Having a supportive family made it possible to achieve my dreams - LesDaChef 10 January 2021 1:58 PM Share This: Lesego Semenya was earning R35,000 a month in corporate. He left and his first salary as a chef, after qualifying, was R1,500. Lesego Semenya, also known as LesDaChef, was born and raised in Soweto. While still working as a process engineer for The IQ Business Group he decided to pursue his personal passion and goals. He began writing articles for a youth magazine called UnCut, the flagship magazine for an organisation called LoveLife. He left the corporate world in 2008 after 6 years to pursue his business goals. Lesego then went on to travel South Africa for a year before enrolling at South Africaâs best chef school, Prue Leith Chef's Academy in Centurion, to study towards becoming a chef. He qualified with a Grande Diploma in Food and Wine and five other international level diplomas in wine and patisserie.