Max Tu – Private Chef Portfolio

Professional Background

I started my cooking career seriously by working for Shaun Rankin at Bohemia restaurant after graduating from the University of Nottingham and developing an interest in cooking & especially Michelin star restaurants.

From here I was able to work on a number of new restaurant openings & projects, ranging from private members clubs to 5 star hotels & tasting menu style restaurants.

I’ve been part of 2 teams awarded a Michelin star and worked in 4 different Michelin star restaurants at varying levels of seniority up to 4 AA Rosette level.

I’m currently focused on working as private chef both in permanent roles and as a freelancer.

Expertise

I’m competent in kitchen design & setup, having heavily involved with this in commercial & domestic settings. I’ve worked in close liaison with commercial kitchen builders on a large redevelopment project to outfit the kitchen to a professional standard.

I’m also competent in developing & standardising menus, dishes and creating standard procedures. I have a good level of knowledge of British wild foods & foraging, modern fine dining & casual, family style cooking.

I particularly enjoy dish & menu development work and find private chef work is a good outlet for my creativity as it pushes you to continually develop new dishes to keep things interesting. I also enjoy charcuterie production, having developed a number of single muscle cured charcuterie items & some fermented salami type sausage recipes.

I’ve developed my palate from eating out in some of the countries top Michelin Star restaurants as well as experiencing food & ingredients from different cultures around the world.

I’m a quarter Burmese (Myanmar) so have always had a passion for fine dining utilising Asian flavours, like at The Five Fields in Chelsea where I refined my technical skills extensively under Taylor Bonnyman & Marguerite Keogh.

Cooking Styles

  • Modern Fine Dining Wild Foods, Foraging & Preservation
  • Ottolenghi-style Healthy Salad & Lunches
  • Mediterranean style cooking – handmade pastas, gnocchi & risottos etc.
  • BBQ & Wood Fire Cooking – Using Big Green Eggs, Smokers, Wood Fired Pizza Ovens
  • Seafood – passionate about cooking with seafood, having worked with exceptional produce from Scotland & the Channel Islands.
  • South East Asian cuisines – Thai, Vietnamese

Local Knowledge

I’ve lived & worked all over the UK from the Cotswolds to the Channel Islands, Central London, North Yorkshire & Scotland.

From this, I have built up a strong knowledge of some of the best producers & suppliers in many different regions.

I mostly grew up in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire and in a popular racing pub in the countryside nearby.

Inspirations

I’ve worked extensively with Italian chefs while in London, who have introduced me to a lot of their food cultures in Italy and have taken me around Sicily, Venice, Rome, Florence & the Tuscan Hills.

I’ve also spent a month in India as part of an onboarding process for my current role as a private chef for UHNW principals, where I learnt extensively from highly skilled masterchefs specializing in Gujarati, Tandoor, North & South Indian chefs.

I’ve travelled extensively around Europe, South East Asia to experience different food cultures, having visited India, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Madeira, Turkey, Greece, South Africa, Morocco.

Current Projects

I’m currently self-employed as a private chef in West London.

I also do freelance work through my small limited company, Yuzu Private Dining. This includes organising private chef bookings, canapé parties & intimate weddings with former colleagues & my growing network of freelance private chefs.

I also enjoy food photography, and have been working on developing my skills in that area to build my portfolio, food blog & website.

Qualifications & Self Development

  • AAT Qualified Bookkeeper
  • Level 2 First Aid at Work
  • Level 3 Food Hygiene
  • WSET Level 2 Award in Wines & Spirits
  • BSc (2:1 awarded) in Psychology & Cognitive Neuroscience

I’m a passionate lifelong learner and enjoy developing & using new skills to stay engaged & challenged in my career. I also enjoy learning about Digital Marketing, Food Photography & Styling, Finance & Accounting & Food Blogging.