Meet chef Mélanie Wehrli
Could you introduce yourself? Somehow your story already took you around the globe from Mauritius to Melbourne and now Berlin and also to different creative areas, how come?
Exactly, I chose to study Fashion design in Melbourne. I was 18 years old and all I wanted was to leave home and be independent. Fashion was not necessarily my big interest. I just knew I liked to create. Without it, I would have not fallen into the gastronomy world. Growing up with two parents who enjoyed their sports and eating healthy, It was well-ingrained to look after my physical body, and later in life, I discovered the importance of the mind. It is what brought me to study yoga and do holistic health coach training.
Now, all my interests are intertwined. Food, art, movement, and health.
How would you describe your approach to food and cooking, is there a certain style?
When people ask me what I cook, they often expect: Italian, French, or Mexican, an answer that limits food to a country of origin. But I cook from my heart, my memories, my body and my mind. I cook intuitively. Which means by feeling, experience, and exploration. With not so many techniques involved. I enjoy cooking healthy meals inspired by the seasonal products and with what I come across.
I experience in your way of cooking lots of meeting points with arts. Can you tell us about your creative process and your relationship with other artistic disciplines?
My ingredients are like my color palette. I enjoy painting and drawing. But for everything, I chose colors and textures to create balance. I am very visual and this helps me a lot. This is the only process where I feel sure about my intuition.
When I create, whatever it is, I rarely think about the results and just let myself go with my ingredients or colors. Of course, sometimes I do have directions and a plan but I always allow myself for some spontaneity. Because you never know until you start and the way might change...
You also studied health coaching lately. What do health and holism mean to you and what role plays nutrition in it?
It means to me to find a balance between the body and the mind and have no symptoms. For a long time I was only focusing on nutrition and physical activity, and I felt something was missing. Because we need a whole life, which means now for me a life with relationships, a connection to nature, a fulfilling work or project, movement, spirituality, discoveries, rest, and healthy food. Nutrition is, of course, a fundamental base, it supports our health, mood, and energy. Lots can be done with it. But this without a positive headspace or with a toxic work environment or relationship could mean nothing.
You collaborate quite often in retreats and do also organise some of your own. What interests you in this concept?
I enjoy bringing people together, for more than a few hours of meetings. On a retreat, we can go deeper, more can be shared and learned. It is most likely around nature that
is all I want. For me it is the combination of everything I love the most. Being surrounded by inspiring people, eating well, be in nature, move and be creative. It is a great environment to work in.
This year will be the third time you are joining us in Erlau. I really love this collaboration and the way you involve into the group not only with your meals, but also with your personality and how this becomes an important part of the atmosphere. How has these experiences here in Erlau been for you?
Erlau is like the combination of the whole I was talking about and my work has evolved with it. As I not only cook but take the time to get to know the participants, create relationship, be in nature, create in the kitchen and go for my runs. Coming back every year feels like familly, a familly that is open to receive new members every year.
Could you describe how a perfect dinner or gathering around the table looks for you?
I love creating a dinner experience in nature, in a garden full of flowers or in the middle of a wheat field, underneath willow trees. Anywhere beautiful, with a bit of shades where we could dress a long table of 20 people, white table cloth, mix matching vintage plates, light decoration and great food. The best of all is hearing people who maybe didn't know each other, talking happily.
About Mélanie
Mélanie is an intuitive cook and multidisciplinary artist, who started her career in hospitality 12 years ago, while studying fashion design in Melbourne. She loved taking care of guests at the restaurant where she worked at, while creating a positive vibrant energy around her. Making people feel comfortable and at ease was natural for her, who grew up on the sunny island Mauritius surrounded by friends and family.
Always interested in food, her mother has a photo of her cooking at the age of 5 years old standing on a bench to meet the work surface higher than herself. She grew up with a mother always careful about eating a balanced healthy diet, which naturally inspired her personal cooking style.
In 2015 she moved to Berlin and quickly found herself working in the kitchen of a lovely vegetarian café in Kreuzberg called at that time New Deli Yoga. She then worked at Father Carpenter and Isla Café, a popular no waste and sustainable coffee bar. Meanwhile she created her personal pop-ups, CHEZ ELLA and PIQUE NIQUE BY US with her friend Chelsea Turowsky.
Now based in Berlin, Mélanie dedicates her time to her own cooking. She produces her private events, and works for brands, agencies, movie productions, yoga retreats, artists and more. She travels through her creations.
Her food is simple, nourishing and pleasing to the eye. She holds a great importance to nutrition, taste and aesthetic. She takes on different types of projects, like cooking wholesome food for a working team or creating a unique artistic dinner. In both ways she keeps her values, using organic ingredients and will always create a nourishing meal.
She has work in the past with My inner health club, TheStoreX, Olivia Ballard, Buffa's studio, Peace of minds studio, Liebeskind Berlin, Common vision Berlin, Art of the working class, Sips, Tales of us, Caique Tizzi, Chelsea Turowski, The slow exposure, Slowness and Day one.
Interview: Johanna Schmal / Photos: Mélanie Wehrli and Johanna Schmal