THERE can’t be many people, let alone chefs, who have travelled from the Far East to East Hampshire via Japan, Israel and Croydon.
But Yong Chen isn’t your average chef. For starters, the 45-year-old was born in China but trained as a sushi chef in Japan, while he’s known in these parts as ‘George’ rather than his real name.
People with a yen for Japanese cuisine should pay George a visit at The Cricketers pub at Steep as his sushi nights – complete with miso soup, sashimi and curious-looking desserts - have been sell-out affairs, with the fish bring freshly brought in from Portsmouth or Billingsgate.
George’s culinary journey started in the Chinese seaport of Dalian where he landed a job in a five-star hotel after three years in cooking school.
He said: “Because the hotel served Japanese food I was asked to learn, so I trained in Okinawa for two-and-a-half years, learning all about sushi.
“If you get involved you can make 200 or 300 pieces a day, but I’m happy doing that because I just want to make people happy.”
He spent time in Israel running a Japanese eatery before coming to the UK and working at various Cosmo Chinese buffet restaurants from Swindon to Southampton.
After gaining his British passport he launched and sold a noodle business before responding to an agency advert for a trained chef at The Cricketers. His temporary job soon became a permanent one and now he’s frequently serving up Oriental dishes along with traditional fare.
Preparation can start a good ten hours before the first course is served, but it’s all in a day’s work for George as preparing sushi can never be rushed.
“He’s is a good lad but he undersells himself a bit sometimes,” said landlord Terry Galgay. “We’re lucky to have him, though.”
For more information and to book contact The Cricketers on 01730 261035.