Chef biography. The story of “Sprinkle Chef” - the chef who became a meme. What does it feel like to achieve success?
Alexey Dyma, Brand Chef, Culinary Studio "Kulinarium".
Creator, improviser in the kitchen
He started cooking at the age of 8 - his first textbooks were clippings from old Soviet magazines, and already at 13 he was coming up with his own signature dishes. I was never afraid to experiment and improvise: add new products to familiar recipes, come up with my own combinations of ingredients. Upon completion of the 2.5-month cook course, I immediately received the 4th category. At the age of 18, he went to work in a restaurant (Taras Bulba tavern), where he mastered all possible operations. He never stopped learning: he went to restaurants and learned from experience, and as a result, at the age of 21, he became a chef (Premier restaurant).
Among Alexey's teachers are famous Italian chefs: Valentino Bontempi, David Desso, Salvatore Nicotro, Mario Lopez, Staiano Giuseppe, Eros Franceosi.
He worked with Yulia Vysotskaya for about 4 years, Brand worked as a chef at Yulia Vysotskaya’s Culinary Studio for about a year.
Some of the restaurants where Alexey worked: restaurants “Truffaldino”, “Borsalino”, “Verona”, “Sesto Senso”, “Fifth Ocean”, “Voyage”; clubs “Lascana”, “Mukha”, “Trish”.
Cookware testing - collaboration with brands: Vitesse, Green Pan, Zepter, Samura, Felix Solingen, Tefal (expert, demonstration of cookware capabilities at exhibitions and festivals)
Cooperation with manufacturers and distributors of products: Agama (seafood) - more than 2 years, Bofrost (shock freezing, Germany), Vsevolzhsky meat processing plant.
Collaboration with the Eksmo publishing house - food stylist (preparing dishes for photography), regularly works with famous photographers Sergei Morgunov, Ksenia Filipova, Alexander Averin and Nadezhda Serebryakova.
Author of books published by Eksmo Publishing House: “Light exciting snacks. Return of pleasure”, “Romantic dinner”, “Hot dinner for a hot night”, “The world of new food. Opening Ceremony", "Culinary Prelude. Salads. Snacks. Desserts”, “Festive treat in 30 minutes”, food stylist of some cookbooks published in the same publishing house “Men’s Cooking” by Andrei Makarevich, “Babkin’s House. Nadezhda Babkina treats,” “Mother’s Kitchen” by Ekaterina Odintsova, reissue of books by William Pokhlebkin, etc.
Collaboration with Yulia Vysotskaya for more than four years: host of master classes for the Bread and Salt magazine, food stylist for filming. Brand worked as a chef at the Julia Vysotskaya Culinary Studio for about a year.
Author of the magazine “My Baby and I” for about three years: original recipes for the little ones, advice to parents: how to feed a child, how to make it interesting for children to eat.
Guest of the “Household Economics” program on the Mayak radio station.
Filming in the television programs “Test Purchase”, “Habitat”, “Time to Lunch”, talk show “Doctors” as an expert, regular guest of the TV channels “TV-3”, “NTV”, training video on the Internet channel www.e-da .tv, etc.
Participant name: Alexander Belkovich
Age (birthday): 22.11.1984
City: Severodvinsk, Arkhangelsk region
Job: Belka restaurant (St. Petersburg)
Family: married, have children
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Read with this article:
Alexander Belkovich was born on November 22, 1984 in the small naval town of Severodvinsk in the Arkhangelsk region. From the age of six I was passionate about cooking.
Now an experienced brand chef of a large restaurant chain in St. Petersburg, the owner of his own culinary school and star of the STS TV channel, with a smile on his lips, he recalls how in his youth he presented his family with a super sandwich with bread and sausages and made homemade yogurt according to his own recipe.
When Sasha was in the 9th grade, he began to think about enrolling to study to become a cook.. He even came up with the idea of getting a job at McDonald's.
In 2000, he completed his studies at the Arkhangelsk Cooperative College, after which he moved to live in the capital and began to think about getting a job in one of the kitchens of Moscow restaurants.
At the age of 26, the guy was able to become the curator of 7 restaurants that were considered the most fashionable in Russia: Plyushkin, Ginza Project, Volga-Volga, Terrassa, Moscow, Baranka, Attic, Ribeye.
