I’m Rohit, one of the chefs at Sicily.

I came to Kathmandu from Rautahat because I needed to work. There were no fancy plans about my life — I just wanted to go where life took me. I started working early to clear loans caused by a medical crisis in my family.

I started in the kitchen as a dishwasher at T’s Your Palate. It's the job nobody notices. No spotlight. No titles. Just long hours of scrubbing. But I watched, I practiced, and I stayed consistent. And slowly, I learned how the kitchen works.

As the months passed, I got familiar with the prep work, studied each recipe carefully, and memorized every dish on the menus at both Sicily and T's. Learning the names of the dishes might sound like a small thing, but growing up in a remote village with limited schooling, even that took real effort from me.

After all these years, the kitchen is where I grow. It's where I feel like I belong.

But if I'm being honest, a big part of that feeling comes from Sicily itself. When I first walked into this kitchen, I was just a kid from a small village with no real experience and no one telling me I could do this. Sicily gave me that chance — without hesitation. Diwas Dai and the team here didn't look at where I came from or how young I was. They looked at my willingness to learn, and they taught me everything. From the way a sauce should smell to the way a kitchen should run, this place shaped me. I'm genuinely grateful to Sicily and everyone in it for believing in me when I hadn't yet learned to believe in myself.

Today, I'm one of the most reliable chefs in the kitchen. My day starts early — prepping dough, sauces, pasta water, organizing utensils, and making sure everything is in place before service begins. 

I enjoy busy kitchens. Busy days don't stress me; they help me focus. On peak days, I've made up to 85 pizzas by myself, calmly handling orders without panic or shortcuts. Despite the long shifts, I never feel like coming late to work. 

My life is simple. I work in the kitchen during work hours, then spend time at home playing games with friends, and looking forward to going back to my village during Dashain. I've almost cleared all the family loans by now. My next goal is to save enough to bring my parents to Kathmandu, and eventually build a house back in my village. Because of the support I’ve received at Sicily, I am now confident that one day I will open my own restaurant. But for now, I choose to stay where I am, learning more with each shift and building myself step by step

I may not have planned this journey. But every day, I show up with positivity, discipline, and a desire to improve. From dishwasher to chef — my story is built on effort. And honestly, I wouldn't change a thing.