BVI Charter Yacht Show 2025: The Caribbean Charter Industry at Its Best

The 44th Annual BVI Charter Yacht Society Show once again transformed Nanny Cay into a vibrant celebration of the Caribbean charter industry. Nestled between turquoise waters and Tortola’s green hills, Nanny Cay proved — yet again — to be the perfect host. Its marina team and hotel staff welcomed brokers, crews, and industry professionals with genuine island warmth, creating the ideal atmosphere for four days of showcasing, sampling, and spirited camaraderie.

At the heart of the event is Janet Oliver, the long-standing Executive Director whose steady leadership and unwavering dedication continue to elevate the show year after year. Together with her remarkable team of volunteers, she works tirelessly behind the scenes — coordinating logistics, supporting crews, and ensuring every guest feels both welcomed and cared for. Their combined efforts are the quiet machinery that makes this beloved show shine.

This year brought an impressive fleet of returning favorites, new yachts, and rising-star crews, all poised to launch a dynamic 2025–2026 Caribbean charter season. With a full suite of signature competitions — from cocktails and table décor to cuisine, crew service, and overall presentation — the creative energy was on full display.

A highlight this year was the expanded presence of &Beyond Yacht Charters, newly based at Virgin Gorda Yacht Harbour. Their move from St. Thomas to the BVI aligns perfectly with the territory’s thriving charter culture, and their fleet seamlessly blended into the show’s upbeat spirit.

This year’s Chef Competition ran like a well-oiled galley thanks to coordinator Audrey Boulianne, who kept chefs, crew, and judges happily on course. Our judging trio brought equal parts expertise and personality: Nigel Keegan, founder of Gourmet Foods BVI (www.gourmetfoodsbvi.com), renowned for his refined culinary technique and impeccable sourcing, Leah Phillipa King, and Leah Wheeler — both former winning yacht chefs themselves. Between them, they brought sharp palates, deep galley experience, and just enough friendly mischief to keep the chefs on their toes. Together, they tasted, debated, and devoured their way through the “Sailor’s Comfort” theme with style.

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Chef Kiki Bouman
Yacht Siete Mares – 1st Place Entrée

Born and trained in the Netherlands, Chef KiKi Bouman brings a refined European sensibility and a passion for bright, contemporary flavors to the galley of the luxurious Lagoon Seventy 8 power catamaran Siete Mares. With years of experience in high-end restaurant kitchens, KiKi developed a style defined by precision, balance, and clean, elegant plating.

In 2020, she traded the bustle of land-based restaurants for the rhythm of life at sea, where her creativity—and her warm, easygoing personality—quickly made her a guest favorite. KiKi excels at crafting menus that are both elevated and deeply personal, weaving her Dutch heritage with Caribbean ingredients and Mediterranean influences.

Her talent was unmistakably recognized at the 2025 BVI Charter Yacht Show, where she captured 1st Place – Entrée with her stunning reinterpretation of Kibbeling, a beloved Dutch street food often compared to British fish and chips but traditionally served in smaller, bite-sized pieces. KiKi transformed the humble classic into a sophisticated, yacht-worthy dish featuring tempura seabass, beurre blanc, fondant potato, pickled courgette, herb oil, crème fraîche with caviar, and salmon roe, earning high praise for both technique and storytelling.

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Culinary & Creative Competitions
No charter show is complete without a spark of friendly rivalry, and this year delivered it in style. Alongside the highly anticipated Culinary Competition, attendees enjoyed the Cocktail Competition, the expressive Table Setting Award, the prestigious Best Crew Award, and the always-anticipated Best in Show judging.

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Chef Cole Lackey
Yacht Xandros — 1st Place Appetizer

Texas-born Chef Cole Lackey, the inventive culinary talent aboard Xandros, dazzled judges this year with a dish that was equal parts playful, nostalgic, and technically brilliant: a Lobster Donut — his winning entry for 1st Place Appetizer at the 2025 BVI Charter Yacht Society Chef Competition.

Cole combined the soul of a New England lobster roll with the comfort of a German-inspired kolache, then wrapped it all in a perfectly fried savory donut enriched with beef tallow. Maine lobster, gently warmed in deeply caramelized brown butter, crowned each donut alongside fresh dill and a whisper of crunch. It was indulgent yet elegant — the kind of clever comfort food that makes you smile before you taste it – and remember it long after.

He admitted the dish was a labor of love: “I must have tested the brown butter fifty times,” he laughed. “And the hardest part was definitely the lobster — plus slaving over those donuts in a tiny galley!”

