nikita
“We like to refer to Niki as our Golden Goose. Look, it’s amazing what she’s done, she’s the first person to have won both MasterChef: Professionals and Great British Menu Champion of Champions! We’re not going to sit here and pretend that we’re not going to exploit her for that. Go girl go, make us proud, you talented little thing.
Jokes aside, she’s an absolute powerhouse, trained with the greats, and you can tell she’s good when you watch her do her thing, she makes it look effortless. The thing about Niki is, she’s been quietly perfecting her craft for more than 10 years at this point. We might be biased, but we think you’ll have a tough time finding a chef who is better at balancing flavour, technique, intrigue, and proper deliciousness.”
– Rima and Isha
rima
“Rima is our mum. And also Financial Director and Operations Director. But mainly, she’s the hostess with the mostest. Anyone who has come over for dinner at ours will have memories of being sent home, fit to bursting, andprobably clutching a few Tupperwares full of goodies. (Our friends now bring their own Tupperware, they’ve been well trained).
Some might say she’s been wasted in financial services for the past 20 years, but we have to admit she’s had a legendary career as CIO for Europe and Global Head of Regulatory Technology at Standard Chartered. So we thought we’d take a punt on her and let her run the financials for our little neighbourhood joint. If you’re lucky she’ll be the one pouring your wine, but for the sake of our profits (I know, the irony!), we tend to leave her to greet you, just like she does at home, and have a good natter. MAAI means mum. So yeah, she’s an important lady.“
– Isha and Niki
isha
“Isha is our General Manager. She’s a bit of a science dork, and got a Masters in Chemical Engineering to prove it (although this is now exclusively applied to mucking around with cocktail recipes).
When I was invited to Great British Menu, she submitted her sabbatical application the next week. She’s taken a huge risk to leave her safe and comfortable job and it’s the biggest compliment that she had the faith to take that leap, before she even knew how the competition was going to go!
Isha probably has the best palate out of all of us, she has a talent for mixing incredible cocktails, and is very excited to have begun her formal wine-education (though we’d argue she’s been practicing for a while!). She’s has been our in-house mixologist for years, and has been serving up delicious cocktails and fun wines at our supper clubs, to rave reviews. You’ll spot her on the restaurant floor, talking about how she clarifies strawberries for the Ruby Slipper, or her favourite wines, and concentrating hard not to drop anything!”
– Niki and Rima