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Archive -Seychelles

Babi, the self-made hotelier |02 August 2016

If you have set foot on the island of La Digue, there is a strong chance that you have met or heard of Robert Labiche, or Babi as he is known to everyone. Better still, you may have had the privilege to spend a night or two at Kot Babi, the cozy guest house of pure traditional creole architecture he owns and runs opposite Anse Calice. From the pier, you just have to turn left at the Police Station and there you are after a mere 150 metres on your bicycle, the island’s best mode of transport.

 

An eccentric encounter in Mauritius

I first met Babi back in 2007 during the annual International Creole Festival in Mauritius and this is where I discovered his great talent as a cook and restaurateur. He had been invited by the organisers to hold a Seychellois restaurant at Domaine des Pailles, on the outskirts of Port Louis, the island’s capital. The place was always full during the one-week festival with many Mauritians making it their favourite lunching and dining place. Those included dignitaries such as then Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam and his deputy and Tourism Minister Xavier Luc Duval. Through the excellent culinary experience, the latter came to fall in love with Seychellois gastronomy. He invited Babi to Chamarel where over a meal of wild boar in the romantic ambiance of a poetry recital, our cook shared the best recipes with him.

 

Babi, now his known identity

I myself rarely miss an opportunity while on the enchanted island to spend an afternoon or evening with Babi and taste a good pwason griye, kari koko poul or ladob bannann. We sometimes cross the road over to the beach where Babi treats his guests to frequent creole afternoons or evenings. I have also always promised him that I will one day write a profile out of the life story he passionately relates during my regular visits.

Strangely enough, I had to ask him to remind me of his name. As he himself remarks, most people think that Babi is his real name. He explains how he got the nickname which has become his known identity since his early age:

“I got the name when I was still a very young boy and growing up at Hangard Street. When I went to school, I did not recognise my name when the teacher first called out the pupil’s names. I cried saying that my name had not been called. The head teacher had to call in my mum for her to certify that I was the real Robert Labiche.”

 

Start in the tourism industry

The now 58-year-old recalls that he started from scratch, out of nothing like he says, with even his family not believing that he could succeed in the tourism industry, as he had no relevant qualifications.

“I was only 14 when I left modern school. I went to work for Temooljee in its Victoria shop. But I had always wanted to work in a hotel. At this time big hotels were starting to be constructed on Mahé and Temooljee was one of their suppliers. This helped me keep an interest in hotels and after a short spell at Costain, which was carrying out dredging works on Mahé and where I was earning R60 per week, I decided to apply for a job in the hotel industry. But there were only two vacancies available – cleaner and assistant cook. I did not have the relevant certificates but was offered a job at Coral Strand as assistant cook. My only experience had been watching mum cook but I came to realise that this cuisine was not suitable for hotels. So I had no choice but to learn and continue learning,” Babi recalls.

He also remembers that as he was not qualified, he had to lie in order to get the job, telling his interviewers that he had previously worked on a boat. At a time when there were no Seychellois chefs, he became a sous-chef after spending eight years at the Coral Strand. It would not be long before he became a chef and this came only two years later when La Digue Island Lodge offered him the opportunity. He later moved to Darros as chef to the Shah family, then rulers of Iran and owners of the island. Babi relates this interesting episode of his career:

“It was very difficult at first but a salary of R3000 per month was very good at the time. On Darros I cooked for various world known personalities including kings, queens and other stars like Dody Al-Fayed and Marc Lavoine.”

 

Once on La Digue, always on La Digue…

The next step was Félicité Island in 1989 where he had as guests Tony Blair, Richard Bronson, David Gilmour and others. He had now come back close to La Digue and this is when he realised that he had fallen in love with Seychelles’ third largest island by population.

“In 1991 I decided to move permanently to La Digue and at the same time create something for myself. I bought the plot of land where I am today. I built this beautiful Creole house and turned it into a small hotel and this is where I believe I will stay until the end of my days as I now feel like a Diguois and contribute much to the island’s socio-economic development. I am now for example busy preparing the La Digue feast of August 15. I am also involved in the Festival Kreol and Carnaval International de Victoria. So after several years on outlying islands I decided to settle on La Digue which is itself a remote and unique island. Even here I have hosted several dignitaries. For instance, one day Xavier Luc Duval came along and asked if he could have a shower. He got much more than a shower and this explains my connection with Mauritius,” he reveals.

Rightly, what is different in what Babi has to offer? He seems to suggest that all is different, only to stop on one specific example.

“Since some time now, I am proposing a beach breakfast to my clients. This means that instead of having their breakfast here on the verandah, they can go on the beach and have it on their towel. This is proving to be a unique experience as they can enjoy the beach very early in the morning, at a time when there are not many people around. In fact it is when my clients are leaving the beach that other people are coming.”

“Clients no longer want to have bacon and fried eggs for breakfast,” he insists, adding that he also encourages them to buy traditional diguois delicacies from the island’s shops for their early pick-nick.

This new product however removes nothing from the charm and Creole hospitality of his verandah restaurant, just as his kitchen bar where he displays spices and other local products in place of alcohol bottles.

 

Any regrets?

Babi is more than satisfied that he has achieved much with not so much academic ability and for him this is a lesson for the youth. He however feels that La Digue is quickly losing its charm and becoming polluted with unnecessary imported stuff and loud music.

“Before we could hear the veuve sing, hens cackle and cocks crow. But now we hear only loud music. I think that we have constructed too many houses on the coast line. I agree that we do not have enough building space and the Diguois also have to enjoy themselves but we must know how to do it. I also feel that we are not applying the right solution in the destruction of hairy caterpillars and this is rather destroying other species like the spider which tourists used to enjoy taking pictures of. If we continue like that tourists will stop coming to La Digue and will rather go to other islands like Silhouette,” laments Babi.                       

But just as he has always been active, Babi promises that he will not be discouraged and will never give up!

 

By Michel Savy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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