working as cook in Japan, is it possible?

[Tenshiboy]

Hello everyone,

here i have an important question to ask you guys,
like previously said on another post, me and my future wife are planning to go live in Japan in about 4 years.
We would like to live in Toukyou (near the center) and she will work as an interiour designer, but now me ...
I studied for 6 years french and italian cuisine in technical grade and had also specialisation in tourism (front desk, back office, marketing, and so on) and had a lot of experience in big hotels here in Belgium (mostly 4 or 5 star hotels at the coast of belgium in hig season >.<)
I have a graduation in technical french and Italian cuisine (highest degree in europe) and will start my 7 th grade of specialisation in wine-knowledge (the last year there is, i cannot get any higher degree then that ..)
I'm a belgian, i'm 18 now (19 in october) and i speak fluently :

-French
-Dutch
-German
-English

I have basic knowledge in :

-Italian
-arabic

and now i started 8 months ago with studying Japanese, and i will finally start in september with professional studying japanese (school, fiancée, and so on..)

So i'm already sure that in a 4 years time , i will be able to speak, write and understand Japanese for a big part i think.

But what i would like to know,
do i have chances to get a job easily in Japan (toukyou or kyoutou) as a cook in for example hotels as western union, holiday inn, imperial, hilton, or something like that ?
I know that if i work here in hotels like Hilton or Imperial i have the possibility to ask for a transfer to work in Japan what is pretty cool i think because everything is paid by the company (logement, food, transport, and so on )
But i would like to know that, IF i don't work in hotels like that , and we will go live in Japan in 4 years,
will i have difficulties to find a job as a cook or as receptionist or marketing staff in hotels in Japan?

I think that if i present my curiculum vitae and they see that i have a good knowledge in languages and a good graduation of italian and french cuisine, and also a lot of knowledge of the job, it wouldn't be difficult to find a job i think, but i'm not sure, so that's why i prefer to ask to be sure ..

thank you very much for your responses

 

[RockLee]

With your background you have a better chance than most I think. The problem is, you need to talk Japanese if you're going to work with Japanese staff. Personally I don't know anybody who works as a cook there. Good luck!

 

[Mike Cash]

I think that with your background and training, your chances are probably excellent. You may wish to directly contact people who already do this sort of work in Japan.

I found an article about an Austrian chef working at a Tokyo hotel:

WESTIN APPOINTS NEW EXECUTIVE CHEF

The Westin Tokyo has announced the appointment of Josef Hausberger as executive chef of the hotel. Born in Austria in 1953, Hausberger was graduated from Austria's H.T.L. Technical College in 1971. In 1985, he spent time in New York, earning a diploma in kitchen management from CIA.


CHEF HAUSBERGER
Throughout his career, he has held various culinary positions in South Africa, the Netherlands, the U.S. and aboard the Queen Elizabeth II. In 1981, at just 28 years of age, he was appointed executive chef at the Manila Hilton.

Working as executive chef at the Osaka Hilton since 1999, Hausberger has developed a thorough knowledge of the Japanese hotel business and of the market it serves. Under his direction, the Osaka Hilton became the leading hotel in terms of quality, productivity and profitability of food and beverage operations.

Hausberger has demonstrated his culinary skills for numerous VIPs and celebrities, among them Prince Charles and other dignitaries at a Rockefeller Award party sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation. The Westin Hotel, preparing to celebrate its seventh anniversary this month, will provide Hausberger with ample opportunity to exercise the culinary and leadership skills he brings to his new post.

The Westin Tokyo is in Yebisu Garden Place, at 1-4-1 Mita, Meguro-ku, Tokyo; tel. 5423-7000. It is a seven-minute walk on the Yebisu Skywalk from the East Exit of JR Ebisu Station.

The article is six years old, so he may no longer be employed there.

You should attempt google searches to find chefs who have worked in Japan before and seek first-hand advice from them. If there is some sort of professional culinary association, you may also contact them and ask for information about the profession in general and working in Japan in particular. They will probably be able to give you the names of some chefs who have worked here.

Good luck.

