The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

DEDICATED to her work in the culinary field, Bahamian Executive Chef Nikoya Lightbourne believes this is one of the few industries remaining where experience, talent and passion is worth just as much as academic recognition.

“Chefs, true ones at least, can’t skate; you have to know the work, hone your skills and practice your craft, honour your craft, and there are no shortcuts. If you want it badly enough and cannot afford a formal education go the apprentice route and work your way up. I’ve seen it with this country with my own eyes, there are some truly incredibly talented young persons out there who have not been formally trained,” she told Tribune Woman.

Six years ago Nikoya owned and operated a thriving catering company called D’Light B’s Gourmet in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and while a lot has changed since then, she expressed no regret because although she knew where she was from and what she was capable of, she didn’t exactly know who she was at the time.

Now the young entrepreneur is grateful for the life lessons that came along the way. “As will most career driven Bahamians in their thirties, I wear many hats and ‘have 15 jobs’ (at least according to one of my aunts),” she said.

Currently the Food Development and Production Manager for the John Bull Commissary, Nikoya works with a team of 12 to produce about 6,000 pieces of pastry and 3,500 sandwiches on a weekly basis for distribution to the company’s seven Starbucks franchise stores.

“I can unequivocally say that it is both an honour and a privilege to do so and I am grateful to my manager, and the Directorship of John Bull Ltd for such an opportunity. Very few chefs can say that they are allowed the creative licence to infuse so many culturally relevant flavour profiles into food service for such a prominent international brand. Almost every week I hear ‘Oh, I didn’t know this stuff was made here, I thought it was flown in’. It fills me with great pride and satisfaction to be able to dispel the myth and open eyes to the level of quality and consistency that we young Bahamians in our culinary industry our capable of,” said Nikoya.

She is also a private chef, with the bulk of her work on private yachts. In addition, she owns and operates her own label - “Sweet Paradise” - under which her personal chef services and culinary management consulting services fall.

These include recipe development, menu planning and costing, kitchen and front-of-house staff hiring and training, inventory control management systems and processes, vendor supply sourcing and much more. Services are tailored to the specific needs of clients, an avenue Nikoya is looking forward to expanding in 2016.

“Without a doubt, the work is hard. Every skill you’ve learned as a chef will always be tested most often because your kitchen is forever moving. On a boat anything that can go haywire usually does and that’s before you add in clients who take ‘carpe diem’ to heart and frequently change their minds about everything. Yet I wouldn’t change a single second of it as it has afforded me some of the most spectacular experiences of my career and I’ve had some ‘pinch me I’m dreaming’ moments,” said Nikoya.

As a private chef, she sums up that travel and the once-in-a-lifetime experiences that come with those opportunities are the best parts of her profession. This summer, she recalls serving lunch and dinner on the Hudson River while sailing around the Statue of Liberty, stating that cooking on a river full of wakes caused by constant water traffic is not easy.

“I’ve gone around the tip of Lower Manhattan at dawn where you can see Lady Liberty, One World Trade Center and even the Empire State building clearly with their brilliant lights. Passing under the famous Brooklyn Bridge was the icing on the cake,” she said.

Her hope for 2016 is to be a part of a culinary industry in the Bahamas that knows no bounds. She noted that while the culinary industry in the Bahamas has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years, there is still a long way to go.

“It’s going to take a lot to top everything I experienced last year,” she said. “It seems all the blood sweat and tears (literally all of those three) is finally paying off. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me this year.”