Alumnus: Charmaine Lehabe

Charmaine Lehabe is living proof that, armed with a Diploma in Food Preparation and Cooking from Capsicum Culinary Studio, the world is your oyster and there to be explored and enjoyed. The 29-year old chef, born and raised in Pretoria has, since graduating in 2019, travelled the world, living and working in the US and UK with in-between periods spent back home as a caterer, private chef and food consultant. Lehabe says at the age of 19 she started working as Commis Chef at ASH Restaurant in Cape Town but wanted a qualification to further herself and get more knowledge and experience so enrolled at Capsicum’s Pretoria campus. After graduating in 2019, she was offered a six month placement at a hotel in Massachusetts in the US, followed by five months at a 5-star hotel in Arizona. When Covid hit, she had to return home to wait it out until lockdown restrictions were lifted. “Once we were allowed to get out and about and people were able to mix more freely, I teamed up with a fellow Capsicum alumnus, Thandeka Nhlapo, and started a private fine dining service called The Squared Experience.” That lasted three years during which time she also worked as a food consultant, restaurant chef and private chef to several upmarket clients. In 2022 she returned to the US for a four month stint at a golf resort before returning home and resuming her private chef work. Last year she was offered a position as a Senior Chef de Partie at a boutique hotel in Blairgowrie, Scotland where she is currently working.