Sam Moima TOP SUSHI CHEF, OCEAN BASKET
For being a different kettle of fish
50 FASTCOMPANY.CO.Z A JUNE 2016
Sam Moima’s life story is a testament to the fact that where you come from doesn’t have to determine where you are going. The Limpopo-born chef has defied the odds and secured his position as a top sushi chef at one of South Africa’s best-loved seafood restaurant chains. When he first came to Johannesburg in 2001, he got a job as a security guard—but he knew he wanted more from life. While working as a waiter at an Ocean Basket franchise, the would-be chef discovered sushi for the first time, witnessing people happily indulging
in ‘raw fish’. “Even though it was raw, I admired how beautiful it looked when the chef served it. I just instantly fell in love with it, and I remember saying to myself: I want to learn how to make a beautiful sushi dish,” he recalls. Moima soon joined the Ocean Basket in-training programme and for four months he would come to work before his shifts, and stay afterward to train. Despite not having much experience in the kitchen, especially with seafood, he proved to be a fast learner. He attributes this to his mentor, the head sushi chef at the time, who
subsequently entrusted him in his position when the latter took a month’s leave. Moima proved he could fill those big shoes. As a result, he was posted as sole sushi chef at a new Ocean Basket branch in Alberton in 2006. “That’s where I made my name. Customers started coming back just for ‘Sam’s sushi’,” he says with pride. Already having earned his stripes as a budding chef, Moima was invited on a week-long trip to Japan as part of further Ocean Basket training awarded only to selected chefs. At the Japanese International Sushi School in Tokyo, they were trained by sushi master Pepi Anevski: international head of sushi for Ocean Basket, who is certified by the All Japan Sushi Association and the World Sushi Skills Institute, and a Sushi World Cup holder. Moima was able to expand his sushi expertise and adopt a new respect for the dish. How has being a sushi chef unlocked his creative side? “By taking the basics I’ve been taught and trying to make something new and different with them, I have discovered that I enjoy experimenting,” says Moima. “Also, I’m always trying to be a better chef, which has resulted in my being more focused on ideas and quality.” This year, Ocean Basket introduced its exclusive ‘Mediterrasian’ sushi, created by Anevski. Moima explains it is “a unique fusion sushi comprising Mediterranean flavours with traditional Asian creations— resulting in more options or flavours in sushi, like pickled red onion in crunchy Athena roll; pickled carrots, tomato and basil leaf; and lemon-flavoured salmon.” The kind of experimentation that’s right up his alley. “There’s definitely still more to come, as we want to make Ocean Basket the best place to go when people think of seafood or sushi. So keep checking Ocean Basket’s menu, because that’s where I’m putting all my creativity later in the year,” Moima promises.