Sohla El-Waylly is Now a YouTube Food Star, But She Started With Michelin Stars in Her Eyes

Sohla El-Waylly went from dreaming of Michelin Stars to being a YouTube Star.

The New York-based food creator never set out to be an internet personality. Her original dream was to become a Michelin-starred chef, working in high-end restaurants. But after a failed attempt at opening a restaurant with her husband in Brooklyn, Sohla found herself unexpectedly pivoting to food media.

"It was accidental," Sohla told Shawn Walchef (@calibbqmedia), host of Restaurant Influencers. "I didn't know anything about media like I didn't know what the New York Times was or Bon Appetit or any of this stuff. So none of it intimidated me.”

Sohla started out writing recipes and articles for Serious Eats, where she was able to experiment and find her voice without much pressure.

"It was kind of good because I got to figure a lot out while nobody was paying attention," she said. "Because nobody read anything I wrote for years."

Her unique perspective as a self-taught chef, rather than a traditionally trained food writer, eventually led to opportunities at higher-profile outlets like Bon Appetit, the History network, and the New York Times. Now millions have watched her cooking online and on other big stages like The Big Bunch on MAX.

Watch now to learn about about making meals for the internet, secrets of YouTube success, and her personal tech stack.

Chapters:

[03:31] - Sohla El-Waylly Cookbook

[12:03] - New Media vs. Traditional Media

[18:52] - Maximizing Content

[23:29] - Making Videos for YouTube

[28:31] - Working with Häagen-Dazs

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Episode Links:

Sohla ElWaylly Online

NYT Cooking w/ Sohla

The Big Brunch on Max

Ancient Recipes with Sohla

Start Here cookbook

Takeaways:

YouTube is TV - Sohla El-Waylly knows the power of having a YouTube presence now that so many people choose to view content that way over traditional television. It’s still a lot of work to become YouTube famous, however, and the media machine must always be fed.

Cooking to Content - While her dreams at one time were of Michelin stars, Sohla El-Wally found herself on a different path when she became a writer and content creator. She knew to lean into her skills, but also pivot when necessary.

Productions of all Size - Sohla El-Waylly has worked on projects of all size and scope, including some shoots with 50+ crew members. But at the end of the day her job is to connect with the people watching.

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ABOUT SOHLA EL-WAYLLY —

Sohla El-Waylly is a culinary creator, writer, video producer, and community advocate who has been featured in The New York Times and Bon Appétit and on Food52 and Serious Eats. Her on-camera credits include starring in HBO Max’s The Big Brunch and The History Channel’s Ancient Recipes with Sohla. She studied at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park before training at various New York City restaurants such as Del Posto, Atera, and Battersby. A TIME100 Next honoree, she lives in the East Village with her husband, two dogs, and cat.

ABOUT RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS —

Restaurant Influencers is a weekly video podcast series presented by Entrepreneur Media and Cali BBQ Media. Every week host and restaurant owner Shawn Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) talks with business leaders like Shaquille O’Neal, Rob Dyrdek, Emeril Lagasse, Mayim Bialik, Jon Taffer, Robert Irvine, Aman Narang, and more, about their secrets to Smartphone Storytelling, marketing, branding, and how to show up where customers are engaging online.

Published by Entrepreneur Media

Produced by Cali BBQ Media