Chef Vicki’s kitchen experience started rather informally, learning from a circle of friends, and over time, was able to impress a number of people with her hidden kitchen prowess. This landed her a crucial apprenticeship at the Manila Peninsula Hotel in 1995, where she developed her cooking expertise as well as her management skills. Two years after, she took a formal culinary training course at the La Cucina, Al Focolore, Firenze in Italy, and participated in other short-term cooking stints in Europe and the US. Chef Vicki is a certified cooking and baking instructor, accredited by the National Restaurant Association in the US.

Her ability to train people qualified her to teach at one of the first formal culinary schools in the Philippines where she eventually became its Continuing Education Manager. In the last 10 years, Chef Vicki has been teaching at the Heny Sison Culinary School, where she finds genuine fulfillment in meeting many students who show a lot of entrepreneurial spirit. She oftentimes imparts to them practical lessons on effective management skills, restaurant and bakeshop operations, and human relations-- key attributes that contribute to a successful food business. Chef Vicki also advises her students to believe in themselves, to persevere and to be patient, and to learn that there are no set hours when you are doing what you love.