Decadence

That’s a really cool head tattoo! What made you decide to ink your head?
My head felt really empty after I shaved off my dreadlocks, so I decided to cover it with a tattoo of spiderwebs.

I got it done in one sitting, which lasted for eight hours. It was so painful that I blacked out (laughs).

Tell us what you do for work. How long have you been in this career?
I’ve been a chef for over 20 years and I’ve been working at Chix Hot Chicken since its opening five years ago.

Being a chef is something I’ve always wanted to pursue because I enjoy the creativity and discipline that comes with it.

Do you dream of opening your own restaurant?
I actually ran my own Spanish restaurant in Katong for about five years before it closed down.

It’s always been my favourite cuisine to cook, but that said, I doubt I’ll be trying to start a business again anytime soon because the industry is very challenging and competitive.

What’s the wildest food combination you’ve experimented with?
So many things! The culinary world involves a lot of trial-and-error. Sometimes they turn out very good, but sometimes they’re just rubbish.

I’ve even tried pairing prawns with chocolate and it really works—the sweetness of both the prawns and the chocolate are surprisingly so well-suited.

How do you enjoy your free time?
I like listening to music and going for live gigs.

I play the drums too. My friends and I like to jam together and we’ve actually just formed a band. We don’t have a name yet though, as we’re first trying to perfect our sound as a band.

What’s your favourite band?
An anarcho-punk band from South London called Conflict.