My mentor Chef Marc Provost
In 1995 I started as an apprentice in a famous French restaurant called “Le Petit Bistrot de Jacques” in Caracas-Venezuela. During 7 years my mentor chef Marc Provost (Active Member of The Culinary Academy of France) offered me the opportunity to go to France and meet his past colleagues world famous chefs as Marc Meneau at L’Esperance 3 star Michelin in Saint Pere-sur-Vezeley, chef Jean Michel Lorain at La Cote Saint Jacques also 3 star Michelin in Jogny-Bourgogne. Those were wonderful cross trainings and great experience for my profession. In 2002-2003 I went to south France where I used to lived and worked. It was a small restaurant located at Midi-Pyrenees (Montauban), specialized in regional cuisine and all preparations with duck and foie gras mainly.
I returned to Venezuela in December 2003 to join and open Malabar restaurant with chef James Baron (M.O.F.) as a sous chef. Malabar was a modern French fine dining restaurant and the best exclusive place in town at that time. From there I moved to Canouan in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (West Indies) to work as a Chef de Cuisine in a “Nuevo Latino” concept restaurant call Godhall with Raffles Resort Pre opening. After 8 month at the Caribbean, I went back to Venezuela where I was offered by Chef Leslie Stronach (actual Executive Chef at Intercontinental Hotel Bangkok) to work at Dubai, UAE.
I started at La Parrilla Restaurant Jumeirah Beach Hotel where I worked for 3 years, also nominated as Best Latino American restaurant in Dubai by TimeOut and we got the title in May 2007. In October 1st 2007 I moved to Madinat Jumeirah as Chef de Cuisine at Mj’s Steakhouse, also being part of the best city brunch by Time Out. After 2 years I moved to Pierchic Fine Dinning Restaurant also awarded. December 2010 I moved to Doha-Qatar, preopening of Renaissance Hotel as executive sous chef.
I Recently joined Intercontinental Resort at Hua Hin as executive chef.
intercontinental Hua Hin
French cuisine is key part of my professional background in major. My mentor’s father Robert Provost was the saucier at Maxim–Paris under chef Alex Humbert who was one of the famous chefs in Belle Époque times; Robert was the owner of Gazebo restaurant in Caracas. Gazebo was the main gastronomic meeting place in Latino America early 80’s. Having all these knowledgeable chefs at the beginning of my career, and the passion showed by them, is what today give me the opportunity to share at the same level of intensity all my culinary experience: techniques, savoir-faire, respect for products, consistency, love for food.
Hotel business added a very important part of my career today. Exceed service, attention to details and create memorable times every day makes it a continuous challenge; an enjoyable challenge.
Chef Jose Ochoa 