Born in Sydney, Australia in 1970, James Wix was raised in the infamous Bondi Beach region. With Fiji-Indian and Dutch roots, food was an integral part of his childhood, hanging out with his cousins at the first Indian restaurant in Sydney which was opened and owned by his uncle.

As a self confessed beach bum, James soon realized that working on his families market stall, selling Indian food, was the best way to spend as long as possible in the surf! It was on this market stall that James first learnt the importance of budgeting, when he worked out that at a cost of $80aus, he could reap sales to the value of $240aus and enjoy his beach style living for a fortnight on his profit!

Soon though, he had to face reality and so started his journey, from pot washer to Director of Food & Beverage at a luxury Fijian resort. During this 8 year journey, James learnt the importance of fresh ingredients, budgeting and passion in what is a vast and competitive industry.

Along the way, James met a local, our local!! A Northern Irish lass, living in Australia, who would eventually convince him that Northern Ireland was the place to live. And so in May 2004, James set up home in Co Antrim and soon started working as General Manager – NI, for Aramark Limited, ensuring healthy, cost effective and exciting catering for up to 1500 staff a day at the Halifax call centre in Belfast and training centre in Dundonald.

Founder of “Bring a Chef Home”, James also offers cookery lessons on a one to one basis, teaching his clients how to cook dishes of their choice, the importance of the ingredients, and how to cook on a budget.

When asked about his style of cooking, James said

“Fresh and simple all the way. Throughout my career, I have been extremely fortunate to have been able to source and cook with the freshest ingredients and that is something I want to impart to the visitors at Big Into Baby.

I was delighted when the organizers of Big Into Baby asked me to be their very own resident chef, doing three cookery demos per day at the show, demonstrating how easy it is to make fresh, healthy alternatives to old favorites.

As a husband and a dad of one, I am well aware of the importance of time, money and the problems with fussy eaters so everything I cook will be quick and easy and will provide essential nutrition. I will also be providing everyone with a recipe and a shopping list for everything I cook, showing how much each dish cost to prepare and what to buy at the supermarket.”

James can be seen at Big Into Baby, Odyssey Arena, Belfast on the 20 & 21 September 2008 and RDS, Dublin on the 25 & 26 October 2008. Open 10.00 – 5.00 daily. See www.bigintobaby.co.uk for further information.


For further information please contact:

Ruth Cleland on 07792 543799 or ruth@bigintobaby.co.uk