Inside Intercontinental Danang’s Inaugural Artisan Stories Food Festival
From Michelin-starred collaborations to beachfront feasts, the six-day event united some of the world’s most acclaimed culinary and creative talents for a showcase of culinary excellence.
For six days in June, the secluded shores of the Son Tra Peninsula became the setting for one of Southeast Asia’s most ambitious culinary gatherings. At InterContinental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort, the inaugural Artisan Stories festival welcomed a roster of world-renowned chefs, mixologists and creatives, transforming the beachfront retreat into a stage where fine dining became a medium for storytelling—and cementing its status as a culinary destination in its own right.
On the first night of our four-day visit, we were treated to a six-hands dinner at Tingara, the resort’s omakase restaurant. There, Chef de Cuisine Tetsuhiko Isozaki and Sushi Head Chef Tsuneyoshi Taira were joined by Chef Cuong Nguyen, chef-patron of An’s Saigon, the Ho Chi Minh City restaurant known for its progressive take on Vietnamese cuisine. Together, the trio presented a menu that married Japanese technique with Vietnamese ingredients. A premium selection of Japanese sashimi preceded an entrée of pork jowl, mắm tôm chà (pressed shrimp paste), strawberries and Vietnamese herbs, all served atop prawn crackers and rolled together in a manner reminiscent of gỏi cuốn (fresh spring rolls). Each course was accompanied by a beverage pairing, including Champagne Billecart-Salmon Brut Le Réserve NV alongside a selection of premium wines and sakes curated by leading distributor Celliers d’Asie.
The second evening began with a Champagne and caviar masterclass hosted by Champagne Billecart-Salmon and Kaluga Queen, one of the world’s largest caviar producers and a supplier to more than 27 three-Michelin-starred restaurants in France. We sampled both osetra and beluga caviar while raising a toast to the evening ahead with flutes of champagne.
As sunset approached, guests gathered at Terra Mare, the resort’s beachfront restaurant dedicated to coastal Italian cuisine. For Artisan Stories, the venue came alive with music and the aromas of Italian classics, from burrata with tomatoes and grilled lobster to freshly baked margherita pizza.
The series played its crescendo on the third night, with Bill Bensley X Christian Le Squer: The Art of Joie de Vivre. The event brought together two of the resort’s most defining creative forces: Bill Bensley, the visionary designer behind InterContinental Danang, and Chef Christian Le Squer, the three-Michelin-starred French chef who continues to shape the culinary identity of La Maison 1888. The restaurant remains the only Michelin-starred dining destination in Central Vietnam, a distinction it has retained for the third year.
Le Squer is renowned for his contemporary interpretation of French haute cuisine, where precision and artistry converge on every plate. At La Maison 1888, he works alongside Chef de Cuisine Jean-Louis Angulo to create dishes that are as visually striking as they are flavourful. Aptly, that same sense of vibrancy can be found in Bensley’s latest collection of paintings, inspired by Son Tra’s rare red-shanked douc langurs. Titled “Critically Well Behaved: Paintings of Red-Shanked Doucs”, “Human Vanity”, and “The Fragile Comedy of Survival”, the series places the endangered primates in whimsical and vividly imagined scenes, serving as the artistic foundation for the collaboration.
For The Art of Joie de Vivre, Le Squer drew inspiration from Bensley’s works and the lush surroundings of the resort. “My approach to creating a dish is very similar to that of artistic disciplines such as architecture or painting. I would like guests to take away a sense of the connection between two men, two cultures and a union between two ‘unmanageable’ artists,” he said.
Under a canopy of stars and accompanied by the sound of waves breaking against the shore, the evening unfolded as a showcase of refined modern French cuisine. Standout dishes included potato gnocchi with saffron and black olives in a vibrant basil broth, and olive flounder paired with watercress, grated pear and dollops of gel dulce. Each course was accompanied by a carefully selected French wine, adding another layer of depth and expression to the experience.
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