If you’re in KwaZulu-Natal and find yourself at The Grill Room, located in the renowned five-star Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga, look out for 21-year old Ammaara Sulaiman, who happens to work at this fine dining restaurant.

To say it’s a dream start to her culinary career would be an understatement as it was only four years ago that Sulaiman, a Greenwood Park resident, found herself stuck at home reflecting on what she wanted to do with her life once the COVID lockdown came to an end. She takes up the story.

“I have always had an interest in cooking. From a young age, I’ve been inspired by the delicious homemade meals that my mother and aunt used to prepare and by the cooking shows I watched on TV, intrigued by some of the exotic ingredients and the different styles and techniques used by the chefs to create outstanding-looking dishes. So when the lockdown restrictions were lifted, I decided to follow my dreams and passions and in July 2021, I enrolled for a three-year advanced professional chef programme at Capsicum Culinary Studio’s Durban campus. My first year was filled with so many new experiences which really helped build my motivation and helped me face my biggest fears in the kitchen. My chef lecturers guided me and showed me the ropes- in such an understanding manner- on how to survive kitchen life. They motivated me and showed me new styles and new ways of doing things and allowed me to make mistakes in a safe environment,” she said.

On completion of her first year, Sulaiman was offered a Work Integrated Learning (WIL) opportunity at the Oyster Box Hotel where, she says, she had the best experience and was able to apply and improve on, what she had learnt in her freshman year at Capsicum.

She continued, “In July 2022, I started my second-year patisserie course, where I got to make different types of bread as well as cakes and pastries and when that year was up I found myself back at the Oyster Box, but in a department where I was exposed to new chefs who taught me how to slow down and they have a more refined touch when it came to pastry. At the end of my second year a fellow student, Lalana Pillay and I entered the RCL Young Chefs and Bakers Challenge and were lucky enough to win a spot to represent KZN and our campus. I began the final year of my learning about international cuisines and, with the knowledge that I had gained at the school and the Oyster Box, Lalana and I worked our way to the finals of the RCL Young Chefs and Bakers Challenge, where we competed and came second.”

Their winning three-course meal was a vegetarian sausage croquette with pickled radish, crispy fried onions and a herb mayo starter, a beef en croûte with a roasted red pepper puree and a red wine and rosemary jus with grilled zucchini for mains and a innovative and show-stopping ‘pot plant’ dessert, which was made with a white chocolate basket with inside layers of vanilla sponge, lemon curd, passionfruit gel and avocado mousse and topped with a dark chocolate tree branch. The pair also picked up a R20, 000 cash prize!

“The competition was a great experience, a wonderful learning opportunity and a memorable achievement in my life,” she added.

Sulaiman completed her third-year WIL again at the Oyster Box and, upon completion, was offered a job at this iconic South African establishment working as a Commis Chef in The Grill Room.



She said, “A typical day for me usually starts at 8am. Coffee is my best friend for breakfast, it gets me through my day and gives me the start that I need. My days are set out for me, because of the hours that I work. I look after my family in the morning, trying to make the best meals that I can for them, and then by around noon, I’m ready for work. By 2pm, I’m ready for action in the kitchen and I clock off at 11pm. Lunch is usually another coffee and a baked goodie or the occasional run to McDonalds. Once I get home, I have a bowl of noodles and I’m usually in bed by 1:30am, ready to face the next day.”
 
Sulaiman says that right now she is uncertain what the future holds but in five years’ time wants to be working overseas in a hotel or restaurant, gaining as much experience as possible and saving up to have (her) own place.

“It’s every girl’s dream to own a little café that’s also a flower shop. It will be a place of comfort for my customers to enjoy and be at peace,” she concluded.