Kenyan self-taught chef and former Rugby 7s player Dennis Ombachi, popularly known as the 'Roaming Chef,' has opened up on why he has yet to venture into funded mass cooking initiatives.
Responding to an X user expressing interest in sponsoring one of his meal giveaways, Ombachi explained his current approach noting that he may consider it in the future.
Ombachi acknowledged the frequent offers he receives, especially from people abroad, but clarified that he currently lacks a structured system for funded mass cooking.
He highlighted the importance of accountability in such initiatives and emphasized that, for now, he prefers running the initiative out of his own pocket.
"I do get this a lot on a daily basis, especially from people abroad, but as for now, I don’t have the system in place, especially for the sake of accountability, so I'm just running it out of pocket. It also feeds into my passion, as I miss cooking large quantities of food like the days I did it for a living, moving from house to house cooking for people at parties and such," Ombachi explained.
He expressed a desire to satisfy his inner child while bringing smiles to people's faces through his culinary creations.
Ombachi reminisced about the days when he worked as a chef, providing catering services for various events and gatherings.
"If I can still satisfy my inner child whilst putting a smile here and there, well and good," he added.
However, Ombachi hinted at the possibility of a change in approach, stating that if circumstances change, there would need to be a system in place to ensure proper monitoring of contributions.
He expressed gratitude for the numerous offers he has received from his supporters.
"However, in case this changes, there will have to be a system in place where the contributions are accounted for and monitored. Thank you for all the offers; y’all are amazing people. Let’s see how the year goes," Ombachi concluded.
Ombachi cooking career
The former rugby player creates content around culinary delights and has amassed a total of 2.3 million followers on TikTok.
In a previous interview, the self-taught chef openly discussed experiencing depression as a result of his injuries.
"I used to spend a lot of time watching videos of people cooking, especially during my recovery period."
He said that it was through the cooking videos that he found inspiration to venture into creating his cooking content and thus the 'Roaming Chef' alias was born.
He shares brief videos of him cooking on the balcony during the pandemic and quickly gained popularity.
His distinctive exclamation of 'Done!' after each cooking step adds an entertaining touch to the experience of witnessing him transform ingredients into a whole meal.
Ombachi was recently awarded the title of the best TikToker in Sub-Saharan Africa at the Top Creators Awards.
