Helene Henderson
Chef Owner/Founder Malibu Farm
What is your favorite part of your job? My goal, mission, has always been to bridge the gap between the carnivores/ fast food eaters and more plant based eating. This is not just true for our guests, but also for our staff, and I always "mother hen/ mama bear" encouraging everyone to eat their greens. Nothing makes my day more than a newly hired employee starting to add raw brussels sprouts or a healthy serving of arugula to their meal after a few weeks of joining our team.
What is the most challenging part of your job? People......I am really not a social person, I am very much of an introvert, and observer rather than a participant, and being in hospitality is of course at heart, a people business more than anything else, so yeah, that is a daily challenge and I can be easily overwhelmed when surrounded by people.
What is the most rewarding part of your job? My most rewarding part is when we succeed to get our guests customers to embrace more greens in their diets. Farm to table dining has often been geared towards fine dining, and my hopes have been to reach a wider audience. We decided early on to serve all our burgers with a small side salad of arugula, and broccoli mashed potatoes, this is a small step, but traditionally the customer ordering a burger in a restaurant would have to pay extra for the salad, which would come with fries, but we are going to serve salad and broccoli potatoes, to all our customers with the hope that they embrace it one day.
How important is it for women to lift each other up and what does that mean to you? Often, especially in kitchens, there are so few women around and that we fight against a current so strong we can barely stay afloat ourselves, finding enough footing to help other women can be a challenge, but as the work environments change, hopefully we will soon swim with the current, and not against it, making it easier to lift each other up.
Which women are you inspired by in your local community, and globe? I am definitely very inspired by the younger generation and how they have handled so much change, between the pandemic, social, economic, and racial injustice. They also challenged and questioned traditional gender roles. As someone from Sweden, I am in awe of watching the movement of Greta Thurnberg.
Which men do you find inspiring that are doing their part for women's equality? I hope we stop separating what we find inspiring in women, or men, and just look at everyone as people. Women can hold back or support other women the same as men can. Some industries, especially the restaurant industry kitchens, have not been very supportive of women and their roles there. I recently had a pretty unpleasant experience at one of our licenses, and male toxic environments are still rampant in restaurant kitchens. I would call out Nobu executive chef Thomas Buckley in Miami as being super supportive of women in the kitchen. Chef Thomas not only guided our opening there but also put Chef Yanelquis Penton under his wing and was instrumental for her growth within our brand and she is our exectuive chef of Malibu Farm Lido Marina. Nobu Matsuhisha has also been supportive of me.
On International Women’s Day, what is the most important message you want to send out to young women thinking about their careers? Hmmmmmm......... Change is in the air, in the water, and in the soil, what was the true or impossible in the past, is no longer a precedent for the future. We have been saying, hoping, teaching that women can do anything and be anyone they dream to be, and one step at a time has finally led to a giant leap for-ward for woman-kind, and the only boundaries are the ones we set for ourselves.
