Francesca Agatep was born and raised in the Philippines and migrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba when she was thirteen years old. Right after high school she attended two years of University in hopes of finding her passion but soon realized it wasn't there. She took a break from school and decided to take her first kitchen job at Save on Foods when she was 19 years old and then worked as a line cook at Joey’s where she fell in love with the rush and excitement of working in the kitchen.

She applied for the Culinary Arts program at Red River College in 2017 after realizing her passion for cooking. During her first year in school, she volunteered at different events and joined the Canadian Culinary Federation where she had the chance to network with other talented chefs and attended multiple workshops. Francesca landed her first co-op work placement at Pomeroy Kananaskis Lodge in Alberta. And later on, ventured on to different restaurants to earn different skill sets, one being a fine dining restaurant called Cedar Room/Black tail where she worked long hours and expanded her knowledge and ability. During her second year in the program, she began working part time at Black Bird Brasserie where she continued to hone her skills, learned about French cooking and even secured a job after graduation. She spent four months joining cooking competitions to further develop and learn valuable skills needed to prepare for her final year of school. She also applied for different awards and scholarships. One of the scholarships she won offered her the opportunity to go to Niagara, Ontario along with other young chefs from different regions of Canada. It was a 5-day experience consisting of learning about different types of salt, visiting wineries, distilleries, farms, restaurants around the region that helped her develop her appreciation for wine and expanded her love for travel and food. 

Francesca graduated with honours in 2019 and has competed in many competitions, receiving seven awards. She is planning to complete her Red Seal this year and travel across Canada to acquire more experience and expand her knowledge in hopes of opening up her own restaurant in the future.