Sous Chef Brandon Requena

Brandon circa 2011

Brandon has been with the Maya Beach Hotel Bistro for seven years. His is a true success story.

Originally hired as a dishwasher, Brandon was always reliable, helpful, and careful. He was quickly pulled from the dishroom to the kitchen to start training as a prep cook. Again, his ability to learn his job quickly and give his personal best made him stand out. Chef Mary Kay gave him a chance to learn the line cook position. And guess what? He mastered every position in the kitchen and earned the respect of all the people he works with. He also learned the preparation and presentation of some quite complex dinner specials designed by Chef Mary Kay.

Brandon 2017. He’s grown!

So the next step for Brandon was learning to expedite the busy line cooks. An expediter makes the kitchen more efficient by reading tickets and “firing” orders in the right order to ensure that all the food for a table comes out at the same time and at the proper temperature. After mastering that, Brandon was given the official title of Sous Chef and the responsibility for taking charge in the Chef’s absence.

At this rate we’ll all be working for him some day!