So we met up with Chef Muhammad Naim of YUM group, where he is working as a Project and Development Chef. Quite a shy fellow, though he is working as one of the strongest culinary professional in Lahore restaurant industry. Kluchit.com was guided to office once we reached Spice Bazaar, where has his office. We started our interview by introducing our magazine. When asked about what drew him to the field of culinary arts, he narrated that he had the opportunity to go to Singapore while he was in college. He decided to pursue this opportunity, along with a few of his other friends. When he was exposed to the kitchens in Singapore, he was greatly impressed by the disciplined environment. When he returned to Pakistan, he wanted to implement the same sort of discipline, and he wondered whether it could really be done.
He reminisced upon his first time in the kitchen, when he made Chicken Tikka, adding his own twist to it. During his time in Austria, he finally realised that cooking was his passion, and that it was a proper but very demanding career that could get you fame, money, and everything else in between.
He discussed the hardships that he had to face due to his choice of career, because when he started his culinary journey, people weren’t as open and accepting of a man being a proper chef, and the word ‘chef’ itself carried negative connotations. Despite feeling discouraged, he continued to trudge on with determination as he was not ready to give up on his passion just yet.
Presently, Chef Naim is one of the most valued and experienced chefs in Pakistan due to his extensive experience and proper training that he picked up from all around the world. However, his fame was not easy to attain, and he deserves every bit of it, given all the heart that he has put into his career.
