Antoan Nikolov

Q: What inspired you to pursue a career in hospitality?
A: Ever since I was a child I’ve been interested in cooking.
Even though none of my relatives are chefs, the kitchen
has always been a place of passion for me. Some of my
earliest memories are with my mother, while she would
be creating an amazing dinner for us. I would always ask
her questions and try to understand why she was doing
certain things the way she did.

Q: Can you share your experience from any internships
or work placements you’ve completed?
A: Over the summer I had the wonderful opportunity of
working at the Grand Hotel Excelsior as a student chef at
the à la carte section. I would describe my experience as
nothing but amazing.

Q: How do you plan to continue developing your skills
after graduation?
A: I intend to seek opportunities for hands-on experience
by working in different kitchens, ranging from fine dining
to casual eateries, to expand my culinary repertoire and
adapt to different cooking styles and techniques.

Q: How do you define success in your future career?
A: My lifelong goal is to have a restaurant with three
Michelin stars. It is a hard ambition, but with enough
dedication and passion for my craft I believe I’ll be able to
achieve my dream.

Q: How do you balance the demands of your studies
with any work experience or internships?
A: I rarely get shifts after my lessons, but my weekends
are taken up by my work. Because of this, it hasn’t
been too hard to manage doing both as I can do any
assignments that I get when I get home from ITS.

Q: What was the most important skill you gained
during your work experience?
A: At the Grand Hotel Excelsior I learned to work fast,
without sacrificing quality, and I built upon my cooking
and communication skills. I learned that communicating
properly with your colleagues during service is the most
important thing if you want to achieve great results.