SPREADING HER GOOD FORTUNE
Chef JESSIE SINCIOCO shares her international culinary journey from her unexpected beginnings as the first Filipina pastry chef to her felicitous experience of preparing meals for the Pope, and why local flavors will always be crafted in her fine dining menus
Life is a collection of deliberate choices, but the circumstances in which we find ourselves can be, more often than not, completely out of our control. In fact, there are pivotal moments in life that can be best described as serendipitous— requiring us to make decisions that can change the course of our personal journeys. For Chef Jessie Sincioco, the beginnings of her flavorful culinary career began as a Finance graduate suddenly being given an opportunity to join a baking competition. The deliberate choice to enter landed her on a path of international culinary exploration, allowing her to travel the world and develop an impeccable taste for international cuisines. And the rest, as they say, is history.
AMIDST A MELTING POT OF INFLUENCES
Jessie Sincioco’s instincts as a chef and a businesswoman is that of a pioneer. Just as how it began, her career has always been peppered with brave decisions resulting in culinary firsts in the local restaurateur business. Aside from being hailed as the first Filipina pastry chef after her intensive training at Intercontinental, since her big win at The Great Maya Cookfest in 1983 she has managed to get many other coveted awards such as “Chefs on Parade” and the “L’Assiete D’Or”—both gold, the top prize.
After working as a professional pastry chef for several years, her next big project ended up being the first independent fine dining establishment located outside a 5-star hotel. Le Soufflé was one for the books–and was made for the finest of locations. Joined by her expat mentors from Intercontinental, Chef Jessie and her partners took the fine dining scene by storm with unique fusion flavors dreamt up by chefs of different backgrounds and countries. Their menu told an exciting story, each reflecting the influence and taste of each of its partners.