 

[epigene]

Since you won't have any visa problems, I think your chances are excellent. I think that you should be checking out the major hotels in Tokyo and asking them about job availability. With your credentials, I agree with RockLee and Mike that you will be able to land a job, so long as there are vacancies.

There have been quite a large number of top hotels opening in central Tokyo in the past couple of years--in Roppongi, Shiodome and other fashionable parts of the city.
The following is a list of major Tokyo hotels, I recommend you check out the hotels rated 4 stars or higher (and also those rated lower, if you become desperate) and start sending them inquiries:
Yahoo Guide to Tokyo Hotels

 

[Mars Man]

Oh...I just didn't see this one...well, I've been busy with so many things until today...it seems.

Oh I did that scene for a while with in a small restuarant-pub here. I often went over to the larger hotel in town and spent time with head chef there. (even worked with them a bit)

With your qualifications, it will only be up to your Japanese converstational and reading abilites, I'd say. As far as the food industry, there would be no problem at all--unless, there were yet another sudden bubble burst as in '92-3.

Do your best on the Japanese !! MM

 

[pika la]

Lucky I think chef doesn't require much speaking...just basic things you could easily memorize, no? I know at my restraunt...there's a French chef who speaks NO Japanese and POOR English...and he's doing okay. Probably lonley though..

 

[GaijinPunch]

I actually know a guy who got a job as a kitchen helper in an upscale restaurant in Ueno. He mainly got the job to improve his Japanese skills (he was previously a student-only). He's the only foreigner there. Not sure how he got the job. But hey, these jobs exist. Even in non-hotel restaurants. Fujimama in Harajuku has several non-Japanese in the kitchen.

 

[Pachipro]

I will second what everyone has said in that yes, you, a foreigner, can find employment in Japan as a chef. My best friend (Japanese) is a chef and studied in France. He has worked at a couple of major hotels and eventually opened up his own French restaurant in Yokohama. In fact he wanted to hire and train me some years ago in that he said it would be easy for me to find employment in Japan as a Chef with the proper training.

The important thing though is to have your certificates, diploma, etc with you when you go for interviews and translated into Japanese. Like universities, it's more important where you graduated from than what your skills actually are. Of course you have to have the skills, but I think you know what I mean. Also, it will be an added benefit to be able to speak the language to a certain degree.

Many hotels and restaurants enjoy having foreign chefs as it adds prestige to their restaurant in that they have an "actual French chef" so to speak and it will probably bring the customers in.

As you are still fairly young to the Japanese, they may be a little hesitant in hiring you thinking you don't have enough experience. If they do still hire you they'll probably have you work under someone for a while. Either way your chances are excellent. As Mike Cash always says, "If you're wanting to work in Japan bring marketable skills." That you have. Good luck!

 

[Tenshiboy]

Thank you so so much for your lot of help,
it really gave me a lot encouragements, thank you so so much,
really !

So i thought that (in 3 or 4 years when i will have the japanese language added ^^) Tokyo would be the best city for me to find a job in the cuisine department right?
or are there other city's where it's ''easy'' to find a job as cook ?
Or is it only Tokyo?

Again thank you so so much !

 

[Mike Cash]

If you arrive with excellent training, certifications, skills, attitude, etc. then you should be able to find employment in any major city and most of the smaller ones, I would guess.

There is a certain cachet to having "genuine" foreign chefs in upscale restaurants specializing in foreign cuisine, so that works very strongly in your favor.

Normally, when we receive inquiries about the practicalities of dreams of working in Japan the only thing we can do is point out why it is difficult or impossible. It is very refreshing to be able to see someone whose dream regarding Japan has so much potential for coming true.

 

[epigene]

If you arrive with excellent training, certifications, skills, attitude, etc. then you should be able to find employment in any major city and most of the smaller ones, I would guess.

There is a certain cachet to having "genuine" foreign chefs in upscale restaurants specializing in foreign cuisine, so that works very strongly in your favor.

Normally, when we receive inquiries about the practicalities of dreams of working in Japan the only thing we can do is point out why it is difficult or impossible. It is very refreshing to be able to see someone whose dream regarding Japan has so much potential for coming true.

Listen to Mike! I agree 100%!!