Ibinabo Linah Kalama
Professional Chef · Eti-Osa
4–7 years cooking experiencePersonal information
- Full name
- Ibinabo Linah Kalama
- Location
- Eti-Osa
- Gender
- Female
- Age
- 31
- Phone
- 07035711184
- saltwatersoulbycheflika@gmail.com
- Residential address
- Jora residences (John okafor), Agungi.
- Social handles
- TikTok- Thecheflika instagram- Thecheflika
Applicant profile
- Applicant type
- Professional Chef
- Applicant type other
- I’ve been in the culinary space for over 6 years. I got my diploma in cuisine at reddish culinary in 2024, I have experience working as a sous chef in a high end restaurant and also as a private chef.
- Current occupation
- Currently the creative director of saltwater soul. A culinary/hospitality brand inspired by bold flavors from the Niger Delta.
- Cooking experience
- 4–7 years
Competition experience
- Prior competitions
- No
- Competition details
- —
Competition readiness
- Available throughout competition
- Yes
Entrepreneurship and impact
- Runs a food business
- Yes
- Business name
- Saltwater Soul
- Business type
- Culinary/hospitality
- Years in operation
- 1year
- Business challenge
- Winning the Eko flavors competition would help me build a better structure and systems for my brand and help me reach the desired level I know it can.
Culinary journey
In 2018 to support myself during NYSC, I started selling food in packs to my fellow coppers and staff members of my PPA. I had no clue what I was doing but somehow people seemed to like my food and I kept selling out plates after plates. That little business went on to survive for 6years known as my very first brand Bukkabylika. After that I decided to pursue other opportunities in the culinary space so I enrolled and got a cuisine diploma from Reddish culinary school, that experience really changed and shaped the trajectory of my culinary career and has opened my eyes to so many possibilities and opportunities. After culinary school I went ahead to work at a high end restaurant for a few months and later as a private residential chef. I’m currently the creative director of Saltwater soul, a culinary brand inspired by bold Niger Delta flavors.
Cooking inspiration
Even though I’m a third generation cook, I genuinely found my love for cooking when I got to uni and I basically had to fend for myself. Cooking for myself alone and making meals that I really enjoyed sort of gave me a genuine love for cooking but it also made me realize how something as simple as a meal can literally transport you to a precise moment in time. Food for me is very nostalgic, because it reminds me of home, it reminds and keeps me connected to my roots; but it’s also so enlightening for me because food is one of the most genuine ways you can get to experience other people’s cultures without actually being there physically. I love the fact that I can make and enjoy an authentic Jamaican goat curry with rice and peas and plantains without actually traveling to Jamaica and that’s one of the major drivers of my culinary journey, I’ve always loved expressing my own culture and experiencing other peoples cultures through food.
Signature dish
My signature dish is fisherman soup with eba. I think a signature dish should feel like a peak into the chef’s soul and that is what this dish represents for me. It embodies my love for both my roots and seafood, because seafood if my favorite ingredient to cook. It’s authentic, it’s nostalgic and I can cook it and eat it as many times as possible and never get tired.
Why I want to participate
I want to participate because I feel ready to take on a new challenge and I also want to share what I can do with the rest of the world. I know I have what it takes to be the best I can, at what I do.
What winning would mean
For me winning means getting the opportunity to put myself out there, no matter the outcome. And if I get the grand prize, then that’s an extra win because I can finally take my brand and my business to the next level.
