Chef Lilee is, however, more than the busy
bee who works diligently with her team to
keep Mandeville’s premier restaurant/bistro
the top choice for a place to meet with
friends to have a bellyful of laughs and good
food. Her story reveals how family synergy,
and a fervent desire to bring Euro-American
cuisine to her hometown, has made Voilá by
Lilee a success since its inception in
December 2016.
I had a wonderful chat with this diligent and
inspiring young woman. Here’re some
brownie-selling business was my foray into
the entrepreneurial world. I never thought of
it as working but simply just doing what I
love...pleasing others’ taste buds in exchange
for money. It was a win-win situation.
My love for baking, coupled with the fact that
I love to eat, helped me hone my cooking
skills. I enjoyed challenging myself by
mimicking dishes I would have at local and
overseas restaurants.Nurturing this talent
fueled my belief that I could make a viable
career from cooking.
snippets from our conversation that I hope
will inspire you.
I decided to become a chef. This decision led
me to the Niagara College located in the
Why Voila by Lilee? What inspired
you to create this business? Niagara region of Canada where I pursued an
Voila by Lilee was inspired by my obsession
with French cuisine and culture. The heart of
culinary is in France, the food is divine and
truly unlike anything that you’ve ever seen. (CO-OP) for 2 years. This is one of the best
Growing up, I loved to sing and started to
pursue that as a career in my early teenage
years. I later realized that I didn’t have that
Celine Dion/Whitney Houston voice, and the
music industry was too challenging and
political. The program provided a balanced approach
Baking was my other hobby because it
allowed me to explore my artistic side and open a culinary business in Jamaica get
overseas experience. This could be in the
indulge my sweet tooth. I taught myself how form
to bake using recipes and how to decorate experience.Trust
cakes using YouTube videos. difference. You gain more exposure because
Associate Degree in Culinary
Management
decisions I have ever made because I learnt
so much in the program from experienced
Chef Professors.
to culinary education. I learnt the art of
culinary management which is the business
side of culinary while also learning the
practical aspects of being a good chef.
I highly recommend that anyone wanting to
of
a
degree
me,
or actual
it makes
work
a
big
you’ll learn from chefs who’ve had global
Capitalizing on this skill, I developed a experiences. You’ll also have more access to
brownie-selling business. I used my profits to international goods that can be used to make
buy the gadgets teenagers love: cellphone, fine cuisines thus broadening your culinary
laptop, mp3 player, camera and so on. My vocabulary.
ISSUE:4 APRIL 2019
36