The beautifully colored, decorated and located Bahama House boutique hotel in Harbour Island is certainly a popular spot for visitors looking for the luxurious side of the island. And sure, the Instagrammable locale first shot to popularity for its color schemes, attention to detail and overall magnificence; but it’s the hotel’s Bahamian executive chef who is truly the star of that show.
Chef Nikoya Lightbourne is whipping it up in the kitchen and the international culinary world is taking notice! The pastry and savory chef has been featured in nearly a dozen local and international articles and blogs over the past year alone and we should all be proud of our homegrown Andros gal!
From Conde Naste Traveler, Women’s Health Magazine and even Vanity Fair Italia, Chef Niki has been whipping up dishes and treats worthy of all the foreign fanfare.
eLIFE242 caught up with Chef Niki recently who says she’s happy to be doing what she loves while helping to shine the international spotlight on her beloved country through food.
“As far as the stories go…pinch me I’m dreaming! I’m just a barefoot girl from Andros just like Her Excellency Marguerite. I am humbled by and grateful to Eleven Experience (the company that owns Bahama House) for such a powerful platform. My only mandate every single day is to execute amazing food that is true to myself, my country and my heritage.”
Her fave recipes, delicious kitchen secrets and tricks and her culinary insight are all featured in these pages. While she says she loves the global attention, she wishes female chefs got more of it at home.
“We need to have a better care for nurturing female culinary talent in this country. We also need to be a little better about locally recognizing promoting our home grown talent. We need to begin training our young culinarians to step into the world of high end private home or yacht service have them see that the world is their oyster if they’re willing to work hard enough.”