Karam Sethi – My worst job

Karam Sethi is the proprietor of Trishna restaurant in Marylebone, London.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR WORST JOB?

When I was 15 I lived in Stuttgart where I began work as a commis chef in a hotel. I had not yet acquired any chef skills, so was totally thrown in at deep end.

WHAT WAS SO BAD ABOUT IT?

The language barrier was a huge problem for me and I didn't get on very well with the head chef of the kitchen. My role was to peel and de-vein 50kg of prawns every day, and gut and scale 20kg of trout as well as bone all the meat in the restaurant and prep all the offal.

WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THE JOB?

The job taught me to work hard and not crack under pressure. No matter how hard it got I continued to work to the best of my abilities and to not question my superiors. I learnt how to appreciate and respect authority, which has helped me get to where I am today.

WHAT IS THE BEST BIT OF YOUR CURRENT ROLE?

At Trishna I have the luxury of having the freedom to try out new concepts and ideas. I have built a team that works together in a positive way to achieve maximum results so that the quality of the Trishna restaurant experience is second to none.

I have also had the opportunity to prove that a young, fresh team (no employee is over 31) is capable of making a mark on the London restaurant scene and the industry as a whole, despite being less established.

WHAT'S NEXT?

I look forward to expanding into the outside catering industry and bringing Trishna to the forefront of that market. I would also like to take Trishna abroad into the Asian market in the near future.

For London I would like to introduce a different, more authentic angle to the whole kebab and beer concept, maybe an Indian gastropub serving quality niche beers and kebabs.