Alexander assures that it was not only his culinary skills that helped him achieve success, but also the spirit of a true businessman. Thus, the restaurants began to enjoy success with regular customers. At the age of 17, it was difficult to find a job in the capital; there were even cases when Sasha was left without work without paying benefits.
One day he found himself in the kitchen of Correa's, under the guidance of Puerto-American chef Isaac Correa, who taught him all the basics of work. This man became a teacher for Sasha and inspired him to new achievements. They collaborated together for 5 years. Moscow allowed Sasha to discover his talent, and in 2006 the guy moved to St. Petersburg, where he began working in the Ginza Project chain as a chef.
Alexander always devotes himself to his work, tries to give energy to his charges and inspire them to create masterpieces; he does not sit still, moving around the kitchen area. Despite the fact that success came to Sasha in at a young age, he was not overtaken by star fever. He assures that snobbery has a detrimental effect on work, and therefore he has no time for such nonsense.
Belkovich is not only a talented chef, but also published his own in 2010 cookbook called "Open Kitchen", where he presented readers with interesting dishes based on simple ingredients.
Belkovich calls his secret of success the ability to develop his instincts and correctly understand the tastes of the people visiting his restaurants. Thanks to his ability to sense the tastes of many, special combinations, he was able to create dishes that appeal to all guests of the establishment.
Alexander is ambitious, purposeful and hardworking, he devotes a lot of time to work and is always ready for new discoveries. In 2015, he became the host of the STS show “MasterChef. Children". Since 2017, he has been working as a host on the “Simply Kitchen” show, demonstrating that even with available ingredients from modern stores, anyone can prepare a restaurant dish.
In addition to cooking, Alexander enjoys snowboarding, boxing, loves playing basketball and traveling. He is married to his wife Olga, and together their parents are raising a sweet daughter named Isabella. In 2017, Alexander and Olga had a son.
Photo by Alexander
The chef has an Instagram where you can see many personal photos from everyday life.
Nikolai Fedotov was born on December 13, 1976 in Kaluga, went to Moscow to study, and graduated from Bauman Moscow State Technical University. For a long time he worked in construction companies, but one day he realized: this is not what he needs. It all started with watching Jamie Oliver's The Naked Chef. Nikolai thought: “This is a happy guy, I want to be the same.” And I started cooking at home.
The first place I worked in the kitchen was “The Sea Inside”. Nikolai worked two jobs at the same time: during the day - in the office, in the evening - in a cafe. After working his first season, he decided that he would not give up cooking and wanted to develop professionally in this area. He completed culinary courses and received a third-class chef diploma. Promoted to the position of chef at the Enebaer restaurant big way and changed about ten jobs: I worked for several months in preparation at a restaurant in Sevastopol, ended up at Ragout, where I learned all the basic techniques, learned all the rigor of Adrian Ketglas in “The Garden”, studied at Bar Strelka with Nathan and Natalie, became a sous-chef Osteria Numero Uno, opened ShchiSliva and returned to Ragout again. This spring, Nikolai Fedotov headed the kitchen of the Scandinavian restaurant Enebaer.
From the office to the kitchen
I was born and raised in Kaluga, then went to Moscow, where I graduated from Bauman University with a degree in mechanical engineering technologist, and after college I served in the army. I got a job in a construction organization that was engaged in the manufacture of all kinds of metal structures, translucent facades, canopies, fences - more or less close to my specialty. I worked in this business for a total of seven years and maybe would have worked for more if there had not been a difficult period in my life when I began to ask myself questions like “why do I exist?” and “what am I doing anyway, why should I work in an office for some guy with no prospects?” I realized that working as a specialist in a construction organization, I could achieve little.
I saw the program “The Naked Chef” with Jamie Oliver, and I liked it so much that I watched about two hundred videos with him. He inspired me so much that I started cooking at home and realized: here he is, a happy person who cooks interesting food and enjoys what he does. I thought I want to be the same. I was also influenced by an article in one of the first issues of the Afisha-Food magazine about a man who, at the age of 27, having almost trained as a doctor, decided to become a cook. And I thought: since there is such an example, then I’m afraid in vain that I might not succeed. As a result, while still working in the office, I began to combine. One of my friends said: “Kolya, a fashionable cafe has opened and they need chefs, please go.” It was the "Sea Inside" cafe.