But the effort paid off. His plate captured exactly what this year’s theme — Sailor’s Comfort — was all about: familiar flavors elevated into yacht-worthy finesse.

Cole’s culinary story begins in rural Texas, cooking beside his grandmother “Mema” at the hunting camp from ages 8 to 12. After early restaurant jobs — including one memorable day where he chopped part of his finger — he moved from busboy to BBQ apprentice to serious cook.

At 19 he left Texas for Colorado, snowboarding by day and working nights in busy kitchens. That led him to enroll in the Vail Culinary Arts Program, followed by cooking in four restaurants in two years, and then five years at Sweet Basil, one of Vail’s most respected restaurants known for refined New American cuisine.

Before entering yachting, he worked in high-end fine-dining kitchens across the United States, including restaurants striving for Michelin recognition.

His move to yachts began with freelance work in Croatia, followed by positions aboard monohulls and catamarans, including Bali and Bavaria models, and later aboard an 80’ Sunreef. He also completed a private expedition in Alaska aboard a 30-metre yacht — a highlight of his career.

Now, aboard Xandros, Cole’s philosophy is simple: “Start with the best ingredients, use the best techniques, and make it unforgettable.”

The Winning Dish: LOBSTER DONUT
A warm, savory donut made from enriched dough, fried in a 70/30 blend of beef tallow and avocado oil, forms the base of this playful reimagining of the lobster roll. Maine lobster — blanched, broken down, and gently rewarmed in Cole’s deeply caramelized brown butter — is placed atop each donut and finished with dill and a delicate crunch. A dish that evokes nostalgia while delivering yacht-caliber refinement — beautifully executed in the tight confines of a yacht galley.

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Cocktail Competition — “Portside Pours”
Theme: PORTSIDE POURS with Mount Gay Rum
Crews were challenged to reinvent a traditional cocktail — perhaps a Rum Negroni or Rum Espresso Martini — and present it with sailor’s flair, storytelling, and a generous splash of island personality.

Results:
1st Place: Milla-Emilia Mikaela on ANDIAMO
2nd Place: Luke Holloway on AZURIA
3rd Place: Candace Flatley on C’EST LA VIE

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Table Setting Award — “Home Port”
Theme: HOME PORT
Where do you call home? Which port calls to your heart? Crews answered through color, texture, cultural detail, and meaningful symbolism woven into their tables. House judges noted the standard was exceptional, with heartfelt storytelling throughout.

Results:
Honourable Mention: Coty Fernandez on JAN’S FELINE
Honourable Mention: Kristen Wells on AZURIA

3rd Place: Olivia Cameron on AWATEA
2nd Place: Ariel Thrasher on STELLA MARE
1st Place: Sarai Ben Ari on SIETE MARES

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Chef Emma Stanley
Yacht Do More – Runner Up Appetizer

Chef Emma Stanley wowed the judges with a Beef Wellington that arrived with drama — three perfect little bites nestled under a golden pastry cage, as if they needed guarding from hungry sailors. Each morsel layered rib-eye, mushroom duxelles, horseradish, and a splash of red-wine magic, all crowned with caviar because… why not?

Playful, polished, and wonderfully British, Emma transforms comfort food into pure yacht-deck theatre. No wonder she snagged Runner-Up — her dish had everyone smiling before they even took a bite.

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Culinary Competition — “Sailor’s Comfort”
This year’s culinary theme delighted both chefs and judges: SAILOR’S COMFORT.

The challenge:
Reimagine classic comfort foods from global ports into elevated, yacht-worthy dishes — marrying familiarity with finesse. Chefs drew on nostalgic flavors, then lifted them with refined technique, sophisticated preparation, and elegant plating.

In short: how posh can you make comfort food?

Judging Criteria:
Presentation
Taste
Creativity & Originality
Execution of Craft & Technique
Overall Impression

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Culinary Results
Honourable Mention:Loic Doan Jausoro on JAN’S FELINE

BEST APPETIZER
1st Place: Cole Lackey on XANDROS
Runner Up: Emma Stanley on DO MORE

BEST DESSERT
1st Place: Ulrika Fredrikson on ENDLESS HORIZON
Runner Up: Bianca Cox on PALOMA

BEST ENTRÉE
1st Place: Kiki Bouman on SIETE MARES
Runner Up: Ulrika Fredrikson on ENDLESS HORIZON

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Chef Ulrika Fredrikson
Yacht Endless Horizon – 1st Place Dessert – Runner-Up Entrée

Some chefs win you over with big personalities and booming energy. Ulrika Fredrikson wins you over by doing the opposite. Calm, gentle, quietly focused, and always smiling, the chef of the 80’ Endless Horizon works with the serene confidence of someone who doesn’t need to say much — because her food speaks volumes for her. This year, her dishes did all the talking, earning her First Place in Dessert and Runner-Up in Entrée, making Ulrika one of the true standout talents of the chef competition.

