Chef’s cutting board

Sushi chef student experiences internship in Japan

 

Cultural News, October 2007

 

 

By Andy Matsuda

 

   David Bouhadana is a young man at 21 but has tremendous motivation. He began working at a sushi restaurant in his hometown, Boca Raton, Florida, just after his high school graduation. After accumulating two years of experience in Florida, he came to the Sushi Chef Institute for a summer session.

 

  After completing the first level class here, we discussed his interest in expanding his knowledge and experience and decided to send him on an internship to Nishiwaki city in Hyogo prefecture, Japan.

 

  David jumped at the opportunity to go to Matsu-ya, an authentic Taishu-Kappo-style Japanese restaurant with a 250-seat capacity in the western part of Japan. Matsu-ya is my family’s restaurant which was established over 40 years ago. I was working at Matsu-ya with my father before I came to this country.

 

  At Matsu-ya, seven chefs currently rotate shifts on a 6-day work week, from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. with only a one-hour break.

 

   David left Los Angeles for Matsu-ya on Aug. 27 and will have completed his internship on Sept. 28. Of course before jumping right into training, David had ample time to adjust to Japan, and after his internship, he will have visited many of the different sites in Japan to gain a greater understanding of the culture. The good news is that I have already assigned David to a sushi chef position at the Ocean Reef Club, a private club located in the Florida Keys.

 

   On another note, the annual Japanese Food Festival will be held on Saturday, Oct. 27, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the New Otani Hotel in Los Angeles by the Japanese Restaurant Association of Southern California. In the sushi chef competition last year, one of our staff members won the championship.

 

  We will of course be serving up some of our rolls and sushi menu at the event. You can find out the details about this event by going online to www.jrasc.com.

 

    Andy Matsuda is founder and Chief Instructor of the Sushi Chef Institute in Los Angeles. For information about the school, visit www.sushischool.net.

 

(The text was completed by Gavin Kelley.)