Jacob-Bao Nguyen is a New York-based chef who is passionate about Vietnamese culture and food. With a background in printmaking and horticulture, Jacob made a career change into cooking (spoiler alert: without going to culinary school), where he quickly began training at some of the culinary world’s top restaurants. Today he is a freelance private chef and the host of an ongoing Viet-centric pop-up dinner series called Thần Thái.
Jacob shares insights about his career pivot and a peek behind the curtain into the not-as-glamorous-as-you-might-think life of a rising chef, including:
- Seizing a once-in-a-lifetime chance to work at Eleven Madison Park
- The intensity (and imposter syndrome) of working in fine dining
- Why culinary school isn’t the only place for a formal education in cooking
- Chasing your dreams at 100 miles an hour
- Using your curiosity as a form of motivation
- Making sacrifices and knowing if it’s “worth it” when the journey gets hard
- Building community and creating your own opportunities
- and so much more!
Mentioned in the episode:
Jacob’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jbaonguyen
Thần Thái Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thanthai.nyc
Jacob’s Resident Profile: https://www.meetresident.com/chef-jacob-nguyen
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