JANA LAI

LOCATION: PARIS, FRANCE

Jana Lai is the little Aussie pastry chef navigating the realms of French pastry, one creation at a time! Her journey commenced in the  suburbs of Melbourne, where she was born into a family of hard working, immigrant parents and her baker grandfather, all from East Timor, who constantly filled the kitchen with his delicious sweets and instilling a love of desserts as well as a strong work ethic in her.

Embarking on her pastry journey in 2012 at William Angliss Institute, Jana has worked alongside masters of the Australian pastry industry ; Maria Lantelme, Pierre Roelofs and Shaun Quade, before taking the leap and moving to Paris in 2015. Standing in line to meet her idol, Pierre Herme, was a defining "pinch-me" moment, encapsulating all her dreams and aspirations. It was there, that she joined the school of her mentor and current chef, Jean Michel Perruchon MOF, who nurtured and encouraged the big dream, as part of the team at Ecole Bellouet Conseil. With perseverance and determination, Jana honed her craft, triumphing over underestimations and challenges within a traditionally male-dominated industry, where every spare moment was a canvas for learning and absorbing insights from the numerous World Champions, MOF’s and other masters of their craft,  fuelling a relentless pursuit of excellence.

With a mastery, extending from the art of sugar work to chocolate, viennoiseries, Petits Gâteaux and much more, Jana's creations have graced the pages of pastry magazines (Journal du Patissier, Artisan Magazine, Pastry Arts magazine) and captivated audiences on television screens in France.

In 2022, Jana became the first female selected to compete for the prestigious French Pastry team in the 2023 World Pastry Cup, winning the Silver Medal. Today, as a pastry instructor in Paris at the same school, Jana's days are a whirlwind of preparation for her next competition, crafting showpieces and desserts, and fostering a vibrant exchange of knowledge and skill among chefs hailing from every corner of the globe.

Fluent in both French and English, her teaching is a balance of traditional and modern French techniques, peppered with a dash of Aussie humor, ensuring a delightful learning experience for professionals and amateurs alike!