My story

This is my story. Truth be told, it is a story of a journey that has led me till here 20 years down the line. Like any journey which you might undertake, it will take you from a point to another. Mine certainly has, a road filled with adventures, lost directions, U-turns, speed breakers and the occasional detours from the tracks. I will modestly say my life has been rewarding and satisfying so far as a hotelier.

Having worked in almost all levels within the food and Beverage department in hotels and hospitality sector i.e from being a kitchen helper,Chef De parte to a Sous chef. From being a Food and Beverage controller/Stores to a restaurant manager, Events and Banqueting Co-ordinator to a catering officer in different organizations. Generally, i do food, eat food and dream food whether service or production.As a private chef now, i still do corporate catering and sharing my experience to new upcoming chefs and young hospitality managers.

Growing up as a chef has never been easy. Not only having to toil away in professional kitchens: work for long hours, monotony pressures of running top-class kitchens takes a toll on chefs what could be assumed as occupational hazards. However being inspired from so many Michelin starred chefs with accomplished names in culinary field spice up my push.I persevered all, I stuck it out, and lasted and won several battles.Many times i felt like giving up but I got reminded by a short story which I read of a young man who asked the wise man,… Socrates, the’secret to success.’ Socrates patiently listened to the man’s question and told him to meet him near the river the following day for the answer. So the next day, Socrates asked the young man to walk with him towards the river. As they went in the river, the water got up to their neck. But to the young man’s surprise, Socrates ducked him into the water.
The young man struggled to get out of the water, but Socrates was strong and kept him there until the boy started turning blue. Finally, Socrates pulled the man’s head out of the water. The young man gasped and took a deep breath of air. Socrates asked, ‘What did you want the most when your head was in the water?” The young man replied, “Air.” Socrates said, “That is the secret to success. When you want success as badly as you wanted the air while you were in the water, then you will get it. There is no other secret.But again that is not the only secret because I have in my life to now 2023 fought so hard for success but many times close people around your Life determines what you will become. Kindness and trust, good heart so they say kills ones future ambitious.And that is a story of another day.

I was born in a typical kenyan Taita family at the coastal part of kenya.The youngest of Six siblings.My parents were a poor peasants citizens who had very little or no time to teach us values and most importantly to have fun and an optimistic future. It was a tough life, going hungry was the norm, i was the only one together with my sister who happens to be our second last born who had it the toughest amongst other siblings. Taking care of other peoples animals was what we could do for a few shillings.

Life was hell to say the least. Going to the bush, Tsavo national park to burn charcoal with my mother at the age of 10 was to say the least,hard. Our father was polygamous and by then had gotten out to his new wife and left my mum to feed us by herself. Our other siblings were in high school and living with relatives. It really took those tough value systems to heart and sought fun. My School Studies were just another chore to be done because you don’t have other choices. You might have come across child prodigies – children from a tender age know what they want to become when they grow up or even parents narrating with pride how their son/daughter will grow up and become a lawyer or a teacher or a doctor, or an engineer. I had no idea to who I would become. I was busy harangued by my older brothers. Yes I do remember helping my mother fetching water and getting firewood with the occasional job in the kitchen.
Naturally, she cooked for us before she left for farm hard jobs. Piping-hot food was like a fantasy I dreamt of with the same intensity as many children my age would dream of being. I began spending more and more time in the kitchen and before I realized it, it was my hobby.But it never inspired me to be what I am today. It happened by a coincidence. Life did not matter then.

After doing my 8 years in primary level I proceeded to high school not knowing where school fees would come from. Due to lack of support system in school fees , most of the days would pass by without attending classes due to lack of school study materials and fees. Surprisingly when I sat for my end of a secondary schools exams I came out the best student overal . Yes! number One .

As I got older, I realized that I was drawn to smells and sights of people . The eureka moment came when I was watching TV program extolling (by then it was a black and white Tv in our neighbours house) the benefits and future of hotel management institutes. There was a time where every youth wanted to be only a doctor or engineer or a lawyer. that was it! Of course there were government and defence jobs for some but it didn’t matter to me. Four years in high school was ok, though I would spend even two months without attending classes due to luck of school fees as mentioned earlier. So, my fourth and last year in high school took a different turn. I GOT MARRIED! Yes I got married when i was doing my high school finals at the age of Nineteen .I have given up!!!
And as I write this story am a father of Three pretty Kids, Two boys and a girl.Two are young Adults and the last born still under.

Son and daughter

Son and Daddy

When I finished my O level exams now my older brothers were working and they had a stable income, so i travelled to Mombasa from my rural home to see if I could secure a job, any job for that matter to help provide for my young family. My brother was so nice and supportive and decided to take me to a college, but suggested a different course from my hobby of cooking which never mattered to me. Shipping, clearing forwarding and international trade is the course I studied,One year later I graduated with a certificate in Clearing and forwarding which I was proud of. Interestingly, I went ahead to seek employment in hotel industry. With no training in hospitality ,things were not rosy but however I managed to push until Inter-Continental resort in Mombasa gave me an apprentice opportunity to training within their Food and Beverage department, kitchen then butcher, The training focused on Restaurant, food and drinks store etc.Due to my background of harsh life back to the village ,I couldn’t let any chance pas by. After three months of training within the hotel, I was employed as a casual within the kitchen . My Career took off. For two years with the hotel chain i decided to go to one of Kenyan premiere hotel training college ~Kenyan Utalii College to study Institutional Catering and culinary Studies.