I asked very much, said that I was ready to work for free and so on. But the cafe said that they needed professionals. I still left my number, and literally a couple of days later they called me back and said that they still needed my help. I started coming after the office and working for free. I worked in this mode all summer. Then they offered me to go to the restaurant for good; they wanted to start paying me a salary. But I have to finish a project in the office, when will I leave? But I seriously thought about it.
Beginning a chef's career
The season (the cafe was open only during the warm season) was over, and I decided that I couldn’t just give it up. I quit my office job and took cooking classes. I thought it would be a good start to have some basic knowledge. I went through the usual two-month courses, where we were given lectures similar, probably, to those they give at vocational schools, were given a third-class chef diploma and were sent for an internship at the Peshkoff Street cafe (it has now closed).
I proved myself to be a good employee and was offered a permanent job there. But this was the job of the youngest cook; at that time I received about 20 thousand rubles a month, of which I paid 10 thousand for housing. After working in this cafe for six months, I realized that I had learned everything I could learn there and was no longer interested in it. You could say that’s where my career in the kitchen began, I started thinking about what’s next, where I’ll go.
Cook at Ragout
I decided that I wanted to work somewhere by the sea, and left for Sevastopol. It was necessary to change the situation. I worked for several months at the Barkas fish restaurant in preparation and wanted to go back to Moscow. It was then that the first Ragout opened on Belorusskaya. At that time I was a fan of Zimin (Alexey Zimin, Chief Editor"Afisha-Food" and co-owner of the Ragout cafe. - Approx. ed.), read all his magazines and books and found out that he opened a restaurant. I walked right through the main entrance and asked: “Do you need cooks?” A short man comes out, the boss, and I say: “I want to learn from you, I want to work.” I was 33 years old, I looked mature, I looked like a professional. He was surprised when I said that I didn’t really have any experience, but I really wanted to. And he replied: “That’s great, come tomorrow, I’ll teach you a lot.” I say that I can’t tomorrow, and he: “Do you need a job or not?” Of course, I came the next day.
And so I’m running all emotional and remember that the article that made a great impression on me was about (chef of the Ragout restaurant. - Ed.). I realized that everything, this was definitely fate, I was on the right path. I worked at Ragout for a year.
When I came to Ragout, I had a total work experience of six or seven months, which, I think, is simply nothing for a restaurant of this level. I learned some things from books and TV shows, but overall I knew I didn’t know anything. At this time, I worked for the second summer season at “The Sea Inside”, where, by the way, I met, he is now a sous chef at, he is a great fellow. I explained the situation to my colleagues, and they supported me: “Of course, if this is your life’s dream, go.” That’s how I ended up at Ragout, where they taught me almost everything that I now know and can do. French techniques are like ABC for me; they apply to any kitchen.
They say that if you move in the right direction, you will be carried along. And I was carried away. I noticed that even in life everything somehow began to improve. I felt happy and the people around me were supportive.
I worked at Ragout for a year, then I was fired from there: I messed up a little, I wouldn’t like to talk about it in detail. Then I was accepted into Ragout at the Olympic Stadium, and I realized that I was forgiven. But between these two Ragouts, I had a few free months that I decided not to waste, so I went to work in other restaurants to gain new experience.
Five restaurants in six months
In principle, six months is enough in any place to learn from experience (unless, of course, the goal is to earn money). First I went to the restaurant "" to Ketglas ( Adrian Quetglas is the brand chef of The Garden and Grand Cru restaurants. - Approx. ed.), then to Nathan and Natalie ( chefs and married couple Nathan Dallimore and Natalie Horsting, formerly in charge of the kitchen at the Simachev and Strelka bars, and now at Kuznetsky Most 20. - Approx. ed.), then - in Osteria Numero Uno. I worked in the last two simultaneously. Afterwards I was offered to head the kitchen at the ShchiSliva restaurant. I didn’t work there for very long and returned to Ragout on the Olympic. I still really wanted to work with Ilya Shalev and learn from him. I thought it was too early for me to be a boss. Two years of experience - and become a chef. No, I still have to study and study! Moreover, this is a big responsibility.
Ketglas is, of course, a genius. How did I get to The Garden? I knew Denis Krupenya ( chef and co-owner of the restaurant. - Approx. ed.) through the tennis club - we both play. I asked him who is the best in Moscow now, and he said: “Go to Ketglas.” It was 2010 or 2011. That's how I got to him. Of course, he has a barracks - everything is very strict. A step to the left, a step to the right - execution. I can understand it from the side that they are trying to be the best in the city and not lose their brand. In the kitchen at The Garden, I remembered working at The Sea Inside and at Ragout with joy: everything was relaxed there, but at the same time everyone was doing the job and working with pleasure. I thought, why do I need this place if it depresses me? Too tense atmosphere, strict sous-chefs. There was a lot of shouting, harsh fines (for example, for a sauce stain in the refrigerator), and the salary was not the highest in Moscow. I decided to leave. But I have to say, I had a great experience with Quetglas.
I was recommended to Osteria Numero Uno by a friend of mine who did interior design for them. This restaurant is a completely different story. Everything was simpler and more soulful there. But soon I became uninterested there. In a short time I rose to the rank of sous chef there. At some point, I met a guy in the kitchen who worked at Bar Strelka, and began working in both places in parallel. So I changed places thanks to acquaintances - the sphere is the same, we all know each other. Now, for example, I have chefs working in my kitchen whom I have known since Ragout and ShchiSliva.
Nathan Dallimore is an example of a good chef. He comes, strictly walks through the kitchen, looks into the refrigerators. Each preparation must be stored strictly for four days; if more, he immediately threw it away and cursed. I worked at Strelka for several months. Then I returned again as a cook at Ragout for six months, after which Alexey Zimin invited me to become a chef in his new project in Nikola-Lenivets. I understood that this was a seasonal job, but I couldn’t refuse my idol. It was interesting, and I still remember this experience. A very unusual time unusual people: summer, limited space, no city amenities, nature, beauty, mosquitoes, horseflies and wasps.
Chef at Enebaer
Upon returning to Moscow from Nikola-Lenivets, I worked for some time at the Ragout school, and then I received an offer to head the kitchen of the restaurant. Back then the place was called “Sandwich”, but the founders decided to change the name and concept. So now it's a completely different restaurant. I won’t say that this is exactly Scandinavian cuisine, but rather our vision of it with an abundance of fish, root vegetables and cereals.
I don’t really like to command, I like it when everything is set up. But without nerves. Sometimes, of course, I miss constantly cooking over a hot stove. I take part in the development and preparation of the menu, but when we go to mass cooking, I do not cook, but monitor the sous chef and other chefs so that they organize all the processes in the kitchen. Our kitchen is small, and I try not to get in the way there too much.
About the difficulties of the profession
I never thought before that I could become a chef. My friends brag about me - here, a man at 30 years old was not afraid to change his life and achieved success. I believe that the work of a cook is a job for young people; after all, it is physically difficult. In their youth, chefs can still afford to work seven days a week. I know such people, they are at work every day from 12 to midnight. I myself worked in such a schedule, however, already in mature age, and realized that it was hard. I started having problems with my legs. When I stopped working two jobs, everything became normal.
At the beginning of my cooking career, everything was very bad with my personal life. Now there is also a crisis, just the other day my girlfriend and I separated. I hope this is temporary. It all comes together - the work, which takes a lot of time, and the difference in characters. Love is love, but it turns out that living together is difficult. And so, she supported me in every possible way and guided me.
Chefs need to feed their families, but given that a chef's salary cannot exceed a certain amount, many have to work seven days a week, which means not seeing their family. I would die if I worked seven days a week. I try to give myself time to rest, although I find myself thinking that I cannot relax and still think about work.
Photos: Polina Kirilenko
Vladimir Mukhin is a famous Russian chef and restaurateur, winner of international culinary competitions. Thanks to the efforts of the chef, the Moscow restaurant “White Rabbit” is included in the list of the fifty best restaurants in the world.
Mukhin is called one of the few chefs who are not afraid to change established ideas about cooking. Vladimir Mukhin openly declares his love for traditional Russian cuisine and tries to show Russia and the world that such recipes can also attract attention, as well as be fashionable and in demand.
Vladimir was born in the city of Essentuki, Stavropol Territory. The boy grew up in a family of hereditary cooks and, continuing the dynasty, became a cook in the fifth generation. He was accustomed to the kitchen and cooking since childhood. A special influence on the boy was exerted by his grandmother Fedosya Kireevna, the chef of the trust of restaurants and canteens, and his grandfather, who taught his grandson techniques for processing and storing food.
At the age of 12, Vladimir was already helping his father with all his might in the work of the Samara Pier restaurant, going from simple dishes to ancient recipes of Russian merchant cuisine. After school, Vladimir Mukhin goes to the capital and enters the Russian the University of Economics named after Plekhanov at the Faculty of Catering Technology. Already during his studies, the young man began labor activity in prestigious Moscow institutions.
Chef
At the age of 17, Vladimir Mukhin got a job at the restaurant “Red Square, Building 1,” where the kitchen was headed by the president of the National Guild of Chefs, Alexander Filin. Seeing the talented young man, Filin not only shared his knowledge with him, but a few years later opened a joint cafe “Buloshnaya”, in which Mukhin became the youngest chef in the country. This is not the only establishment in which Vladimir Mukhin managed to work.
The young man also interned at the Belgrade, Kitay-Gorod, Nostalgie restaurants and at the famous Russian cuisine restaurant Cafe Pushkin. Even at the beginning of his own culinary biography, Vladimir Mukhin began to especially highlight Russian cuisine and pay increased attention to the traditional recipes of his native country.
Vladimir Mukhin also became the first Russian chef to tour in France. Mukhin led the tour together with the French chef Christian Etienne. In 2009, two chefs organized a gala dinner called “Russian Christmas”, which expectedly included recipes of traditional Russian cuisine brought by Mukhin, at the Michelin-starred restaurant “Christian Etienne”.
Vladimir Mukhin himself considers touring abroad to be as important for his activities as working in his native country. The chef calls himself an ambassador of Russian traditional cuisine recipes to the world, and sees his main mission in popularizing this cuisine both among compatriots and foreigners.
The popular “ Instagram» chef, where Vladimir Mukhin regularly posts photographs of new dishes of his own preparation. Vladimir also posts dishes that correspond to certain days, religious traditions and traditional holidays of the country. For example, Mukhin prepared Thursday salt, corresponding to the Russian Orthodox tradition.
At the same time, the chef calmly deviates from tradition when serving dishes. The design of Mukhin's dishes is bright and fashionable to break the stereotype that Russian cuisine is boring and ordinary. Photo captions are posted on English language, since the account is also interesting to foreigners, but in the comments the cook answers in both English and Russian.
Vladimir also opened the restaurants “Zhitnaya, 10” and “Windsor”, and since 2012 he became the chef of the Moscow restaurant “White Rabbit”. On the menu, the chef includes both his grandmother’s old recipes and his own ideas, often experimental.
In his own recipes, Vladimir Mukhin uses and plays with a number of products that are considered original Russian, but at the same time have been forgotten in Russian cuisine. The chef travels around Russia, looking for traditional recipes, ordering and using ingredients that are unusual for the modern client. For example, in the Mukhina restaurant you can try dishes that contain birch bast, moose milk or other similar products.
When Russia came under an embargo on the import of a number of products from European countries in 2013, the chef took this news positively. According to Vladimir Mukhin, a ban on using the achievements of European chefs and technologists will give impetus to the development of Russian cuisine, and may also encourage Russian chefs to use their own raw materials and traditional products.
Even after opening his own restaurant, the young man did not stop developing. Also, despite his love for Russian cuisine, Mukhin is not against adopting the experience of foreign colleagues.
Vladimir trained in the best restaurants in France, Spain, Japan, participated in many summits, competitions and festivals, and in 2013 he was recognized as the best young chef in Russia, winning first place in the III annual Russian competition of young chefs “Silver Triangle”.
Moreover, at the most prestigious culinary competition “S.Pellegrino Cooking Cup” Vladimir Mukhin won second place, which no master from Russia had achieved before. The famous culinary specialist Massimo Bottura called this success the most significant achievement of Russian cuisine in recent decades.
During the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, it was Mukhin who was entrusted with heading the kitchen of the Red Fox restaurant, which became the gastronomic opening of the Olympic season.
The popularity of the young chef was raised in the rankings by the restaurant he headed. In 2014, White Rabbit entered the top hundred best restaurants in the world, and at the latest ceremony of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, the success of this restaurant became a sensation - White Rabbit rose to 23rd place.
