Yekaterinburg Marketer Quits Job to Become Chef

Valentina Alekseeva is 35 years old. Four years ago, she decided to radically change her life — she left her job in retail for delicious food. Valentina adores cooking. She had to build her career in the restaurant industry from scratch, and also overcome gender stereotypes.

Now, the chef has experience working in Yekaterinburg«s largest restaurants — Si, »Steak House«, »Shavi Lomi«, Grand Buffet Ekaterinburg, Carbonara, OVO izakaya. And also a dinner at the luxury Moscow restaurant Gimpel. From fall 2025, Valentina heads the kitchen at the »Unknown« bistro, where we met with the chef.

From Marketing to the Restaurant Kitchen

— How did you end up in this profession?

— By profession, I am a marketer. I worked in marketing for a long time at the «Monetka» chain, but I found that field boring. However, I always liked cooking; I attended master classes, training sessions, gastronomic dinners. At some point, I realized that I needed to just go for it and try working in the food service industry. I found a job with a salary half of what I had before. But I risked and quit everything — my husband encouraged me to do it. They hired me right away, and I quickly got into it.

— Which restaurant did you start in? Was it difficult to build a career from scratch?

— I went to Si under Misha Arakelov, I got a job in the cold kitchen. Everyone was surprised then: «A pretty girl in the kitchen!» We processed vegetables, made preparations. That, by the way, surprised me. I thought all dishes in restaurants were made from scratch — from the cutting board. But there are preparations that speed up the process many times over.

At first, it was difficult — I remember boiling quail eggs, and they«re so tiny! I was afraid to damage them, now I peel them like seeds. But even such simple work I enjoyed. Probably, there was some adrenaline playing then. I remember washing tomatoes and thinking — this is awesome!

— And why were they surprised about a woman? Do men cook in restaurants?

— In the cold kitchen, there are usually many girls. But in the hot kitchen, the cooks are more often men. I once had a case where a waiter passed on a question from a guest: «I hope a woman didn»t cook my food?« I had a strange feeling then, because I don»t have a separation between a female cook or a male cook. A cook is just a cook.

— Why then do they say that the best chefs are men?

— Good question. But, I think, this phrase is about the fact that being a cook is mentally and physically quite hard work: many have sore legs, backs. Well, and stereotypes affect it — it«s considered that a woman should create home comfort, take care of children, not work.

— Where do beginners start in the kitchen?

— Usually, you start your career in the kitchen either with preparations or in the cold kitchen. Then you gradually become a senior in the section, move to the serving line, then to the hot kitchen. If you have speed, dexterity, logic, desire, determination, then everything is within your power.

Every Workday for a Cook is Unpredictable

— How did you end up at «Unknown»?

— I«ll start by saying that I left the food service industry several times — I got tired, burned out, but returned again. Because it draws you in — it»s already a certain lifestyle that you can«t do without. The same thing happened here — I left my last project because I burned out. But Dmitry Khomutov [founder of the »Unknown« bistro] called me, offered to head the kitchen here. I replied that I was taking a break for now, but he suggested just coming to talk. It was in the summer, I came — I really liked this place, and I decided to return again.

The atmosphere itself at «Unknown» is quite unique, there«s history all around you. In the kitchen, I engage in creativity. And I tell all the guys — got ideas? Let»s do it! I like that they can show themselves.

— What is the most difficult thing about being a head chef?

— Every day in the kitchen is unpredictable. An employee might not show up, get sick. Suddenly, there might be some collapse with supplies. In difficult situations, I«m always with the team, because we»re in the same boat. And on days when everything is calm, I deal with documents, developments. A cook must not only come up with a dish and cook it deliciously, but also think through the logic, calculate the weights, cost. Make it so that your team can replicate this dish. Otherwise, all your ideas are nonsense.

— Do cooks often make mistakes?

— It happens. I remember once at a large banquet, we slightly overcooked the lamb rack. I still have a bad feeling about it. But it«s important how you deal with it. We apologize, offer some compliment from the establishment or redo the dish so that the guest is satisfied. And then we analyze the mistakes in the kitchen. If the guys did something wrong, cut something improperly, I might say — eat it yourself. Is it hard to chew? Now imagine what it»s like for the guests!

— Do you often dine out yourself? How do you react if they bring an incorrectly cooked dish?

— I send the dish back to the kitchen. Recently, I ordered a lamb rack, the cooks brought it cold and also missed the doneness, I tried it and pushed the plate away. When the waiter asked, I gave feedback. He apologized and removed the dish from the bill. I remember, friends were surprised: what, is that allowed? It is, if it«s justified. But in that restaurant, I still liked it, the service works well.

How Much Do Cooks Earn

— Over the four years, has your husband regretted convincing you to go into the food service industry?

— No, he is understanding. Only now he mostly has to cook at home. I sometimes give tips, because there«s little free time left. Even for sports, it»s rarely enough — I used to exercise regularly. And now I haven«t been able to get to a jiu-jitsu training for two months.

— Has there been anything that disappointed you in the profession?

— I«ve encountered that staff might not show up for their shift, might be late, for me that»s unacceptable, is that even allowed? Now, the Zoomer generation is coming to work, it«s an extremely young team. You need to talk with them, understand why it happened. Not just: »Here«s a fine for you.»

— And has the salary in the industry over the years not disappointed you?

— When I first came to the restaurant, I earned 150 rubles per hour (about $2 at current rates). But this is a field where salaries are constantly adjusted. Work well — rates increase. In the first months, I, of course, worked for 30,000 rubles per month (about $300 at current rates). But I«ve long since caught up and even surpassed my previous salary in marketing.

In the food service industry, there«s an interesting thing — salary doesn»t always depend on position. Dishwashers often earn as much per shift as a cook. Well, and head chefs, of course, can earn good money, the average salary level in Yekaterinburg now is about 100,000–150,000 rubles per month (about $1,000–$1,500 at current rates).

— What would you advise to those who are now thinking — is it worth going to work in the food service industry?

— I would advise following your heart«s call. Try it, so that later you don»t regret that you never decided. This profession is difficult, but it«s either for you or it»s not. When you like what you«re doing, you can do even more. Some come here to earn money, but for me, people are important, it»s important that they get emotions from the food. When you walk from the kitchen to the end of the hall through a full house — in the hall, people are drinking wine, laughing, dancing, live music is playing — there«s an atmosphere of celebration and you get a thrill from it.

All interviews with interesting residents of Yekaterinburg are collected on a separate page of E1.RU. There you can read the conversation with chef Mikhail Arakelov about how to find money for a new project. Here is an interview with restaurateur Kirill Shlaen about successful business in any crisis.

In the section »Where to Eat in Yekaterinburg» we regularly talk about new restaurants and cafes in the city.