After a period of couch- and soul-searching I decided to learn a trade. I could talk bull**** in seven different languages but I could not cook. So, I learned, and became a cook. And as you learn from the people you encounter on your way you adopt, learn and take in the best for yourself. I set out sailing and cooked my way around the world. Tall ships in different sizes and settings, cooking, organising and exploring the world.
Back on shore I wanted to cook for real. I managed to get an internship at the best and only ***star Michelin restaurant in Rotterdam, but soon realised I was a misfit. I shared the love and interest for beautiful products and making brilliant food, but lacked skills and decisive; the fitting attitude. I was too autonomous and did not fit in the warzone academy of the business. I thanked the patron-cuisinier after service on a Saturday night. He was insulted.
Having experienced the working conditions of this level of restaurant, the stress, long hours, no pay, and the hostile cutthroat attitude it created I decided to look elsewhere. This was not my path. The next day I got a phone call from a friend in need. Without a blink of an eye I started the next week to manage a small restaurant on a campsite in my beloved Fryslan.