Grant Sondezi

Born on the 28th January 1993 and raised in Cape Town. My mom named me Melikhaya which means leader or protector, so before I could barely open my eyes my destiny had already been decided for me. I was raised by a single parent in Khayelitsha and my mom always wished that I would have a career that serves society.

Grant is the candidate wine steward for One & Only in the 2017 Cape Legends & Artisan Spirits Inter Hotel Challenge.

Grant started with One and Only in 2015, in the housekeeping department, as a houseman. After only 2 short months, he was promoted to the Florist department but was still not satisfied. He shortly after applied at Nobu as a runner and thankfully his application was successful. On 3rd of March 2015 he joined the Nobu Team and has never looked back.

Grant entered Showcook last year, finishing in the top 5 but feels that his knowledge and confidence has grown sufficiently to win the competition. I have personally had the pleasure of working along-side Grant since September of last year and have observed a young man who is extremely passionate about his craft. His thirst for knowledge, relentless energy and constant pursuit of perfection has clearly set him apart from his peers. We are currently in the process of developing a Sommelier team and, when I approached the team about who is the best candidate, the vote for Mr Sondezi was unanimous. This, I feel, is the ultimate compliment considering the CV’s and experience of his fellow colleagues.