In response to Kanchna’s goal of becoming a chef, Song Teng, executive chef at Hotel Cambodiana and holder of an admirable certificate from the Royal Palace, offered some tips.

“In order to be a successful chef, we must struggle if we don’t have any talent,” said Teng.

“As a chef, we must be very creative, and if we know a kind of food, we must be able to expand it into several styles according to our ideas. In this task, we must be willing to study and get the skills.”

With more than 20 years experience as a chef, Teng said that before becoming a chef, we usually start working as an assistant chef or dish washer. In this step, we must do many difficult things, and if we cannot struggle and be patient, we will never reach our goal.

He discussed his own experiences as a young chef, explaining that he had to cut hundreds of kilograms of vegetables and meat everyday. He said that he considered quitting because it was very difficult, but that willingness, patience and effort lead him to success.