Meet Chef Keshia Hay, the Heart & Soul Behind BōTANIQUE
From fashion design to botanical-driven dining, Chef Keshia Hay’s journey is rooted in instinct, intention, and a deep belief in hospitality. Image: Keren Treviño
From hand-beaded prom dresses to edible flowers and sensorial feasts, Keshia Hay’s path to food was anything but linear. With roots in fashion design and decades spent at family restaurants and food trucks, this Nashville chef’s cooking is guided by intuition, attention to detail, and deep hospitality. Today, through BōTANIQUE, she creates intimate, botanical-driven dining experiences where intention, beauty, and love are the main ingredients.
What inspired you to become a chef?
My first food and creative adventures started when I was very little. Drawing, sewing, cooking, crafting … I was into it all. Fast forward to fourth grade, when I met my lifelong best friend/sister, and champion, Meredith. From there, the food shenanigans we got into were pretty epic!
Over time, our skills got better, but it was all in fun. My actual focus was on fashion design. Driven by that medium, I attended O’More College of Design and acquired my BFA in Fashion Design and Merchandising. While pursuing this “pipe dream,” I was still fully immersed in food — from working at my first restaurant (family-owned) at 13 to bartending at a country club in college. After graduating, I had the opportunity to visit Paris, France. That trip solidified my passion and motivation for food and for moving full-time into the culinary arts.
I established “SIP N BITE” and began private cheffing in 2014, and rebranded to BōTANIQUE in 2024. Experimental beginnings blossomed into the beautiful business I have today, which has brought me so much. I’m celebrating seven years as a full-time entrepreneur/private chef this month.
How does your fashion design background influence your cooking approach?
When I was 15, I made my first prom dress … I was determined to hand bead it. A beautiful black satin custom gown, edged in these tiny silver seed beads, accenting the neck and hip area of the dress. The ladies at Textiles Fabric (RIP) thought I was nuts because I had never done anything like that before.
Nevertheless, I persisted! If I wanted it to come out like I dreamed it, I had to just do it! I came back a couple of months later with my dress in hand, and they were awestruck.
That’s how I approach food.
BōTANIQUE is rooted in intimate gatherings and intentional, sensory-driven experiences. What does creating a “botanical lens” mean to you?
“Surprise and Delight” are the roots of my dining experiences when catering to the five senses. Intentionality goes a long way when conjuring up the feelings you want your guests to have. I think about how I would want to feel and the impression I want to leave, then I go from there.
As for the “botanical lens,” I’ve always had an affinity for flowers. Their beauty and nuance bring so much joy and energy to a room or plate. Working with edible flowers, I can express a flavor note or visual in a form that isn’t typical of the dish. Depending on the season, I’m able to communicate my mood, playing with the many colors, textures, and taste profiles that occur in nature.
When you’re not cooking for others, what does a perfect meal look like?
I recently got back into cooking for myself at home with enjoyment. There was a moment where cooking was a means for survival — to feed my son and get in a few nibbles for myself. It was a pretty heavy emotional time in my life. Now that I’ve made it through and moved into a new environment with calming energy, my zest for cooking has come back.
It’s typically surrounded by candlelight, linen napkins, and vintage dishes/silverware. Even if it’s a humble cheeseburger, I find ways to ritualize it and make it special. The same goes for when I dine out! I’ve really taken to the “solo date” and look for places with a lovely vibe. Of course, I’m peeping their menu beforehand, but I love being in the element and appreciate a day or night off from cooking.
As a Nashville native, how has this city shaped your palate, career, or the way you approach hospitality?
I have so many opinions on this! My family had an establishment on Jefferson Street for 20 years, which was where I cut my teeth. As much as we have grown and evolved into this “food city,” we still have a LOT more to learn and embrace when it comes to diversity and economic equality.
I watched this city go from chain restaurants on every corner, where you wouldn’t dare to pay more than $7 for a cocktail and $50 got you a “high-end” steak dinner, to $25 cocktails and a $150 tab for a salad and entrée because the space is trendy.
It didn’t take long to skate into true high-end pricing, but there are very minimal true “high-end establishments” to match the value. You have a lot of hospitality groups coming from out of state simply because they can afford to take up space, all while pushing out the neighborhood mom-and-pops that made Nashville quirky and beautiful.
And don’t get me started on “appropriation versus appreciation!” We’ll be here all day, and for good reason. These factors shaped me as a chef, a black woman in the culinary space, and a mom. I truly have to work hard(er) to stay relevant, get what I’m worth in the value of my work, stay ahead of the curve, be innovative, and do it all as gracefully and authentically as possible.
You can’t fake passion or love in your food, no matter where you come from or how much training and money are behind you.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
Have a mission statement and a life purpose, and physically write it out. My dearest mentor, Sophia Rae of Projet Chocolat, sat me down in 2017 and helped me formulate my statement and purpose. The beauty is that it can evolve as I evolve. Having it gives me the blueprint of how to grow and flow through my personal and professional life. If a person, place, or thing doesn’t align, they don’t get to play a part.
What three things can’t you live without?
My health, first and foremost. Beauty, which comes in many forms and keeps me inspired and motivated to create. And freedom, in all forms. To create is an act of joy and resistance, and as an artist/chef, it’s INCREDIBLY important to have the space to dream, then bring it into reality.
LIGHTNING ROUND
Most memorable recent meal that you can’t wait to have again? I absolutely love Locust and have yet to be disappointed. The menu has its anchors, along with revolving dishes Chef Moran dreams up on a whim. And if you’re lucky, you may be surprised with little amuses bouches from the kitchen “just because.”
What’s on your nightstand? A manifestation journal, amethyst-infused pillow spray, and fresh flowers.
Favorite recent book? Finding Freedom By Erin French. It’s her autobiography, and I resonate so much with her story. Her show, The Lost Kitchen, got me through my first year of postpartum. It literally woke me up when I was feeling at my lowest.
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Jenna von Oy Bratcher
Jenna von Oy Bratcher is StyleBlueprint's Editorial Operations Manager and Lead Content Editor. The East Coast native moved to Nashville almost two decades ago, by way of Los Angeles. She is a lover of dogs, strong coffee, traveling, and exploring the local restaurant scene bite by bite.