CHEF IAN PENGELLEY IS A CULINARY VISIONEER WITH NEARLY FOUR DECADES OF EXPERIENCE SHAPING JAPANESE AND PAN-ASIAN DINING. HIS JOURNEY BEGAN IN HONG KONG AT JUST 16 AND SPANNED ASIA’S CULINARY CAPITALS BEFORE LEADING ACCLAIMED LONDON RESTAURANTS SUCH AS E&O, GILGAMESH, AND CHAI WU.

 IN SAUDI ARABIA, IAN HAS REDEFINED THE FINE DINING LANDSCAPE. HE IS THE CULINARY VISIONEER BEHIND MYAZU, NAMED BEST RESTAURANT IN SAUDI ARABIA AT THE 2021 MENA 50 BEST AWARDS AND CONSISTENTLY RANKED IN THE MENA 50 BEST LIST THROUGH 2025. BUILDING ON THIS SUCCESS.

 IN 2023 IAN, TOGETHER WITH EXECUTIVE CHEF BARRY ANDREWS, LAUNCHED ROBATA, A CONTEMPORARY ROBATAYAKI CONCEPT THAT BRINGS HOKKAIDO’S FIRESIDE COOKING TRADITIONS INTO A MODERN FINE DINING EXPERIENCE. UNDER IAN’S LEADERSHIP, ROBATA HAS QUICKLY BECOME ONE OF RIYADH’S MOST DYNAMIC RESTAURANTS, EARNING MULTIPLE LOCAL AWARDS FOR ITS ELEVATED JAPANESE CUISINE AND OPEN CHARCOAL GRILL ARTISTRY. HE ALSO OVERSEES KAYZO, A CONTEMPORARY CASUAL JAPANESE BRAND.

A DEDICATED MENTOR, IAN CONTINUES TO INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHEFS, PUSHING CULINARY BOUNDARIES AND ELEVATING THE KINGDOM’S FINE DINING SCENE.

CHEF BARRY ANDREWS IS CELEBRATED FOR HIS INVENTIVE APPROACH TO JAPANESE CUISINE AND HIS ABILITY TO BUILD DYNAMIC KITCHENS THAT DEFINE SAUDI ARABIA’S FINE DINING EVOLUTION. ORIGINALLY FROM GLASGOW, SCOTLAND, BARRY BRINGS NEARLY 20 YEARS OF CULINARY EXPERIENCE, BEGINNING WITH CLASSICAL SCOTTISH-FRENCH TRAINING BEFORE IMMERSING HIMSELF IN ASIA AND AUSTRALIA. HIS CAREER FLOURISHED IN LONDON, WHERE HE MASTERED PAN-ASIAN TECHNIQUES ALONGSIDE HIS MENTOR, CHEF IAN PENGELLEY.

AS EXECUTIVE CHEF OF JAPANESE BRANDS AT MODERN FOOD COMPANY (MFC), BARRY HAS BEEN A DRIVING FORCE IN SHAPING THE KINGDOM’S CONTEMPORARY JAPANESE DINING. IN MAY 2023, HE PARTNERED WITH CHEF IAN TO LAUNCH ROBATA, A CONTEMPORARY ROBATAYAKI CONCEPT IN RIYADH THAT BLENDS HOKKAIDO’S FIRESIDE TRADITIONS WITH MODERN FLAIR. UNDER BARRY’S LEADERSHIP, ROBATA HAS QUICKLY BECOME ONE OF THE CITY’S MOST EXCITING RESTAURANTS, EARNING MULTIPLE LOCAL AWARDS AND, IN 2025, BEING RECOGNIZED IN THE 50 BEST DISCOVERY PLATFORM—A GROUNDBREAKING ACHIEVEMENT IN JUST ITS SECOND YEAR.

 ALONGSIDE ROBATA, BARRY ALSO OVERSEES THE CULINARY PROGRAMS AT MYAZU—RANKED IN THE MENA 50 BEST RESTAURANTS SINCE 2021—AND THE CASUAL JAPANESE BRAND KAYZO, GUIDING EACH TO CONTINUED SUCCESS. IN 2024, HIS LEADERSHIP WAS FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGED WHEN HE WAS NAMED EXECUTIVE CHEF OF THE YEAR AT THE CATERER SAUDI AWARDS.

