At Hilton Saigon, Executive Chef Arnaud Daleau is transforming food waste management through data, daily habits, and creative thinking. Since joining the property five months ago, he’s led with a philosophy rooted in respect, simplicity, and consistency. “We’re rethinking what we already have,” he says. “Nothing needs to go to waste.”
From Paris to Saigon
Arnaud Daleau’s culinary journey began in Michelin-starred restaurants in Paris, where he honed precision and technique but also witnessed the heavy toll of waste. “We used only the best parts,” he recalls. “It made me question what we were throwing away.”
Seeking new challenges, Arnaud left France in 2015, working in Sydney before settling in Vietnam in 2018. He praises Saigon’s community spirit and openness, an environment, he says, that fuels creativity and collaboration in the kitchen.
While Arnaud had long been mindful of food waste, joining Hilton Saigon marked the first time he had the tools to act on it. The hotel had already implemented Winnow’s food waste tracking system, and its daily reports quickly became part of his routine.
“Every morning, I review the data. What was wasted? Why? And how we can fix it,” he explains. Each insight becomes a conversation starter with the team, fostering accountability and shared problem-solving.
The results speak for themselves: in just seven months, the kitchen achieved a 53% reduction in food waste at the Hotel’s restaurant The Strand, saving 48,000 meals annually and cutting 83 tons of CO₂e emissions.
One of the kitchen’s early discoveries was how much food gets lost in daily prep. “Individually, the scraps don’t seem like much,” Arnaud notes. “But over a week, a month, it adds up.”
To tackle this, his team began collecting trimmings in designated bins and transforming them into housemade vegetable stock used in soups, rice, and pasta dishes. Buffet rice, often a high-waste item in Vietnam, is now turned into seafood congee, transforming leftovers into something both traditional and comforting.
One standout on the menu is the Beetroot & Watermelon Gazpacho with focaccia and tomato, a refreshing, zero-waste dish that blends watermelon and unpeeled beetroot, skins and all. “It’s light, bold, and makes use of the whole ingredient,” Arnaud says. “It’s one of those ideas that surprises people.”
Training around sustainability isn’t confined to formal sessions. Instead, Arnaud embeds it into the kitchen’s rhythm of the day. “We talk about it all the time. Can we use this peel? What if we try that stock?” he says. Everyone has ideas, and by empowering his team to contribute, he’s cultivated a mindset shift. “Now they’re thinking about it. That’s where progress starts.”
While internal efforts have surged, Arnaud sees more opportunity in sharing the kitchen’s journey with guests. His long-term goal is also to localize sourcing, aiming to procure all ingredients from within 60 kilometers of the hotel. While some imports remain necessary, he’s hopeful Vietnam’s agricultural sector will continue growing to make this vision a reality.
“Just start it. Don’t be afraid. There is no small or big step. The fact that you think about food waste means you're ready.” Begin by separating your waste. That becomes a habit. Then build from there, step by step.
Arnaud Daleau’s leadership at Hilton Saigon proves that sustainability in hospitality doesn’t require sweeping changes, just intention, teamwork, and a willingness to start.