Mattias Roock

The training line runs through Hamburg, the Culinary Institute of America, and Handelskammer Hamburg, before Mattias Roock began as koch in ausbildung in Hamburg. That sequence points to a kitchen path built on formal instruction and repetition first, then widened through service in restaurants and hotels across Germany, Switzerland, the UK, China, and Qatar. The work moved from cook at Claridge’s in London (from 2002) to stationen in der gastronomie at Hotel Giardino in Ascona, then on to souschef at Steigenberger Frankfurter Hof in Frankfurt am Main and Executive Chef at Kempinski Grand Hotel des Bains in St. Moritz (from 2006). International postings later became part of the operating model. In Shanghai, Roock served as Head Chef / rebranding and culinary concept implementation at Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai (2013–2014), a role that required shaping how a kitchen was presented as much as how it cooked. The same applied in Doha, where he took on Head Chef / opening and outlet concepts at Kempinski Hotel Marsa Malaz in Doha, Katar (2014–2016). By the time he arrived at Locanda Barbarossa, Hotel Castello del Sole, the career pattern was clear: European hotel kitchens, then larger concept-led assignments, then a return to Ascona with that accumulated structure intact. Today At Locanda Barbarossa in Ascona, the kitchen under Roock is described through restraint rather than effect. Mattias Roock puts it plainly: "My cuisine is characterized by Mediterranean lightness and is built on the foundation of Classical French cuisine." The useful detail is in the balance. Mediterranean lightness does not erase structure; it sits on top of it. Classical French cuisine remains the base, while the plate stays open enough for brightness to carry through.