Welcome To The Club

PHILIPPE COMBRES:Could you please tell us a bit about your background and how you arrived in St Barth?

JARAD MCCARROLL:Born and raised in South Africa, I only got the opportunity to study to be a chef around the age of 20. I leftSouth Africa and began my journey in Switzerland, I studied at DCT international Hotel and Business management School,where I graduated as Valedictorian. I then worked through some of London’s top Hotel and Restaurants, including theRitz London, Chiltern Firehouse, Harwood Arms, KitchenW8 and more. After almost a decade in London, Charlie VereNicoll found me at Restaurant Ours and brought me to StBarths to work at Hotel Le Toiny Hotel.

PC:How was that?

JM:It started off slightly difficult, as the Island was hit by Hurricane Irma. So for my first year on St Barth, there was no Hotel to work at. I talked with Charlie and I asked to stage abroad and work for free in Copenhagen. This was fascinating,as it is not often you get an opportunity to study under great chefs late in your career. So embarked on an 11 week journey,working at Relae, Amass and Geranium, all top 100 restaurants in the world at that point. I came back and more than ever I was motivated to create more than just a meal, I wanted to create an experience, to create beautiful memories for people to cherish. Le Toiny and I went on to accomplish great things in our small amount of time together. Winning Best Chef of the year on St Barth and the highest rated restaurant in the Caribbean in 2020, by Gault and Millau. And after an excellent beginning,our progress was ended by Covid.

PC: Then you decided to move here to Ocean Club, what is the story behind Ocean Club? We’ve heard a lot of stories about the club. 

JM: I always dreamed about opening my own space, so as I was searching for a space on St Barth, we stumbled across the space that is now the Ocean Club, and immediately I fell in love. Originally we wanted to open a members only club, to deliver a higher level of service, food, and hospitality in St Barth. Realizing almost instantly that the concept would not work, as St Barth is too transient, to exclude people was the wrong call, we opened to everyone and immediately felt better about it.

PC: Maybe “private” doesn’t mean anything in St Barth…

JM:I discovered that if you’re in Miami, or New York, or London,in any of these big cities you join a private members club to surround yourself with like minded individuals. But if you're on St Barth you’re already a part of a private club and you're already surrounded by like minded successful individuals, the island is pretty much one big private club. Our vision, and goals remained the same, to deliver a new dimension of hospitality onSt Barth, we just have a wider audience now.

PC: What is special about Ocean Club?

JM: I am biased as I am completely in love with the Ocean Club And I feel like the space is so unique, so beautiful and so chic. It is honestly such an incredible space that deserves to be enjoyed and used and our team feels grateful to work here each day. Our Goal is to create an offering which matches this space, to bring out its full potential. Elevated food, service and hospitality in a comfortable, warm and friendly environment. My goal is always to elevate our guests’ experience. I understand how important everyone’s time is, and if they are spending it at the Ocean ClubSt Barths, for that little bit of time to be memorable, delicious and unmatched on St Barths.

PC:Could you talk about your relation with the yachting world?

JM: We have a deep love of the Yachting world, and we were designed to be an extension of your yacht, or villa. Our Location and view elevates this love of yachting and allows our yacht owners to look over their yacht while enjoying an exceptional experience at the Ocean Club. We have worked hard to form relationships with the yachting world, and have a partnership with Edmiston and Feadship, both world leaders in their respective fields. These partnerships inspire us to chase excellence and motivate us to keep pushing towards higher standards.

PC:Could you talk a bit about the Club’s design?

JM:The Ocean Club was designed by HBA Miami, which is an industry leading architecture and interior design firm. They did a fantastic job, and were very proud of the design. We love the design and feel like it matches perfectly with our affiliation to yachting and with our style of food and service.PC:Let’s discuss the Green Hearts charity gala that will be taking place here in January, the community along with renown artists will be joining us here at the Ocean Club.

JM: We are very excited to be a part of the Green Hearts Gala and feel privileged to host the event here at the Ocean Club. Giving Back to the community is always important for me and supporting a charitable cause holds a huge amount of value to me. TonyCaramanico is actually a long term friend of mine and will be one of the artists for the Gala. St Barth is our home and giving back to the place which has given us so much, is a great opportunity.

PC:There is a rumor about another Ocean Club, can you tell us more?

JM:I visited the Montauk Yacht Club this year, and I helped them slightly with the menu. They loved the small amount of work I did and loved what we created at the Ocean Club StBarths, so we decided to form a partnership. I am working on a refit of the current restaurant, and a redesign of the space,bringing the same attention to detail that is seen in St Barth,with the same love towards food, service and of course the guest. The Montauk Yacht Club is such an iconic and beautiful location and has so much history behind it, that creating a newOcean Club there didn’t require any thought. It is a privilege and an honor to be expanding our beautiful concept and to have an opportunity to create more unique memories and experiences in New York.

PC:Congrats! Are you ready for the new season in St Barth?

JM: Definitely, Adrien, our team, and I want everyone to know that they are welcome at the Ocean Club St Barths, that we are excited to welcome them into our incredible space. If you are joining us for a sunset cocktail, an epic dinner or just a small moment with a friend, we are excited to see you. We would love nothing more than to share a moment of your time with you and our team is here, ready to create lasting memories. So if you are a lover of St Barth or just visiting for the first time make sure you come and see us.