IT was the middle of the morning, and people were already making their way out of Sofitel Philippine Plaza’s breakfast buffet over at its very popular Spiral restaurant.
Over at the kitchen, Restaurant Operations Chef Paul Cottanceau-Pocard was busy at work together with his staff.
But surprisingly, Pocard said it was no longer for the lunch buffet that day. The dishes were done and ready to be served.
What they were already preparing was for a wine dinner the five-star luxury resort hotel was hosting the following day.
At only 22 years old, the Frenchman is already a success story. He is someone who can serve as an inspiration to individuals looking to find their place in the world.
Pocard said that, when he was 13, all he wanted was to become a chef. It was a job that he believed was destined for him.
“My parents did not oblige me to do what they want. We always did whatever we want. We were happy at the end of the day,” said Pocard, whose mother was an English teacher and a father who was a chef.
He claimed his father was not an influence in his chosen profession, and even kept him away from his work.
A 14-year-old kid in the kitchen
Pocard grew up in the countryside together with his mother and two siblings until he was 8 years old. It is a place where he wants to return at some point in his life.
“We had a big house in the middle of the forest. We always went biking and exploring,” Pocard said, while adding that those were happy times in his life.
He said city life is not the best environment for children growing up, and even for families to live.
“I cannot imagine kids growing up in the city. It is all superficial, dangerous and fake. I work in the city for the opportunities not present in the countryside,” Pocard said.
Already living in Lyon, at 14 years old, his parents gave him a derogation letter that basically gave him permission to find a job as a minor.
Pocard said making his parents write the letter was easy. Finding a job in the kitchen, for him, was the hardest part.
Armed with no formal education to back him up, Pocard landed a job at the La Tour Rose Restaurant & Hotel, which he described as a boutique hotel.
“The first two days were hard. I worked 16 to 17 hours daily, with one day off from work. I was assigned to clean everything, including the locker rooms,” he said.
Pocard said he was not allowed to touch the knife during his first five months on the job. It became his frustration, which eventually led to him filing his resignation on his sixth month.
His resignation was rejected, and he eventually was able to do some cooking duties inside the kitchen.
Pocard lasted more than two years on his first job while earning €369 monthly, which he used to help his mother with their household needs.
“I was helping my mom buy food. The kitchen is an amazing way out,” he said, while explaining that he never bought anything for himself during his first four years on the job.
His second job came by way of the one-star Michelin Le Phosphore Restaurant, which was also in Lyon, and where he was a pastry apprentice.
It was a job that allowed him to further hone his kitchen skills, and where he was already earning €1,200 monthly.
Moving away
Even with a stable job, Pocard still wanted to see opportunities present for him outside of France.
“I wanted to go away as far as I could. My family was not in consideration at that time. I wanted to take some air,” Pocard said, while admitting that he had second thoughts while at the airport, when it dawned on him that he was leaving his country.
But with a work visa in his hand and €500 in his pocket, Pocard set out for Australia looking for greener pastures.
Australia gave him a rude awakening, as it offered him no job in the kitchen.
“Nobody accepted me. My communication skills were poor. They all have dishwashers,” Pocard said.
Temporarily, he ended up doing odd jobs, including moving furniture and as a construction worker.
After a month in Australia, his English-speaking skills got better and found an opening at the Mungo Lodge in Mildura, which was eight hours away from Melbourne.
At the four-star hotel located inside a national park, Pocard became a head chef for the first time.
“It was a small head chef position but I was motivated to work. I was dealing with local farmers and growing our own produce,” he said.
But eventually, Pocard still longed to be somewhere else, as life in Mildura at that time was not to his liking.
“It was boring in the middle of nowhere. My social life was down,” Pocard said.
So after renewing his work visa, Pocard ended up in the United States, working at The Westgate Hotel as its chef de partie. It was also there, during his stay in the US, where Pocard met his Argentinian wife.
After the US, he had a brief stint in Argentina and then it was in Bahamas where he was exposed to some of the world’s rich and famous people when he worked at the Lyford Cay Club as its executive sous chef.
Pocard had some contacts, which gave him access to the VIP club, but he still went through interviews, including those with the culinary director and the executive chef.
“It was a good experience. I matured in managing different people,” he said.
At the VIP club, he met famous people, including the families of former US Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. He also served food to business executives and owners associated with Adidas, Chanelle and Rolex.
“They were very simple and humble people,” Pocard said.
However, the club was anything but simple, as Pocard said there is an annual $500,000 membership, and there is usually a 10-to-15 year waiting period before an application can be accepted.
And yet again, the travel bug hit Pocard, leading him to the TriBeCa Restaurant in Auckland, New Zealand.
Choosing the Philippines
Having spent a year in New Zealand, Pocard said Sofitel called him about an opening.
Pocard said he also had offers from Singapore and Bahrain but for him choosing Sofitel was a no brainer, because the Philippines had the biggest branch in the world and has a large kitchen staff.
Starting in November last year, Pocard was taken aback by the capacity of his staff in the kitchen.
“I was surprised with the people. They were trained very well. They are familiar with the Western management of the kitchen,” he said.
He said that with a lot of hotels soon opening in Metro Manila, his job is to innovate and come out with new ideas to attract more people and get a new generation of customers.
Pocard also said that while other hotels have copied some of the things they are doing, they will be nothing more than replicas.
“We are the No. 1 hotel in Metro Manila and No. 7 in Asia. We change things every two months. We always have new ideas,” Pocard said.
Pocard said his day at work starts at 8 a.m. and finishes at 10 p.m.
The secret to his success
According to Pocard, people should never pressure themselves into something they are not. He also said people should work hard and only do what they like to become successful.
Pocard only completed high-school education and hated attending culinary school.
“I cannot seat for eight hours. I do not encourage people to attend culinary school if they want to be in this industry. There should be real experience and learning,” Pocard said.
But outside of the hospitality industry, Pocard said having formal education is important, especially for those who are less privileged in life.
“Everyone should have a chance to better their lives,” he said.
And that is what exactly Pocard has done to himself.
Image credits: Jimbo Albano