Chef de Partie

Hakuba, Japan — Winter Season

I worked in the kitchen at La Table de la Neige, a fine dining restaurant inside a five star hotel, serving a seasonal tasting menu alongside à la carte dishes.

The focus was on high end ingredients like A5 wagyu, tuna, and sea bream which were handled simply but precisely. Most of the work happened before service because prep was everything. If it was not done right early, it showed later.

Most of my time was spent on prep including breaking down meat, portioning fish, making bread, and preparing garnishes. I focused on the components of the tasting menu along with various sauces and emulsions. A lot of the work came down to basic technique like learning how to prep properly, plate cleanly, and stay consistent. It was repetition more than anything, doing the same tasks until they were right.

Service tightened everything. Timing, communication, and small details mattered because there is no space to drift. You move fast, but everything still has to be exact.

It is a controlled environment, but pressure builds quickly. You learn to stay focused, keep things organized, and rely on preparation when things speed up. Over time, the role gave me a better appreciation for the work behind each dish and the people who do it every day.

Nothing was complicated on its own. It was just about doing simple things properly over and over.