Yuriy Chernous, chef at Ryba Chok in Kyiv, discovered cooking during military service and spent almost five years in the Czech Republic working with Michelin-starred chefs. He also teaches and appears on TV.
“Living life is not like crossing a meadow.” But my meadow is endless! I keep discovering wonderful new horizons and flavors and taking on new challenges. I can't help being so curious, and I just can't get enough of knowledge, experience and emotions.
I love to learn and I love to teach, or rather to share myself than to teach. It's so great to see how your colleagues, friends and, finally, children grow, when instead of just standing by, you help them, guide them and contribute. This is how I see my mission.
My name is Yuriy Chernous, and despite the age stated in my passport, I'm a boy who has dedicated his whole life to the art of cooking. Yes, now I'm a professional chef, a brand chef and a respected cook with more than 20 years of experience. But when I started, I was just a skinny soldier in friendly Germany. It was during my military service that I realized I liked cooking, inventing ways of serving and being made happy by the pleased faces of my guests.
My beloved grandmother instilled in me a special awe and respect for kitchen rituals. I'm really thankful to her for the inspiration, for believing in me and, of course, for her honest criticism and even scolding. I would hardly have become a chef without her.
I have a specialized education and many diplomas as a cook. First I graduated from Kyiv Cooking College, then from the Higher Cook School, and almost at the same time I studied to be a psychology teacher. I believe there is no such thing as accidental or useless knowledge, and it needs to be constantly updated and cultivated without ever stopping.
I lived in the Czech Republic and worked with outstanding chefs. Just imagine me alongside starred cooks, gods of the kitchen according to Michelin! I was very busy absorbing, listening, trying, asking questions and setting up trailblazing experiments.
Maybe this was the most significant time of my career, and it gave me the confidence that I am doing my own thing. I studied and lived in the Czech Republic for almost five years, trying different methods and national cuisines, until I finally decided to return home.
Back home, I took part in many successful projects as sous-chef, chef and brand chef. “Dixieland,” “Impressa,” “Zaporozhie,” “Edelweiss” and “Valters” are excellent restaurants with friendly teams and new culinary masterpieces every time.
Besides restaurant management, I also tried my hand at catering. It is a separate niche, very demanding and developing dynamically. It is quite interesting, but I can't say it really drew me in.
Have I told you that I love to share everything I have? I keep doing it with pleasure and on a wide scale. I also used to actively consult for the print publications Nova, Po-ukrainsky and Blik and for the online magazine Vechirniy Kyiv, and I'm an academic teacher at the Hector Jimenez-Bravo Culinary Academy.
By the way, cooking shows have also been a stage of my career. Ukrainian Fashionable Cuisine on the STB channel and Extreme Culinary, where I still take part, are excellent platforms for working with a wide audience. I like talking about products, explaining processes and creating small culinary celebrations for people, which is better than stressful news or debates.
I think I have succeeded in guessing what people wish for. Maybe that is why I often receive the most sincere thanks from guests, and I'm always ready for new trends in culinary fashion.
For many years, my main hobby has been collecting old ethnic recipes. I love nature, I love taking photos of the world around me, and I love my life.
