SPEND THE DAY WITH BOLD AND COURAGEOUS CHEF NTI
Be inspired by Chef Nti who boldly sold everything to invest in new skills and reinvent herself as the portrait of foodie success.
Nthabiseng Ramaboa, a.k.a. Chef Nti, has an international cooking show, restaurant and popular cookbook. Following the loss of her fashion and facilities business 6 years ago she’s not only managed to successfully reinvented herself in a wholly new career, but continues to claim her space while inspiring so many others.
We spent the day with her as she prepared for a picnic-themed shoot which started off by sourcing ingredients from Braamfontein’s hidden gem, The Rooftop Farm.
In the words of Chef Nti, ‘A good recipe is as good as the ingredients that you use,” and that’s exactly what Negin Monkoe, Owner of JFF Rooftop Farm, has top of mind with her business.
“We are trying to reduce our carbon footprint and make sure that we are growing our food responsibly so that our customers know how their food is grown, where it comes from, and that it is prepared with love,” says Negin.
The Soweto-born entrepreneur had the self belief to sell her home and cars after the financial misfortune, enrolled in chef school and started again in food and today chooses to surround herself with like minded entrepreneurs and creatives like Nicci Lee Watson from Flowetry, Petro Ridwan from RageInc Studios.
“Starting a business is one thing, but being able to thrive in multiple industries is another, and that’s what my friend Chef Nti has done. She has been in the fashion industry and she self-skilled to become a chef, not only owning the market but coining the space… I think it’s so admirable to be versatile in this climate, to thrive, and to own your space from scratch,” says Nicci Lee Watson.
To celebrate the success of her cookbook ‘My Modern African Kitchen’, Chef Nti chose to commission renowned artist Cyril Coetzee to paint her portrait from the cover photo. She revealed it at the photoshoot to everyone’s delight due to the incredibly realistic end result.
“It’s the first time I’ve done something from a pre-existing artwork. The more difficult technical challenge was rendering the costume, because there’s so much detail in it,” commented Cyril.
It was a pleasure to spend the day Chef Nti who inspires us through her courage and conviction to reinvent her career. We’re so happy for her that every second of it confirms she was right.
