With 17 years of culinary experience at high-end restaurants, hotels and resorts, Chef Huynh Chien is always proud of his diverse culinary styles. Currently, in addition to the role of Executive Chef in the five-star Potique hotel in Nha Trang city, Chef Huynh Chien is also a member of Executive Committee of Khanh Hoa Culinary Culture Association and the member of Khanh Hoa Food Artisans Committee 2023-2028.

Today, Chef Huynh Chien takes his little spare time to tell The Potique Times his untold stories.

Good morning, Chef! Thank you very much for your time with The Potique Times. Could you please tell us when your cooking passion started?

One day when I supported my friends in a cooking competition. After the cooking, I was praised by competition judges for being a very good assistant. Then, I started to learn more about food and take intensive culinary courses. Many years of working in luxurious restaurants, hotels and resorts where require high culinary standards, also help me improve my cooking styles. For me, not only cooking delicious dishes, but also understanding what customers want, understanding regional culture, aesthetics in each dish and nutritional balance.

It is known that Chef has a variety of culinary styles, but which style is your strength?

Asian and Fusion (Japanese – French) cuisine. In addition, as a resident of Nha Trang – Khanh Hoa, I always have the desire to introduce and enhance the cuisine of my native land by constantly looking for locally sourced ingredients to make delicious dishes to serve the customers.

Cooking performance

So how have you use your strengths for restaurants at Potique Hotel?

Potique Hotel has an Indochine architecture, which is the interference of classical French architecture combined with Asian traditions. Therefore, in addition to local specialties, the hotel also develop international cuisine, especially focusing on French cuisine to make differences and in accordance with the architectural style. I used to cook steaks, seafood, etc. in Teppanyaki style and latest is the launching of French-style grilled chicken leg menu. Only VND 599,000 for 4 guests, you can enjoy 3 courses: organic mesclun salad or French onion soup for the appetizer, the main course is French-style grilled chicken leg with one side dish (baguette/spaghetti/fried rice) and passion fruit mousse or mixed fruit yogurt for the dessert.

French-style grilled chicken leg menu for 4 guests

During 17 years of culinary experience, please share your three most memorable moments.

My most memorable moment is in 2009 when I was appointed as a shift manager. The Executive Chef requested me to complete the menu in two days. At that time, I did not know anything about typing, so I had to write a draft on paper and went to an internet shop to ask shop owner for typing it. Since then, I decided to learn computer to better serve for my work.

The second one: My teacher, Iron Chef David Thai, taught me how to get a good foundation in cooking and decorating in a unique style. “What I teach you now, if you can do it later, don’t do it in my way”, said Iron Chef David Thai. After a year, I understood the meaning of this saying. Today, my success mostly comes from that statement of my teach. I really respect him.

The third one: I participated in the cooking the palm seed and seafood salad in the Cultural and Culinary Festival from June 3-6, 2023 (Nha Trang – Khanh Hoa Sea Festival)

Certifcate of participation in the Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa Sea Festival 2023

There words to describe your character.

Creative - Hardworking - Honest

Thank you Chef for taking time to share your story and wish you all the best.

Come and enjoy the unique dishes specially selected by Chef Huynh Chien at the restaurants in the five-star Potique hotel located in the heart of the Nha Trang city!

Dial +84 258 3556 999 or send an e-mail to reservation@potiquehotel.com to reserve your seats.