroad but did not know that I will end up in 14 different countries. That was never part of the plan,” he adds amused.
In his 30 years of culinary journey, Krampl has had the good fortune of working at some of the swankiest busiest hotels such as The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Sydney, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Jamaica, The Regent Hotel - Hong Kong, The Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok, The Grand Hyatt Mumbai - India, The Ritz-Carlton Bali - Indonesia, The Pre-opening office at The Ritz-Carlton - Dubai, International Financial Centre, The Ritz Carlton & JW Marriott Hotels - Beijing JW Marriott Hotel - Seoul, Regional Office Marriott International - Europe and now the Middle East and Africa.
He reckons that one will always keep meeting people who in turn further knows someone looking for a chef or it could be internal transfers within your own company that creates these opportunities. For him, it was all about being at the right place at the right time.
He says, “While I acquired many skills in my culinary journey, my basic techniques remained the same: simple, tasty and authentic food using the best seasonal ingredients and prepared with simple cooking methods. It is always more challenging to cook simple and minimalistic than making an elaborate dish with multiply ingredients.”
Simple is definitely more scrumptious Chef Andreas, we agree.
Entrusted with the basic tasks in the kitchen for making lunch for the family, little Andreas boiled the pasta, baked potatoes, reheated leftovers and made salads whilst his mom was at work. He was all about 11-12 years old then.
The turning point, however, was the dining experience at the Michelin star restaurant that had newly opened in his city. “I was amazed to taste a dish common in German households (Spaetzle with Jus), that I had eaten a hundred times before, taste so different. Sitting in a restaurant in that plush ambience was an experience so beautiful that I was completely hooked”, he recollects so vividly.
At 13 years, he did a month-long internship in a professional kitchen in his home town as part of a job experience activity from school which he enjoyed very much. Soon, basic lunches at home turned into elaborate meals on the weekends.
According to Krampl, he got his culinary talent from his grandmother. During the period before and after the war, there were few to no restaurants in the small towns and villages around Germany, and so the best cooks were called from around to cook for weddings and special occasions, and his grandma was always one of them. He fondly says, “She really enjoyed cooking until her late 80’s and it was always a delight to taste her food and speak to her about cooking.”
What unsurprisingly followed was a graduate degree from the Culinary Trade school Bad Ueberkingenin Germany. He has since then trotted across the Globe, spending most of his time in the Asia Pacific discovering the secrets of Authentic Asian cuisine.
Having the good fortune to travel to so many different places has its memorable moments and challenges too. For Krampl, Hong Kong was a terrific time as learning Cantonese food for a German was very special.
One of the other places that hold a special place is Grand Hyatt Mumbai which was his first job as an Executive Chef. “Suddenly I was in charge of 310 chefs and multiple restaurants”, recalling the feeling of overwhelm. Luckily for Chef Andreas, he had a very supportive F&B director (who used to be a chef), who helped him to cope and learn in his first year. “Without him, I would not be where I am today”, he gratefully acknowledges.
Bali was a living dream and working at the Ritz-Carlton was also very special. He also has a liking for Thai food and his first son was born there, so Bangkok takes the spot where special connections are concerned.
“Marriott has always been good to me, and I was lucky to work at some Key Hotels and be a part of many GM meetings, conferences, photoshoots, workshops etc… I had access to the top cooperate leaders and the cream of culinary talent. Being part of this circle has helped me to develop additional skills, knowledge and expertise to enable me to aim for a cooperate role within our company”, he tells us sounding well accomplished.
Speaking of accomplishments, Chef Andreas has several awards under his chef’s hat. Too many in fact to list it all here. The first one was when he was under 21 years, winning the Silver- Bailliage Regional, Commis de Cuisine at the highly regarded Chain de Rotisseur Competition.
When asked about his time onboard cruise ship – Crystal Symphony, a 6 Star Luxury passenger ship, with 960 guest capacity and 6 Restaurants, he points that this was real learning about organization and hard work. Travelling around the world on a ship, working with so many different nationalities, and cooking classical dishes to perfection for 1000 guests is monumental indeed. “I was in charge of the grill section and the head to cook up to 600+ steaks at temperature to order. That’s where I learned how to grill very fast”, says Krampl waving his hands in the air as though he is in the act right now.
Operating two luxury hotels with 300+ kitchen staff in China was a challenge he says. Then Hong Kong during SARS with occupancy levels of only about 3-5% was equally distressing. Also, the time in Seoul when the political scene between Seoul and North Korea caused businesses to drop by nearly 60% for 3-5 months.
“No matter what the time, a day without learning something new is a waste…. don’t waste your days. There is no shortcut to success and perfection, master your basics, practice your skills, work hard and learn from the very best”, is his advice to all his subordinates.
Andreas also regularly appeared in the Korea Today Breakfast television program which was broadcast live across Asia showcasing traditional and modern Korean dishes. “That was a different experience altogether,” he says in exhilaration. He also categorically adds that there is no space for any mistake on a live show as there are no retakes and so everything has to be smooth and perfect, quite unlike a kitchen where there is the luxury of redoing things to make it great.
Additionally, he was Advisory Board Chef for all Marriott managed Hotels in South Korea and Japan, where he had around 18 hotels to look after and worked on programs and training for all Kitchen teams. Speaking of his mammoth responsibility, he tells us, “Korean and Japanese chefs are very disciplined, hard-working and always aiming for perfection, which of course is a dream for any chef to work with”.
Getting nostalgic about his time in Korea he remembers the amazing food culture, and the many local and authentic experiences he had, like making his own meju (brick of dried fermented soybeans) using his feet, to then let it air dry and eventually making soy sauce; salting and making his own Kimchi (traditional side dish of salted and fermented vegetables) are some of his most cherished memories.
Now he enjoys spending time in the Properties and on the ground to share ideas with the culinary team on finding ways to push the culinary edge and lay the foundation to provide the best dining experience to the guests.
“Not sure what the future will bring. I have always wanted to broaden my knowledge and venture towards larger responsibilities. Marriott is 7000 + Hotels strong and we are always expanding. Will see where I can contribute in the best way moving forward”, says Krampl.
For his personal moments, he likes to get himself a motorbike to explore and experience the local surroundings and areas from where he lives and of course get a taste of the local food. Football also finds a place with him and he regularly follows his favourite team Borussia Dortmund. Weekends are spent watching Saturday league games of his elder son, something that he really values & treasures.
He has these words of wisdom to share with all the young chefs wanting to make it big,
