How I Got Here: Jean-Baptiste Requien

Why restaurants?​
I grew up in restaurants, my parents are restaurateurs, my grandparents were restaurateurs, my uncle is a Michelin star chef… I can’t imagine doing something else other than working within the restaurants business. It is in my blood.

Tell us something you wish you had been told at the start of your career?​
Do what you are passionate about, follow your instinct and believe in yourself.

What do you do in your spare time?​

Eat in restaurants. More seriously, I like to spend quality time at home with my wife and two boys.

What’s your favourite restaurant or group of restaurants (besides your current one)?​
Group of restaurants. I'm a big fan of JKS Restaurants. I don't have a favourite single restaurant, but I recently went to the Coal Office and that was pretty good.

What would you be doing if you weren’t in restaurants?​
I’d have love to be an artisan, maybe a baker like my great grandfather.

What motivates you?​
I'm really driven by results, I like it when I have a concrete goal to achieve.

Where was your last holiday?​
Mexico.

Which colleague, mentor or employer has had the biggest influence on your approach to the restaurant business?​
Gordon Ramsay.

What keeps you up at night?​
Netflix.

What are you reading at the moment?​
I read Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential when I started my career. Now - some 17 years later - I’m reading it again. A must read for anyone in the industry.

What piece of advice would you give to those looking to climb the rungs in the business?​
Surround yourself with the best, you are only as good as your team.

If you could change one thing about the restaurant industry today, what would it be?​
Perception about our industry, far too many people think hospitality is for the ones who have nothing better to do or if you have not studied well at school. That's such a cliché!