RENOWNED FOR HIS VIBRANT, TEAM-FOCUSED KITCHEN CULTURE, BARRY BALANCES CREATIVITY, PRECISION, AND HUMOR—HIS PHILOSOPHY BEST SUMMED UP AS “A LITTLE FIRE, A LITTLE FLAIR, AND A WHOLE LOT OF FUN.”

CHEF ROY DE CASTRO IS THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND THE SUSHI PROGRAM AT ROBATA, WHERE HIS PRECISION AND AUTHENTICITY BRING BALANCE TO THE RESTAURANT’S CONTEMPORARY ROBATAYAKI CONCEPT. HIS MASTERY OF SUSHI ARTISTRY COMPLEMENTS THE OPEN CHARCOAL GRILL, CREATING A DINING EXPERIENCE THAT SEAMLESSLY UNITES FIRE AND FINESSE. AT ROBATA, ROY ENSURES THAT EVERY PIECE OF SUSHI REFLECTS THE SAME LEVEL OF INNOVATION, SEASONALITY, AND REFINEMENT THAT DEFINE THE RESTAURANT’S AWARD-WINNING REPUTATION.

ROY’S ROLE EXTENDS ACROSS MODERN FOOD COMPANY’S PORTFOLIO, CONTRIBUTING HIS EXPERTISE TO MYAZU, ONE OF THE KINGDOM’S MOST RECOGNIZED JAPANESE RESTAURANTS, AND TO KAYZO, THE GROUP’S CONTEMPORARY CASUAL JAPANESE BRAND. IN 2025, ROY WAS A FEATURED SPEAKER AT THE TOP TABLE SAUDI MASTERCLASS DURING THE SAUDI FOOD SHOW, WHERE HE PRESENTED ALONGSIDE CHEF JOHN MENDOZA ON JAPANESE CUISINE AND SUSHI TECHNIQUES—FURTHER CEMENTING HIS STATUS AS ONE OF SAUDI ARABIA’S LEADING SUSHI AUTHORITIES.

 WORKING CLOSELY WITH CHEF IAN PENGELLEY AND CHEF BARRY ANDREWS, ROY ANCHORS THE SUSHI IDENTITY OF ROBATA, ENSURING TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE, AUTHENTICITY, AND A GUEST EXPERIENCE THAT SETS A NEW STANDARD FOR JAPANESE DINING IN RIYADH.

CHEF JOHN MENDOZA LEADS THE KITCHEN AT ROBATA, WHERE HIS BALANCE OF PRECISION, DISCIPLINE, AND CREATIVITY DEFINES ONE OF RIYADH’S MOST DYNAMIC CONTEMPORARY ROBATAYAKI RESTAURANTS. HIS LEADERSHIP ENSURES EVERY DISH REFLECTS THE RESTAURANT’S ETHOS OF FIRE, FINESSE, AND MODERN JAPANESE ARTISTRY.

ORIGINALLY FROM THE PHILIPPINES, JOHN’S CULINARY JOURNEY HAS TAKEN HIM ACROSS INTERNATIONAL STAGES. HE REFINED HIS CRAFT AT NOBU MIAMI AND NOBU MANILA, WHERE HE DEVELOPED A DEEP RESPECT FOR JAPANESE PRECISION, OMAKASE TRADITION, AND THE PURSUIT OF CULINARY EXCELLENCE. AFTER SERVING AS HEAD SUSHI CHEF AT MYAZU, JOHN STEPPED INTO HIS CURRENT ROLE AS HEAD CHEF OF ROBATA, WHERE HE CONTINUES TO ELEVATE THE BRAND’S REPUTATION AS A DESTINATION FOR CONTEMPORARY JAPANESE DINING.

 IN 2025, JOHN REPRESENTED ROBATA AT THE TOP TABLE SAUDI MASTERCLASS DURING THE SAUDI FOOD SHOW, PRESENTING ALONGSIDE REGIONAL CULINARY LEADERS ON JAPANESE CUISINE AND SUSHI TECHNIQUES. INSPIRED BY MENTORS SUCH AS IAN PENGELLEY, BARRY ANDREWS, AND ROY DE CASTRO, HE COMBINES REFINED TECHNIQUE WITH PLAYFUL INNOVATION, ALWAYS STRIVING TO CREATE DISHES THAT BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER.