Alumni Success Stories

Alumni Information
School: LaSalle College Vancouver
Grad Year: 2010
Program of Study: Culinary Arts
Degree: Diploma

Employment/Professional Information
Company Name: Bistecca Italian Steak House/Wine Bar
Location: Edmonton
Job Title: Chef de partié
Primary Responsibilities: Food Preperation, Daily Specials, Cooking.

Describe a Typical Work Day:

A typical day is starting off by building mise en place, planning the daily special, and daily vegetable/starch, cooking through dinner service and cleaning the kitchen and shutting everything down.

What accomplishments are you proud of?

The accomplishment I’m most proud of is having landed my job at Bistecca.

I get to be creative and push the limits of my skills and palette everyday in a fine dining setting.

What are your creative inspirations or influences? Who are your heroes?

Influences: Food (the ingredients, flavors, smells and taste), Music and The Seasons/Weather. Heroes: Chef Sonny Sung, Thomas Keller and Farran Adria.

What do you enjoy the most about your career?

What I enjoy the most about my career is pushing the boundries of my own creativity and skills, working with unique and sometimes hard to get ingredients from all over the world, and creating interesting presentations on plates.

How did your education at LaSalle College Vancouver help prepare you for your career?

The program at LaSalle College Vancouver helped me in my career by giving me the foundation and fundamental skills I needed to push the limits of my cooking; and also reach new heights in my career by introducing me to some influential chefs in the industry.

What advice do you have for people beginning their careers in your profession?

Work hard and go the extra mile. Be willing to start early or stay late to get the work done and be prepared to work hard and sometimes long hours; but most importantly, be passionate and love what you do.

Your profession is constantly evolving, from the technology you use to new career opportunities that didn’t exist five years ago. What trends do you see on the horizon that will affect how you do your job or your profession at-large?

Everything is becoming more computerized. Suppliers are starting to take food and equipment orders online instead of over the phone and through fax, and its only moving more towards computerizing as restaurants are embracing tablets to do inventory, recipe and station guides on them.