Today in ‘A Day In The Life’ we chat to Sarai, a Poke Chef & Matcha Barista at TomboSoho. A trip to Japan six years ago sparked an obsession with Japanese culture and food, and she’s now lucky enough to spend her days making mouthwatering Poke (essentially sushi, just in a bowl) and matcha teas, ice-creams and brownies at Tombo’s soho branch. Not gonna lie, sushi and dessert making sounds like the dream job, so we asked her to break down a delicious day for us.
The start of the day is my favourite time. Soho is a ghost town first thing in the morning, and it’s a real treat to be able to start the working day nice and relaxed.
Once I’m in the restaurant I kick-start the day with a bit of matcha – just one small cup gives me loads of energy and powers me through until lunch… Matcha is essentially a fine green tea powder grown in Japan which has been around for centuries but only recently been noticed as a superfood. It’s packed full of antioxidants and good for skin, heart and boosts the immune system. In essence, 1 cup of matcha is like having 10 cups of green tea in antioxidant levels. With a similar caffeine content to coffee it’s also a great alternative pick me up.
The day usually starts slowly, setting up and getting everything ready for service. Once we’re open the café fills up really quickly with a steady stream of matcha and poké lovers. Once our lunch rush is over, it’s time to relax a little and re-set for the afternoon – although there’s not much let up as our matcha ice cream is literally flying out the door at the moment.
Mid-morning is a good time to get into the kitchen and make a bit of Poké, it’s a simple dish to put together but the real skill is all in the presentation. It’s all about the (multiple) layers! Poké is a contemporary style of eating sushi that’s fuss free and in a bowl. We use a variety of healthy toppings and ingredients combined with marinated cubes of sashimi fish. You can have poké on black and white rice with seaweed and edamame or you can have one with our courgette noodles.
Early starts at the cafe mean that I get evenings off and (next to cycling) one of my favourite things to do to unwind is, believe it or not, cooking. Here’s a Spanish tortilla I recently made. I find cooking and cycling amazing ways to decompress after a stressful day at work as I love working with my hands and being outdoors.
You’d think that working in a Matcha café means that I’d be sick of the stuff – however I’m addicted to Matcha ice cream at the moment. Instagrammers love it too! We also serve matcha brownies for example, they’re extremely popular (not necessarily the healthiest way to have matcha though!)
In the food industry, it’s absolutely essential to have a passion and knowledge of the product. However, to make it you also need to have a desire and understanding of how to express that passion to people .I find the industry really interesting and I think one day, I’d like my own business in Spain. Japanese food and culture is popular there but there’s literally nowhere which does Matcha, so it’s an open door at the moment.
Follow Natalia on Instagram: @natal22
Like This? You May Also Be Interested In
The Hemsley sisters Talk About Sugars, Good Fats And Cowspiracy
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.