They say that the way to the heart is through the stomach, and during a trip to Israel in November, 2014, Chef Yonatan Berrebi made an everlasting impression on my heart the first time I tried his food.  Standing about 6’2 and covered in tattoos, he may appear to be intimidating at first, but this creative Chef has a lot of love up his sleeve, and it definitely shows in his culinary creations.

Chef describes his food, and his personality as being “a combination of strong tastes alongside touches of softness.” From the ingredients he mixes to the photo below (featuring Chef Yonatan and his girlfriend, Kareen Hill), his art forms valiantly reflect this statement.

I sent over some questions to Israel for Yonatan; check out the below for Chef Yonatan’s tips on how to become a Chef, working at a 3 Michelin Star restaurant in Paris, the difference between a Chef and a cook, and more!

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@TGIFguide – Tell me about why you wanted to become a Chef.  

@YonatanChef – After graduating from the Cordon Bleu Paris I went to do my internship first at a 3 Michelin star restaurant in Paris and then at another amazing restaurant in Rouge (Belgium), The appreciation I received for my work and the acknowledgement I do have the talent and ability to manage a team made me realize for the first time that I enjoy and derive happiness from the kitchen. This made me decide to invest myself to this profession and passion. I’ve decided to do everything I can so I can run my own kitchen and staff and become a chef.

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@TGIFguide – What’s your favorite dish to make and why? 

@YonatanChef – I have to say it’s a Tortellini I made for a wedding, It’s filled with brain, preserved lemon, Veal sweetbreads scorched with butter. I feel that this combination of ingredients best represents me as a person because of the combination of strong tastes alongside touches of softness. This dish has a special place in my heart because it’s the first time I got exactly what I was looking for in a dish and it became a turning point in my career. I finally found my signature and till this day I create most of my dishes in restaurants I manage or consult according to this signature.

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@TGIFguide – Where do you get your inspiration? 

@YonatanChef – I constantly strive to reinvent and challenge myself. My inspirations does not come from one specific place but from many things I see, hear, smell and touch. I never restrict my thoughts and always try to create new dishes that would be interesting. In addition I try new cooking methods and different approaches that most of the time get great results and sometimes are less successful, but they always teach me something new. You should never stop looking for inspirations because the culinary worlds is endless and always changing and you can find your next dish from anything.

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@TGIFguide – What (in your opinion) is the difference between a cook and a chef? 

@YonatanChef – The difference between a chef and a cook is vast. A chef has to have an excellent managerial abilities beyond his technical and culinary abilities such as managing and motivating a team. Creating a harmony and a system of people all working for the same goal. A chef must have a great knowledge in restaurant requirements, maximizing the staff abilities and food costs. Knowing and understanding the needs of the floor (the sitting area) is not less important than your culinary skills as a chef. A chef must be mature and responsible enough in order to create dishes that are not necessary his favorite but create a cohesive menu that would be approachable for the customers. Of course he must know how a restaurant work, managing funds and creating a team that completes and balances each other.

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@TGIFguide – What are some restaurants you’ve lent your culinary skills to and what are you planning for the future?!

@YonatanChef – I was a chef for a restaurant chain names “Benedict”, it’s a chain specializing in breakfast and is open 24/7. I created a whole menu consisting of 35 dishes all based on breakfast dishes. The most difficult part was not to repeat myself in a menu made of 90% eggs, which was a great and interesting challenge.

Another restaurant is “Goshen”, it’s a meat restaurant specializing in family style cuisine with emphasis on sharing the courses. The main challenge there was the limited kitchen and the sharing concept that back than was only in its dippers, but to this day the restaurant is very active, prominent and is considered innovative in the industry, I’m very proud to have been a contributor for its success. The Vicky Cristina is a tapas restaurant Catalan-style. The challenge there was to bring Barcelona style tapas to TLV because it’s characterized by strong tastes. I needed to balance the two and built a kitchen that can create great quality food for a place that can sit almost a 1000 people a day.

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Today I’m the head chef at Fauchon TLV The biggest challenge I face is bringing the high quality food and pastry of Paris to TLV.

My plans for the future are to own my own restaurant and laying down the bases first here, in TLV, which is a strong city and very culinary oriented and from there spreading out to other cities in Israeli and hopefully outside of it. I’m also very open to start my kitchen and restaurant outside of Israel and building my dream in the USA or Australia.

My style of cooking is characterized by Middle Eastern tastes with French kitchen culinary skills. My personal outtake and unique touch can lead me there in the near future and I’m sure my restaurant would be a hit… with a lot of luck and hard work of course.

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@TGIFguide – Any advice for new chefs? 

@YonatanChef – A young chef must work hard and not be afraid of difficult challenges along the way, because there are a great learning experiences. Never take failures personal but definitely learn from them and make sure not to repeat them and always be open to learning new things.

Building a loyal and strong team that would follow you for the long run. And always have a hobby outside the kitchen life, because chefs have little free time and lead a stressful life so it’s important to have something to give yourself a rest and relaxation, creating some kind of escape from the hectic life, preferably not alcohol and drugs as a lot of chefs do.

Most importantly always feel lucky that you earn an honest living from a profession you chose and not a 9 to 5 job. Keep yourself grounded and humble and work as hard as you can, find a mate that would accept you as you are, working the long hours, absent a lot, a bit crazy and extreme. If you are able to find that hold on to it because your spouse is your anchor and the sane part at the end of the day!

Written by Jacqueline Chambers

Jacqueline Chambers

Jacqueline Chambers is the founder of TGIFguide. She uses her innate skills as a natural “connector” to serve businesses, brands and individuals in the LA area and beyond.