About Me

More about Sophia

I was born on a farm near Douglas, a small village in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa, where I grew up in an environment characterized by old-fashioned values. Here I developed a passion for the wide outdoors, for nature and for people from all different walks of life.
Everyone who has tasted my food has asked me the big question, “Where did you train?” Well, my love affair with food started at about five years of age. Perhaps even earlier – I think it’s in my genes! I grew up surrounded by kitchen aromas, and at around five years of age, began to show an interest.

So, my grandfather fielded a wooden box for me to reach the stove beside my Lebanese Granny. And, to this day, the smell of garlic takes me straight back there…
My late Mother was a very powerful force in shaping my current ‘chefdom’! One of the things she did was to allow me to be creative in the kitchen. She would ask me to prepare the meal from an early age on, and never dictate what I should be doing. She gave me the wings to fly beyond the conventional clouds of flavour in the kitchen. And so, her little Right Brain Chef was born…

My Afrikaans Ouma, whom I only saw twice a year, was also a brilliant cook, and her passion for the traditional food of our beautiful country inspires me to this day.
And then, yes, I studied food and wine for six years, but these years really only put words to a melody that had been playing throughout my Life!

After studying food and wine, I worked in these industries in front-of-house positions, as well as in information technology, the medical field, office management and childcare. All of these, along with my happy childhood experiences, formed the person that I am today.

I am happily married to Paddy, a dentist with whom I share a passion for good food and wine. We spend a lot of time exploring South Africa and enjoying the wide spectrum of natural beauty, innovative food and world-class wines that it offers.

Why the blog
I view this blog as a creative outlet, an aperitif for those who would like to be part of this growing passion, and a source of information, introspection and laughter for those of us who are part of it already.