Life as a chef has certainly been better the second time around for Bermudian Zahra Jabbar.

A chance meeting with a former Horizons co-worker last spring resulted in the chef de partier returning to work at Horizons after several years seeking other career paths.

And just recently Horizons head chef Jonny Roberts set up the opportunity for Ms Jabbar to spend one week working at The Inn at Little Washington in Washington, Virginia, one of America's leading restaurants. It was an opportunity afforded Mr. Roberts five years ago when he was promoted to head chef and he knew the experience would do wonders for the talented young chef.

In fact it went better than expected as, in the short time there she made enough of an impression on owner, Executive Chef Patrick O'Connell, with her Bermuda Fish Chowder as well as her deportment that she has been offered the opportunity to return to try out for a position at the five-star, five-diamond inn and restaurant in the future.

Understandably, Ms Jabbar is still on a high after her March 9-16 trip which exposed her to a restaurant which consistently ranks number one and is considered by some to be best restaurant in the US.

"In order to join the team you have to try out, they look at your personality and you have to cook for the chef (O'Connell). If he likes it you're in," said Ms Jabbar.

"You just have to know how to cook, it could be anything from your home town that you think is good. It doesn't have to be fancy, but if he eats it and likes it...

"I made him Bermuda Fish Chowder with the condiments of sherry and black peppers. Because he wasn't feeling well and it was a cold day I made him a bowl. Soon after, the sous chef delivered it to his house, maybe seven minutes later, he was calling me in the restaurant kitchen, saying 'I just want to compliment you on this chowder, it was amazing'.

"I was blown away."

Something else from Bermuda also proved to be a big hit with the other chefs.

"I took Black Rum and Bermuda Stone Ginger Beer," revealed the Bermudian chef.

"They have a Dark and Stormy that they sell. I asked to see their Ginger Beer and it was a Jamaican Ginger Beer. Every day they have a meeting and it is called 'three things learned' when everyone has a chance to bring something to the table.

"On my day I brought Ginger Beer and when they tasted it they were sold. Members from the bar came out and asked if there was a website and two minutes later they were on the site. They contacted Bermuda (Barritt's) and this five diamond place now offers Bermuda Stone Ginger Beer and Black Rum so you can get a true Dark and Stormy. I 'hipped' them to that."

That, combined with the way in which she got along with the others at the restaurant, endeared the Bermudian to the restaurant owners, Mr. O'Connell and Reinhardt Lynch.

"I got along so well with everyone," the 28-year-old stated.

"The chefs' ages range from 21 to 30 so we are all pretty much the same age group. It all had to do with your attitude. It's also a very diverse team, with people from Kenya, Germany, Russia and Italians...even from different parts of American."

Working in the kitchen was like nothing Ms Jabbar had ever experienced before. There is a staff of 26 and high standards are maintained throughout. Two dining tables are placed in the kitchen ? tables one and two ? for those diners looking for the unique experience of dining in the kitchen...and willing to fork out an additional $200 per person for the privilege!

The tables are always reserved, Ms Jabbar revealed, despite the fact that the restaurant is located in a remote part of the state. Celebrities and political figures from nearby Washington DC drive up in limousines.

"This really opened Zahra's eyes and she will never, ever forget that experience," said Horizons head chef Roberts. He should know, having spent time there himself.

"It's very hard to describe what goes on in that kitchen, unless you actually see it. My sous chef has also been out there and we told Zahra the stories, but I don't think Zahra really realised how good it was until she went out there."

Said Ms Jabbar: "I had to see it for myself. For any chef to experience The Inn at Little Washington would be an ultimate high. They are so professional, you learn so much, simple practical things that make so much sense. It is a 24-hour kitchen, they make their own bread and pasta."

Ms Jabbar met Heidi Eastham who herds her own goats in the county and makes cheeses for the restaurant.

"The kitchen is so amazing, everything is copper or brass. It's a showman's kitchen, they clean it constantly," she revealed.

"One thing I did learn is that in order to work there you don't have to be a super chef, all they are looking for is the right attitude. From the kitchen porter to the executive sous chef, everyone is equal and treated equally and gets along really well."

After training at the Bermuda College, Ms Jabbar worked for two years as a chef before leaving and trying other jobs. When she bumped into her former workmate at a bar one day, she was ready to resume her chef career and a week later started her second stint at Horizons.

Happy to encourage a young Bermudian in the profession, Mr. Roberts looked into the possibility of giving her the same exposure afforded him. And it hasn't stopped there, as there is a possibility she could be getting more experience overseas, this time at a five-star hotel in London for a couple of weeks in September or October.

"It's not confirmed yet, but I'm going to work on it in the next couple of weeks," promised the head chef.

"That would give her a completely different experience, again.

"I'm all for having local chefs in the kitchen, but you have to commit yourself to it. This isn't just a job."

Ms Jabbar has become accustomed to working unsociable hours in the hotel industry and insists there is nothing else she would rather be doing.

"Zahra says she doesn't have the social life that she used to have, but if you really want to be a chef it won't bother you. It's very, very difficult to find people like Zahra, it really is. I value her.

"It's harder to teach people the right attitude towards the job than it is to cook, I would think."

Ms Jabbar, who also has talent as a singer, once had dreams of being a rapper. Now her dreams involve owning her own restaurant one day.

"I was part of a singing group and we had a CD out and I thought I wanted to be a rapper, a superstar. But as you get older you realise it is not going to happen," she said.

"There was so much going on around me, I wanted to try everything. I finally wore myself out trying to do everything and now I'm settled into what I truly love to do."

After quitting the job the first time she worked for an airline, worked at a restaurant, a deli, at a hotel and did some catering on the side, before returning to Horizons.

"I can say in the ten months she has been back she can confidently run four sections of the five in the kitchen, that's pretty good going in such a short space of time," said her boss.

"She has had some tough days but it has been worth it. She'll continue to go places, I think."

Said Zahra: "One day something just clicked, I was sitting at my computer at one of the airlines, was looking out the door and just thought 'I can't do this for the rest of my life'. I always enjoyed cooking, I would come home from work and cook a four course meal, my mother would think I was crazy but it relaxes me, I love it.

"I was always in the kitchen as a child, it irritated my mother who would say 'go outside and play'. When I was outside playing I would make mud pies. I did four years of cookery straight at Whitney Institute."

Seeing Mr. Roberts at the bar that day could not have been more timely. It's a true blessing we met that day.

"I was actually looking for a job, I went to a lot restaurants and was hitting the street with a resume in my backpack and couldn't get a job.

"I'd like to thank those restaurants for telling me no, actually. I don't look at it as a bad thing, but to take the good with the bad.

"I've matured now and I focus on what I want to do with my life. I want to own a restaurant one day. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices in order to reap the benefits later."