At Fooditude, chef Susi Hester-Lloyd, the Head of Food Development of Innovation handles operational duties surrounding food development, menu management, sustainability, ingredient suppliers. I asked Susi what some of her day-to-day tasks include:
As mentioned previously in this blog, I think it’s always good to get a true insight from the words of a woman directly speaking about her experiences. As someone who plays one of the most important roles in our kitchen, I asked Susi her personal view on what it’s like working in the food and hospitality industry.
“I would say over the last 20 years working in this industry has changed quite substantially, especially for women. I feel like years ago when I was very often the only female in the kitchen there was a feeling of having to over perform in order to just match your male colleagues.”
Susi then explained more by going into the specifics of how Fooditude caught her interest due to the positive representations in the workforce.
“One of the things that really appealed to me when I first started working at Fooditude was the presence of a number of strong, very capable women in senior roles. I think this has helped foster an environment that has removed some of those traditional gender biases that have been common in this industry.”
As a London-based caterer, we always love to embrace the multiculturalism this city represents in our food. From working here, I have tasted many deluxe cuisines that I personally couldn’t get enough of so it’s only right we talk to you about our upcoming menu for International Women’s day!
Chosen by chef Susi Hester-Lloyd and written by our Development chef Marieanne Benavente, a Spanish cuisine menu influenced by the ambassador of Spanish cuisine in the UK, chef Nieves Barragan Mohacho.
A delightful quote by Chef Marieanne speaking highly of chef Nieve,
“Her cuisine delicately mixes tradition with modern twists, maintaining the essence of Spanish flavours and showcasing their amazing produce. Flavoursome, fresh, yet comforting and familiar.”
“One of the most inspiring aspects of her story is the braveness in the fact that she left her hometown and moved to London with no English and took a job as a kitchen porter, she has then managed to work her way up through the kitchen, earning herself the opportunity to run her own kitchen at Barrafina which won her a Michelin star. “
It's a wrap!
From hearing about the experience and works of chef Susi, it emphasises the relevance of inclusion seeing the positive representations of women at Fooditude in which just like me, I was proud to see. Fooditude does however aim to improve further as no company is perfect.
From implementing inclusive practices like the Halo Code and the Social Mobility Pledge we are continuously trying to highlight matters affecting different marginalised groups.Gender discrimination has always been a long going issue so it’s hard to predict what the society’s future will hold for women but I always have hope for continuous progression.
Celebrating IWD in the office shouldn’t be seen as a one time thing, see this as a reminder for what this day symbolises and what your workplace may need to think about to progress further in being an inclusive fair environment. From reading this blog, it can only signify the ongoing reflections this day represents going forward: continuous awareness, practices for inclusivity, progressive thinking and long-term commitment. Thank you for reading this blog and I hope you have gained some great insights from this!
And most importantly…
Happy International Women’s day to all!