First of all, I would like
to mention my background and to emphasize that occasionally I have the pleasure
of writing a letter of recommendation for exceptional cookers, and thus I do so
now on behalf of Adriana Marquez de Avelar.
I have such a long kitchen
experience, had started my carrier with 17 years old at Ilha da Madeira in
Portugal and then I had worked with a known chef, accompanying him on Hotel’s
kitchen start ups around the world: Canadá, United Arab Emirates, Spain, France
and Italia. Then in 1997 I’ve moved to Paris,
work at Hotel Plaza Athéné with Chef Alain Ducasse. I’ve started as a cooker, without
say a word in French then, two years later I became a sous-chef. After 8 years
I came back to Brazil
and worked in Ouro Minas hotel chain. Now I am the head chef of Oliva
Restaurant, which is the only restaurant of Hotel Presidente, the most
luxurious hotel of the city of Uberlândia,
whose kitchen is renowned from Guia 4
Rodas as the best restaurant of the city.
Uberlândia is located in
the western part of Minas Gerais, in the region known as the Triângulo Mineiro, one of Brazil’s
richest agricultural and livestock regions.
Among Brazilian states,
Minas Gerais has the third largest economy, accounting for 9.1% of Brazil’s
Gross Domestic Product. The
Uberlândia metropolitan area comprises a consumer market of 3.5
million inhabitants and forms a link between the great urban centers of the
coast and the hinterland of the country. At present 50 million people live
within a 600-km radius of Uberlândia and help generate almost two thirds of Brazil’s
GDP (about US$1,313 trillion, the equivalent of two Argentinean economies).
Moreover, Uberlândia’s strategic location in Brazil’s central region provides it
with an excellent logistics infrastructure, which in turn provides easy access
to quality ingredients from all Brazilian regions.
Because of this dynamic
economy and seeing a great opportunity, two (2) years ago I resigned from an
important hotel chain in order to start promoting the culture and art of haute
cuisine in Uberlândia. And it was precisely in this business that I met Adriana
Avelar about a year ago, when she was a chef at Uai Tchê. Recognizing her as a
potential star, I invited her to cook with me on some occasions. Wanting to
deepen her knowledge of haute cuisine, Adriana soon asked to work with me full
time, and of course I was very pleased to have such an excellent professional
as part of my team at the Oliva Restaurant.
As the head chef in the
kitchen, I worked closely with Adriana for 6 months. I say with total frankness
that in my 25 years of kitchen experience, Adriana is the most talented young
chef I’ve ever worked with. She began with me at night as a second cooker;
however, some months later her supervisor informed me that she literally had
nothing more to teach Adriana: in terms of knowledge and competence she had
learned everything. Hearing this, I immediately transferred her to the
breakfast and lunch shifts, as I had been looking for someone exceptional to
take over those duties.
Adriana proved her mastery
of various cooking styles, but equally important, showed that she had the
leadership skills to make the kitchen and its staff of 4 people function
perfectly. Thus, in a short time, Adriana became my right arm.
Besides that, she was
never late for work, regularly volunteered to cover her coworkers' shifts and
always took her job very seriously. As one can assume, it is rare to find a
cook who sees beyond the seeming monotony of an entry-level job and has the
work ethic to take it to the next level. I am fortunate to have had a skilled
and dedicated professional like Adriana working in my kitchen. And since her
personality and intellect must find expression in a number of areas, her
decision to apply for admission to your Culinary School
makes perfect sense. As a cooker I know how wonderful it is to work with
interesting and dedicated people, those filled with ambition, hungry for
knowledge, and striving for greatness. This is how I see Adriana.
This is exactly the right
time for her to gain foreign experience, internationalize her résumé, and
develop her natural talent. She has a gift for cooking, and practicing with
perseverance and hard study will turn her into the superb cooker she is
destined to be, ready to take over a great kitchen in Brazil when she gets
back.
Therefore, for all of the
above-mentioned reasons, I give Adriana my most enthusiastic recommendation and
hope that you will consider favorably her application for admittance to your Culinary School.
Should you wish to contact
me for any reason, I remain at your disposal.
Best regards,
Marco Soares
http://www.hotelpresidente.com.br/presidente/oliva.php#
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