Runner-Up Entrée: Tahitian fusion curry with Tiger Prawns

A dish as graceful as its creator, it  was elegant, composed, and deeply thoughtful — exactly like Ulrika herself.
• Perfectly straight sous-vide tiger prawns, finished with a gentle torch
• A golden coconut arancini that brought comfort and creaminess
• A fragrant Tahitian curry built from scratch, layer by layer, with toasted spices
• Pops of color from papaya ribbons, cilantro oil, and crisp plantain elements — including a delicate coral tuile that looked like a tiny piece of edible art. It was the kind of entrée that showed quiet mastery rather than theatrics — subtle flavors, beautiful balance, and a calm confidence behind every detail.

1st Place Dessert: Tahitian Sticky Rum Cake with Caramelized Banana Ice Cream

Her winning dessert felt like comfort wrapped in sophistication. Warm rum-soaked cake… A silky toffee-rum sauce… A cloud of Tahitian vanilla foam… And her homemade banana ice cream melting gently over almond “sand.” Everything about it felt warm, welcoming, and sincere. No flash — just pure, heartfelt cooking done perfectly. The judges didn’t just love it. They felt it. Even without an interview, Ulrika’s personality comes through in her dishes. She may be soft-spoken, but her talent is anything but quiet. Among a field of bold, gifted competitors, Chef Ulrika distinguished herself with skill, grace, and humility. Her double-placement win — 1st in Dessert and Runner-Up in Entrée — positions her as one of the rising stars of the luxury yacht-chef world.

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Best Crew Award
This award recognizes the heart of the charter experience: warmth, professionalism, teamwork, timing, and the natural grace that turns a great charter into an unforgettable one.

Results:
1st Place: Hylton & Amy Wessels & Candace Flatley on C’EST LA VIE
Runner Up: Bastian Tromp, Kiki Bouman, Dylan Holm & Sarai Ben Ari on SIETE MARES

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Best in Show — Yachts
The Best in Show judging celebrated yachts offering the finest overall charter package: presentation, hospitality, cuisine, comfort, and crew excellence. Winners were recognized across three size ranges and the Motor Yacht division.

Up to 50 ft
1st Place: Florian Rutsch, Michael Makonnen & Sisi Eva Helgadottir, PURPOSE
Runner Up: Henru Strampe & Clara Nicolai Balina, ON A WHIM

51 ft to 59 ft
1st Place: Ariel Thrasher & Matea Kosovik on STELLA MARE
Runner Up: Ruth & Terry Ross on RHAPSODY II

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Chef Bianca Cox
Yacht Paloma – Runner Up Dessert

Chef Bianca Cox brings a warm, elegant culinary style to Paloma, blending her South African roots with a modern, yacht-worthy finesse. Her runner-up dessert — a beautifully balanced Rooibos Milk Tart with Amarula Ice Cream, Almond Shortbread Crumb, Passionfruit Coulis, and Honey Tuile — showcased her signature approach: comforting flavors elevated with refined technique, delicate textures, and thoughtful presentation. Bianca’s galley is a place of calm creativity, where she transforms simple ingredients into dishes that feel both nostalgic and luxuriously fresh.

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60 ft & Up
1st Place: Keith Allen, Casey Strickland, Chene Nel & Christo Theron on AEOLUS
Runner Up: Christian Klopper, Lida Fourie & JD Veldsman on HUNTRESS

Motor Yacht
1st Place: Bastian Tromp, Kiki Bouman, Dylan Holm & Sarai Ben Ari on SIETE MARES
Runner Up: Hylton & Amy Wessels & Candace Flatley on C’EST LA VIE

 

Jan Robinson, Health Coach, Charter Yacht Consultant, 2019 CYBA Hall of Fame, Former Chef Competition Coordinator/Judge, and author of the Ship to Shore Cookbook collection; available on Amazon and [email protected]

Capt. Jan Robinson has written for ALL AT SEA since 2005.