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My two years of college were modestly successful. I won trophies and awards at cooking competitions, yet I never excelled as a student.But I wanted to badly very badly ask any student from an institute worth its salt, what is the ultimate aspiration. The answer most likely you might find is getting into a management program. And the best program.
But as badly as I wanted to be there, life definitely had a plan for me. The plan started with my first job at Mediterranean Italian Restaurant in Kenyas capital city, Nairobi.I waited patiently all those months working as a drone in the basement kitchens only working in later shifts and chopping veggies for an aspiring chef to a fast food restaurant.. at least a hotel kitchen is what I thought I was worth of I asked God why????? As a young aspiring chef I wanted to grow , to roar beyond imagination The next pit stop was a Pizzeria and fast food Inter view, Steers restaurant. The interviews were taking place in their head office, quite a distance from where I was working. I had no time to waste because i wanted to play first fiddle not second, Never. As an aspiring hotelier you need to work as many outlets as possible to have an edge in the industry so I thought.

I will modestly say my life has been rewarding and satisfying so far as a chef, Not because of the money but because it gave me an opportunity to travel, adventure, meet many people.And more importantly naturing many talents.

So i did not want to miss this opportunity to work for steers/ debonairs restaurants.I left for the bus stage hurriedly forgetting in my excitement that i had to wear smartly for an interview. I found a hospital nearby the restaurant where I asked them if I could wash and change, luckily they agreed. At 7 am, I stood in front of HR office of the Steers food chain where I was told the interviews would have to be postponed. The HR manager explained the circumstances in the restaurant were not able to carry out the interviews because the CEO of Steers and Debonairs Pizza was in the house and all managers, needless to say, were on their toes that day. I told the HR that I would leave only on two conditions either I get selected or rejected that day itself. He asked me to wait and finally at 11.30 am he came to me, woke me up. By then I had fallen asleep on a warm couch in the waiting office and asked me if I was ready for the interview.Yes i was.The interview was done and i got hired. So after spending almost two years in their Kitchen i moved to one of the largest Casino in Nairobi and this time i was ready for the battle and finally got my dream . A bigger ,larger operation.

The year 2004 I moved again.This time was the year for a remarkable change, i landed my first overseas assignment job with sky chefs which caters for international airport passengers based in Dar-es-alaam Tanzania. This time not only as a Chef but doubled up being a head of operations. It was really a test of my catering career, serving 1000 to 3000 meals a day! My one year stay at sky chefs catering made me discover what food really is in all its forms, as ingredients, as support system, as a business, as history ,culture and many more things. It was an assault on my senses. The working was almost bordering on military-like precision. Long, hard working hours, on-the job trainings, presentations, assignments and projects.

At the airport waiting bay

At the end, the job in its inherent design ensured you became a culinary champ who knows food and mastered it well. We were sought-after commodities in the world. I worked for exact one year and left for another assignment. The disillusionment of trying to relate on what was taught in school, what industry or airline catering is versus what happens in the hotel was a little too much for me to handle.
I left and moved to Mafia islands at Kinasi lodge/hotel where I truly understood food as a business not about cooking but about owning your tasks and seeking its fruition, re-innovating and taking a second look on first impressions. I worked here for two tourist season 2005/2006/2007 and together with some of the most phenomenal chefs from UK, Thailand and USA. One among them is chef Matt (USA) , I understand he now doing his own charcutuire~Hinckley Fancy Meats. big up Bwana Mkeka. Chef Sean Milla (UK) as well running restaurants in Liverpool ~The Pruno and the Open door just to mention but a few.

Chef Matt Henkley and Chef Eliud

I gained a vision and working style that cemented further growth and ambitions in me. A new sense of responsibility got in me.
Early 2008 I left Mafia islands and my next stop was Mombasa. Went to Lamu island, start there for four months…. but it couldn’t give me what I was Looking for.

So i left headed back to Tanzania . This time in one of the best tourist safari circuit region of Arusha.Joined one of the 5 star lodge(Eunoto lodge) located at Mto wa Mbu Manyara national park this time as a Lodge Chef Manager for One year after the owner closed and relocated to his home area in Texas USA.

Coming back again to mombasa where I landed a job with prideinn hotels and resorts ,now prestigious chain hotels as a Banquet and events Co-ordinator, before quiting to start my own eatery – The Mzedu Kitchen which survived for a year before unseen circumstances hit followed by COVID-19 epidermic. At first I served Indian food, the locals ( Indians and Arabs settled in but could never be Kenyanized or Internationalized. They stuck to the use of spices just in almost everything. It took me about five months to sense what was required. The food that we crafted was nothing short of food porn. The journey still continues. I say once a soldier you die like a soldier.

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To be Continued…………