Personal life
Vladimir Mukhin met his future wife when he had already become a sought-after chef. This circumstance has a huge impact on family life, because the chef has practically no free time. But the cook’s wife Sophia turned out to be an understanding person. The wife devoted herself entirely to raising children - a daughter and a son.
As Vladimir himself says, the most difficult thing in family life– the inability to plan anything in advance, even a day off or vacation can be interrupted due to an unexpected order. Nevertheless, at least once a year the Mukhins try to move away from Moscow in order to fully devote this time to each other.
Vladimir Mukhin now
In 2016, Vladimir Mukhin’s restaurant set a new record for quality and popularity. The respected "The World's 50 Best Restaurants" has given a new ranking to White Rabbit, pushing the restaurant to 18th place. At the same time, in a commentary to the rating, the compilers described Vladimir Mukhin as “the leader of a new wave of young Russian chefs.”
In 2018, Vladimir Mukhin appeared on television. The chef, along with a number of colleagues, went on a gastronomic journey, which was highlighted by the new culinary television show “Good Riddance.” The chefs’ task is to create a complete set of traditional dishes created from authentic ingredients.
To do this, the chef of a fashionable Moscow restaurant travels to villages and villages to find forgotten recipes and traditions passed down by residents from generation to generation, and faces the problems of Russian Agriculture, finds farmers engaged in extraordinary production, as well as families who are the last to preserve forgotten ways of preparing honey, processing bast and creating other traditional products.
Projects
- 2000 - “Red Square, building 1”
- 2002 – “Buloshnaya”
- 2009 - gala dinner “Russian Christmas” at the restaurant “Christian Etienne”
- 2012 - “White Rabbit”
- 2014 - “Red Fox” at “Rosa Khutor”
- 2018 - “Good riddance”
Evgeny Nikiforov, chef and owner of the Kaizen cafe and the Ideal Furshet catering restaurant in St. Petersburg
Most people who enter the cooking profession want to become chefs, and some dream of owning their own restaurant. To achieve such a goal requires more effort than just working in the kitchen from dawn to dusk, facing fuss, difficulties in relationships with the team, low wages and unfair, and sometimes mean, attitude of employers. Unfortunately, some of these dreamers give up at the first difficulties in their careers and give up their dreams, not wanting to work on themselves. This is the answer to the question why not all chefs become chefs. And in a career, as in business, you need to make more efforts, constantly increasing your level of knowledge and experience.
Step One: Read Cooking Books
Outside of work when you have free time, you definitely need to read cookbooks - recipe after recipe, indiscriminately. This knowledge will not be remembered in the same way as we are used to remembering what we read, but you will be able to easily understand different cuisines, you will come across recipes that you want to use. And even if you think that you will never need a cookbook with recipes from Australian Bushmen in Murmansk restaurants, you will have knowledge that no one but you has. The theoretical basis creates your competitive advantage among chefs, regardless of the need to apply this knowledge.
I really remember the book “Caucasian Cuisine”. I re-read recipe after recipe and discovered a large number of recipes for the same dish that changed depending on the regions of the Caucasus: in some one ingredient changed, in others several, in some the same recipe was the same, but they differed in name. The knowledge from this book helped me diversify the menu when necessary, but I felt the biggest benefit when interacting with chefs from the Caucasus.
When I found out where the chef was from, I talked to him about the dishes of his region, because I was sincerely interested in it, it was easier to establish contact. When you show interest in people and their culture, you not only become closer to them, but you also receive respect.
Step two: read books on people management
Read books on managing people. This is more difficult to do, since some of these books are written in a specific and even rather boring way. But successful people differ from everyone else in that they are ready to do boring things for a good result. And in this step, the most important thing is to apply and practice all the methods recommended in the books.
Many chefs actually initial stage careers believe that they first need to learn how to cook, that this is their goal, and management is completely useless. That's right: you need to learn how to cook, but this is today and this is what you do at work and during work. But now in your arsenal best chef it is necessary to lay down an understanding of management.
You get tired at work, and the desire to relax with friends in a club may counter the need to read books, especially since you will not get the results from reading it soon. Believe me: the result will come soon! Even if you don't become a chef because you have little culinary experience, you can apply your knowledge to your colleagues. Successful management results can be summed up in one phrase: people want to do for you what you want them to do.
For starters, I can recommend Dale Carnegie's books: they are interesting to read and easy to apply. The most important thing is that they are 100% applicable in life, and results can be obtained in a short time. Seeing the result will encourage you to study further.
