The brainchild of Belgian artists Filip Sterckx and Antoon Verbeeck, Le Petit Chef has been delighting diners since 2015.  The animated show uses optical illusion techniques to project a little chef cooking on diners’ plates. 

Its creators teamed up with entrepreneur creator Nadine Beshir as they were keen to offer a unique new dining experience in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

The team created 'Le Petit Chef in the footsteps of Marco Polo' to delight diners in Dubai’s World Trade Club, located on the 33rd floor of the World Trade Center Sheikh Rashid Tower and the Ritz Carlton Grand Canal in Abu Dhabi.

This two-hour dining show tells the story of how the world's smallest chef followed the route of Marco Polo from his home town of Marseille to Arabian and Indian markets, up Mount Everest and across to China. The show’s six course menu takes the guest along a culinary journey across the regions visited by the legendary traveller. 

The animation is projected using Optoma’s HD28DSE full HD 1080p projectors. The Ritz in Abu Dhabi uses one per couple – a total of 13 for its 26 guests. The World Trade Center Club uses one projector per person due to the venue’s low ceiling, with a maximum capacity of 16 guests. At both locations, BrightSign media players are used to send the videos to the projectors.

Filip said: “This has been a very cool project to work on. Animation is really time consuming, so a lot of our projects have a short duration. So to make something longer, and that is not only a projection but a full experience in which all senses are triggered, feels really rewarding and is very inspiring for future projects.”

The main challenge Skullmapping encountered was to produce a lot of content with different scenery, in a very short period of time. Filip commented: “We only had around three months to complete this project, so we ended up working close to day and night to finish it, working weekends – we kept going until it was done.”

Filip added: “We decided to do something around Marco Polo as his journey is so well known and he travelled to so many exotic places known for their food and spices. Nadine produced the show – she looked for a chef, locations, the investment and the props which go along with each dish, and a thousand other things!”

The unparalleled 3D show is complimented by a unique gastronomic experience full of fun and surprises. Diners engage in a five-sense spectacle as they savour the tastes of the story along with its sights, sounds and aromas. 

Filip says that the feedback has ranged from “great to amazing! People really seem to enjoy the whole experience. They connect to the character of the petit chef and with his journey, and really love the food as well as how it is presented.”

The story of Le Petit Chef, as he follows the path of Marco Polo in his quest for inspiration and adventure, will be going on a journey of its own.  Le Petit Chef In The Footsteps Of Marco Polo was designed as a travelling pop-up restaurant, so after featuring in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, will travel to other locations including London, Scandinavia, Berlin, Egypt and China.

Animation Credits:
Concept and Story: Filip Sterckx + Antoon Verbeeck + Nadine Beshir
Producer: Nadine Beshir
Creative Director: Filip Sterckx
3D artists: Filip Sterckx + Antoon Verbeeck + Birgit Sterckx + Paulina Zybinska
Chef: Tomas Reger
Sound design: Roundhouse
Partner: Shehab Nawawi + Hoda Abdelhameed
Lights: Hoda Abdelhameed
Production assistant: Injy Beshir
Food Styling: Alia El Sawy

For the full story of 'Le Petit Chef in the footsteps of Marco Polo' read Alice Gustafson’s article in: www.commercialintegrator.eu/le-petit-chef-marco-polo-3d

Dinner Time Stories
Dinner Time Stories is a unique unparalleled pop-up restaurant concept that combines projection, creative movie making and an innovative menu.  Le Petit Chef is currently serving this unforgettable dining experience in Abu Dhabi and Dubai with forthcoming venues planned for London, Scandinavia, Berlin, Egypt and China.  
To book a table visit: www.dinnertimestory.com

Installation:
Skullmapping is an artistic collective run by Filip Sterckx and Antoon Verbeeck. By using 3D projection mapping techniques, and a profound artistic knowledge, Skullmapping tells stories with stunning bespoke visuals. The team creates projections on buildings, in boxes, on shapes or simply on the ground and adds extra dimensions, optical illusions, and notions of movement onto previously static objects. 

Facebook: @skullmapping 
Email: [email protected] 
www.skullmapping.com

Image copyright ©Skullmapping