00:00 I would never have thought I would have come here and just kind of be the chef.
00:02 Hi, my name is Modu, one of the 111 by Modu.
00:05 I've been here for probably about 11 years now, but I've started working with Nico and
00:08 Semplefest for about two years and then we've changed it to 111 by Nico in 2016.
00:15 That's when I became a head chef of it, so working under Nico, just learning as much
00:18 as possible.
00:20 That's how I become about, you know, yeah, so just kind of like, you know, grinding from
00:26 there, learning from Nico as much as possible and then just kind of put myself up to where
00:30 I am at today.
00:31 Obviously, as everybody knows, so I just came here with probably about $70 in my pocket.
00:35 With that 70 euro in my pocket, which is probably about 55 pound.
00:39 Yeah, so kind of came in, struggled for a year, made Nico 2014.
00:43 Yeah, so kind of applied for a job.
00:46 Obviously, I couldn't remember I did that, so I just got a phone call from one of them,
00:49 asked me if I did apply for a job, a keybie job.
00:51 I said, yeah, of course, why not?
00:53 I couldn't remember if I did or not, but I just said yeah, and then they asked me to
00:56 come and start.
00:57 It was a Friday.
00:58 Yeah, I was like, okay, cool.
00:59 I'll come as soon as I can.
01:01 Just get a taxi and then just come in, just jump on the desk, straight away.
01:04 Working with them probably about a few months and then obviously Nico approached me, asked
01:08 me if I wanted to learn how to cook.
01:09 I said, yeah.
01:10 And then, yeah, from since then, that's where we pick up.
01:12 What I was doing, just came in, get, do what I need to do, get my job done, just work as
01:16 hard as possible, you know, try my best, just get the things done and then move on.
01:20 So obviously, he's seen something on me and then just asked me.
01:22 Probably this is my first job I've had in my entire life.
01:24 I've never worked anywhere else.
01:25 The process of learning to cook then, tell me a bit about that.
01:28 Obviously, it was quite hard, but at that time, I wasn't, you know what I mean, I wasn't
01:32 really care.
01:33 You know, I was kind of just like, you know, I just want to do something that I could have
01:37 experience, just make some money, look after my family.
01:39 So, that's what I was thinking about.
01:40 I didn't care how hard was it.
01:41 I didn't care like what time they start, what time they finish all that stuff.
01:44 So, I just kind of like came in every morning, just do what I need to learn as much as possible.
01:47 Just need a bit experience because I've never had any of that.
01:50 So, yeah, that's why.
01:51 I would never thought I would have come here and then just kind of being a chef.
01:54 Obviously, like I've just left Africa when I was 16, moved to Spain, lived there for
01:58 three years.
01:59 I played for jobs all that, trying.
02:00 I didn't even like working or anything.
02:01 I was going to school, all that stuff.
02:03 But obviously, back home when I was growing up, seeing my mom just like making fires,
02:06 making food for us, doing things, et cetera, et cetera, like that.
02:09 Just watching them doing that every single day when I'm home.
02:11 I just kind of like, you know, kind of make it easier for me when I was learning how to
02:14 cook, even though we're doing things differently.
02:16 Yeah, so, I probably would say back home, really watching people doing it.
02:20 And 2016, obviously, after learning how to cook for about like eight months, I started
02:25 out with Nico in 2000.
02:26 End of 2015, that's when we decided to do fine dining.
02:29 And when we went by Nico, obviously, I don't know where that is because I was doing fast,
02:32 like fish and chips, fast food, all that stuff.
02:34 And Nico was like, we sit down, have a conversation.
02:36 He obviously, you know, asked me, like he tell me what he want from me and then asked
02:41 me what, like what he want from me.
02:43 Like we just kind of switched worlds and that and then just kind of what we expect from
02:46 each other, all that stuff.
02:47 I was like, OK, just kind of making promises and that.
02:49 I was like, OK, that's fine.
02:50 If that's what you want me to do, I'm here for you.
02:52 So I will do it with you.
02:53 Obviously, like it's got, it's got, it's got its fang on its mind, obviously, which is
02:58 who was going to give me the restaurant in 2019.
03:01 But obviously, I didn't know that.
03:03 Yeah, so obviously, what I was thinking, what I was saying, what I was doing is like just
03:06 kind of stick what I would say to him, I would do that, which is promise to him, I will stay
03:10 with you wherever you want to go.
03:11 We could take it from there.
03:12 And then just kind of like, yeah.
03:13 And then 2019, it just kind of like, you know, give you the restaurant.
03:16 But he didn't say that to me.
03:17 He just kind of make, after meeting with the staffs and like some of the people and that
03:21 stuff, just make, you know, get me into the office and then just kind of get all this
03:26 stuff sorted behind my back, which I didn't know anything about it.
03:28 Yeah.
03:29 I mean, like, I didn't know because I just kind of burst crying as everyone sees.
03:32 So I was like, I didn't know, to be honest.
03:34 I was like, this is crazy.
03:36 It really feels good, like getting people to recognise you, all that stuff.
03:40 Like, it's amazing, to be honest.
03:41 I can't explain the feeling.
03:43 Yeah, so we just kind of like, it doesn't change me at all.
03:46 I'm still the same Mo.
03:47 So, yeah, I just come in and do what I need to do and then just move on.
03:50 Yeah.
03:51 I'm like a different person when I'm in the kitchen, like when I'm outside, like literally
03:55 completely different Mo's.
03:56 Yeah, kind of just like I could stand in there and do what I need to do.
04:00 Just stand in the kitchen and cook all day.
04:01 I could do that.
04:02 Some of the days we constantly, every single day, 24 hours, I probably would say.
04:05 Yeah, I don't know.
04:06 And then, you know, watching Nico just doing that as well, now he's kind of like, yeah,
04:11 let me just kind of do what he does, because that's pretty much what Nico does.
04:15 It's like, yeah, the passion came from support, inspiring me.
04:18 But I probably would say Nico, working with him, all that stuff.
04:20 And then growing up watching YouTube, teaching myself, watching, you know, Top Guys, all
04:24 that stuff.
04:25 So, yeah, I would say, yeah, the passion came from them, like Gordon Ramsey, all that stuff,
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