“You get tired at work, and the desire to relax with friends can counter the need to read books, especially since you will not get the results from reading it soon. Believe me: the result will come soon!”
“The theoretical basis will create your competitive advantage among chefs, regardless of the need to apply this knowledge.”
Step three: arrange training for yourself
Train right now, and be sure to put all the new knowledge from books into practice! If you study recipes, then look for opportunities to use them in the kitchen.
In many restaurants, your chefs will sabotage your proposals to develop any recipes, and this is normal, because the chef may have already tried this recipe before and is not interested. And if you suggest something interesting that he hasn’t done yet, then elaboration can only take place because of his personal interests - but it can’t be any other way. The main thing is not to give up after the tenth or even three hundredth refusal. Perhaps the economy in a restaurant does not allow the use of products for processing, then do not spare your money for the sake of experience: buy the products and cook. Think of this process as learning, and you have to pay for good learning. You can use new recipes for staff meals.
Read it in the evening interesting way influence and control - practice it at work. This is both useful and very interesting. Those unfamiliar with management practices are usually loudly indignant at such advice, considering it, to put it mildly, unethical. Therefore, you should not tell your colleagues about your practices. Without holding a leadership position, you can manage people only if others like you and they are ready to do for you what you want them to do. Essentially, management is the science and art of how to become a good man. Become a good colleague!
“Management is the science and art of becoming a good person. Become a good colleague!”
Step Four: Sacrificing Salary Today to Earn More Tomorrow
Some chefs, having embarked on a career path, work in the same company, in the same restaurant, with the same kitchen. Most often, chefs of authentic cuisine, such as Japanese cuisine, fall into the trap of a narrow focus. I have friends who worked in Japanese restaurants for eight years, rose to the level of chefs, and eventually decided to change jobs. Only Japanese cuisine no longer suits them, but they can only get into a restaurant serving European cuisine as chefs, and even, for starters, as trainees. They are offered the salaries of trainees and regular chefs because their knowledge of Japanese cuisine is not applicable in Europe. As a result, they don’t quit their old job because they feel sorry for losing two-thirds of their current salary, but they no longer get any pleasure from work.
There is no need to delay expanding your horizons and gaining experience in various cuisines! If you have already worked in one kitchen for a couple of years - for example, in an Italian kitchen, then quit and go study another, even if you are now a sous chef, and in the new restaurant you will receive a chef's salary. The loss in money now can reach up to 50%, but this is nothing compared to the experience you will gain and thanks to which you will stand out among other chefs when applying for your next job or when your management is faced with the task of choosing a sous chef or chef from the team . The one who knows and can do more wins.
There was such a case in my practice: I worked as a sous chef in an Italian restaurant, received a good salary, but at one point I went to work in a Japanese restaurant to study Japanese cuisine. My salary as a cook in a Japanese restaurant was two times lower than as a sous chef in an Italian one. In two months I made up for the losses and again received my previous sous-chef salary, and when I quit there, I was promoted to the next restaurant without competition as a generalist in Italian and Japanese cuisine with experience as a sous-chef. Many people laughed behind my back when I lost money in salary for the sake of experience, but I knew that these losses were my investments in myself, in my knowledge, this was tuition fees. I did this more than once and even left the position of chef to work as a simple cook in order to learn from a good chef.
I know several chefs who did the same thing: leaving good jobs for lower salaries to get the work experience they thought they needed. One of these chefs is now the brand chef of four restaurants in St. Petersburg, and these are unique raw food restaurants.
All the methods of successful career growth that I recommend have been tested in practice by me personally, my colleagues and my students. Everyone's results are different depending on their goals. Some are already sous chefs, others work as chefs and brand chefs, I have my own cafe and outdoor restaurant. All this is thanks to hard work and constant self-education. To write these educational articles, I specifically read books on writing texts and articles, took training on maintaining attention with text and involving the reader in the plot. But I could say, like many: “I’m a cook, I just love to cook, why do I need all this?”
In Russia, the education of chefs is at a very low level, and there is no understanding at all of who we are and why we are in the kitchen. Many work as cooks to provide themselves with a regular income - to receive a salary. But a chef is a life that must be lived with pleasure and achieved results that you can be proud of!
I believe that Russian chefs will be recognized as the best in the world!
