Cooking is a 24-year-old Shahil Lala’s DNA. The chef recently discovered that his maternal great-grandfather was a chef and his paternal grandad was a wedding caterer.
“When I was a kid, mum and I were always experimenting with new flavours. I started off just licking the spoon, and it grew from there.” After thriving in Food Tech at high school, snapping up a cookery apprenticeship seemed like a natural progression.
The newly qualified chef is now whipping up a storm as senior chef de partie at retirement village The Poynton Auckland’s Zest Caf., one of the retirement village’s three bars and eateries.
Zest is an a la carte restaurant with a regularly changing menu, and the newly qualified chef has learnt a lot with lots of opportunities for creativity.
Nutritionally balanced, dietician-approved meals are de rigueur in Lala’s kitchen - but that certainly doesn’t mean bland and boring.
“Being a younger chef, I’m always looking at trends on social media and bringing those ideas into the village.
I think residents enjoy experiencing my modern take on things, such as putting a fresh twist on old traditional favourites like lamb shanks,” Lala said.
The chef’s desserts are also a hot favourite. For his final assessment, Lala created an orange and cardamom crème brulee that got such positive feedback it is now on the menu.
While some young chefs might choose to cut their teeth in the latest trendy restaurant, for Lala completing his apprenticeship at Metlifecare was a rich and rewarding experience.
“Cooking is my happy place, and getting paid to learn has been amazing.” The restaurant is a huge part of village life, as a meeting place for friends and family and a space for residents to socialise.
Lala enjoys knowing that he is enhancing people’s lives by cooking delicious food.
