The Travel Seven: Paul Yellin aka The Rhum Chef
-
Love great cuisine? Savor a fine glass of rum? Then Chef Paul Yellin is your guy. We had the pleasure of witnessing Paul in action at last year's Barbados Food, Wine, Rum Festival (are you coming with us this year?) and plan on being in the front row for his demos this year. As the culinary face of Mount Gay Rum, Paul's flair for pairing food and rum takes him to all points around the globe, check out his travel style with this week's Travel Seven below. See you in Barbados!
-
Name: Paul Francis Yellin - The Rhum ChefHomebase: Charleston, South CarolinaOccupation: Chef , Rum Aficionado, Food Historian & Old Cookbook CollectorWebsite: www.paulfyellin.comPassport Stamps: Barbados , London, New York ,Toronto, Martinique, Barcelona ,Madrid, Dusseldorf, Berlin, Poland, Prague, France, St Lucia, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Aruba, and The Cayman Islands to name a few...
1. My Best Travel Memory So Far: Amsterdam. On my second night there, I turned a corner and literally walked into a friend from Barbados—we just stared at each other for two minutes before we could laugh and realise what just happened. Needless to say, 3 coffee shops, 2 restaurants ,a jazz club, a reggae bar and plenty of dents in rum bottles happened that night!2. Favorite Hotel & Why: The Pan Pacific in Vancouver, British Columbia. I had an awesome room overlooking the harbour, with Whistler Mountain in the distance. There were sea planes taking off and landing and a cruise ship docked 14 floors under my room. It was busy, modern, clean and well situated, right next door to the Eat Vancouver festival at the convention center!3. My Must-Haves On Any Flight Are: My computer, with my music and noise canceling headphones, and a magazine to catch up on news. I also bring my own food as airline food (except for Europe) has degraded into sandwiches, cookies and chips. Also, a pair of comfortable slip on shoes.4. When I’m On The Road, I Absolutely Hate: Running into people who are embarrassing themselves or their country—some people don't know how to behave.5. My Dream Destination Or Vacation: It will be a reality very shortly! Starting in the Bahamas and heading thru the entire Caribbean Islands chain from Cuba to Trinidad and also Central and South America to include Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Venezuela and Guyana. Just absorbing the food, culture and RUMS! Looking forward to the sights and smells, stories and history of these rum producing nations.6. The Three Things I Can’t Travel Without: My passport, some money, and my phone.7. Top Lesson Learned While Traveling: Be patient with people...be straightforward with customs or police...tip well when it is deserved...try to fit in rather than stick out...make an effort to learn about where you are and learn something about the people. Try new things, get out of your shell and if you can—leave with less than you brought. Many people in the world have much less than we do, an act of kindness goes FAR, a t-shirt or a book or a pair of shoes can change someone's life or just make it a little better. I often leave knives and chef jackets behind to young, up-and-coming cooks I work with. Make a friend, not an enemy .-Don’t miss your chance to enjoy paradise, Parlour style! Eat, Play, Love Barbados is Parlour’s fabulous travel deal giving you special discounted rates on top Bajan hotels, including The House, Colony Club and Tamarind, during the Food Wine and Rum Festival November 16-18. Join us!Already on your second or third passport? Join the Travel Seven and submit your answers today to travel@parlourmagazine.com—if we like them we will post on here on Parlour!