Bennetts of Mangawhai

Where was Rémi?

In the French Alps! And creating fantastic desserts as the head of patisserie for St Georges Restaurant in the Hawkes Bay.

Rémi Le Levier joined us at the tender age of twenty and went on to develop three of our most popular chocolates during his time here: the Peanut Butter, the Blackcurrant & Liquorice and the Strawberry & Balsamic.

In his three years away he travelled home to his native Paris, settled in the French Alps close to Geneva, and initially worked in 5 star hotels honing his skills as a chef de partie. It was there that he met pastry chef Olivier Martineau who employed him to open his first chocolaterie.

An entire product range was designed from chocolates and cakes to patisserie and ice-creams, but our shores beckoned. Keen to return New Zealand, Rémi took up the position of head of pastry at St Georges Restaurant in the Hawkes Bay. Here he created a 5 dessert menu using seasonal and fresh products that changed every 4 weeks.

 We are ecstatic to have Remi back with us and look forward to more intriguing flavours and exquisite creations.

 We’ll leave you with Remi’s own words…

 “Working for Bennetts has been my best experience by far, they gave me an incredible opportunity when I was only 20 to come and work for them, managing a team of 13 girls at the time and creating all the new products. It is probably my experience at Bennetts as a chocolatier that has made me the professional I am today. So that is why, coming back to Mangawhai and working for Bennetts is very exciting for me as well as the incredible lifestyle!”

(We didn’t make that up, he honestly said that!)