Dilene Boyd-CONSULTANT PASTRY CHEF

Unilever Food Solutions Chef of the Year 2009 competition winner, Dilene Boyd, has proven to be a force to be reckoned with in the culinary industry. Apart from her close to 12 years experience in the industry, she has worked in no less than 10 world class establishments including the five-star Table Bay Hotel, the prestigious Mount Nelson Hotel, and a stint work in the UK, where she spent two years working all over for the Hilton group of hotels, and also gained work experience at the Savoy, Dorchester, Ramsay kitchens and Marco Pierre White kitchens. In addition to this impressive career history, Dilene has been a member of the South African National Culinary Team since 2005. She played a pivotal role when Culinary Team SA won a Gold medal in the Restaurant of Nations category, and two silvers and one bronze medal in the Culinary Arts display category at the international IKA Culinary Olympics in Erfurt, Germany in 2008. She is also a South African gold medal winner in the South African Chefs Association’s Salon Culinaire Category C; won a silver medal in Category C of the Culinary Arts; and was awarded a silver medal in the Restaurant of Nations category, at the Food & Hotel Asia competition in Singapore in 2006.

2009 saw Dilene venture on her own to do what she loves most as a skilled pastry chef, and that is to bake wedding cakes and train young, up -and-coming pastry chefs become experts in their field. Dilene's main goal for 2010 is to open a culinary studio, SALON DE CULINAIRE, at the beginning of March. 

Where did you train?

I did not have any formal chefs training, but I worked at the Table Bay Hotel and the Mount Nelson, gaining lots of experience.

Career history:

Table Bay Hotel – DCP Pastry

Mount Nelson Hotel – assistant pastry chef

Hilton Group in UK (experiential work in Ramsay and Marco Pierre White kitchens, Savoy London and Dorchester) – Pastry chef

Mount Grace Hotel – Pastry Chef

Sheraton Hotel – Pastry chef

What inspires you?

My two beagle boys.

What’s your best-ever culinary creation?

It has to be the dessert that won gold for Team SA at the 2008 Culinary Olympics in Erfurt.

What will you remember as your funniest moment in the kitchen?

Slipping on a wet floor with four trays of petit fours in my hands.

Who would you list as your mentors?

I only have one – Wade van der Merwe.

What’s a typical day in your kitchen?

I don’t work in a kitchen full time anymore.

How do you keep up to date with trends?

International competitions, books, chef friends, contacts abroad and the internet.

What’s a trend that’s inspiring you at the moment?

Simplicity.

What are your current favourite ingredients?

Ginger, lemongrass, vanilla pods, Van der Hum.

What are your favourite restaurants at the moment?

Curry Palace in Ferndale.

What’s your all-time favourite restaurant?

KFC – for the sprinkle pops with chutney flavour.

What’s your favourite comfort food?

Macaroni & cheese.

Who would you most like to cook for?

My new husband – he loves whatever I feed him.

Who would you least like to cook for?

Anybody with too much money who think they know everything about food and the preparation thereof.

What’s your can’t-do-without utensil?

Pastry knife – I can de-bone a chicken with it if I have to, and I find it very difficult to cut with anything else.

What’s the best cooking advice you ever received?

Simplicity is a sign of perfection.

What will you do with your R40 000 if you win the competition?

Go on a holiday at the end of the year, and spend all of it on myself!