Žarko Vučinić is a young and successful chef and nutritionist from Montenegro. He combined youth, the desire for constant improvement and learning, the search for new horizons in healthy nutrition, and this brought him work and experience in the most elite hotels and restaurants in Montenegro. Currently, he bravely navigates entrepreneurial waters and prepares and cooks interesting, healthy and inexpensive dishes as part of his independent business.
What made you interested in studying and working as a chef?
- Even as a child, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen, watching my mother prepare meals. Also, while watching TV I loved the show on Raiuno: La Prova dell Cuoco... Over time I realized that it was the right calling for me.
How did you decide on additional professional training in Italy, after completing vocational school in Podgorica?
- That happened, more by chance! It was a competition for professional development, so I applied and passed the competition... I wanted to learn more, to find out more, and thanks to the training in Italy, I succeeded!
How was your internship experience in Italy?
- In Italy, I had the opportunity, apart from the kitchen, to work and improve in the business segment of a hotel, which includes several aspects. Such as: reception, waiter, procurement of goods, etc... One such experience, in my later work, helped me a lot to progress in my further career.
How is the chef profession valued in Montenegro?
- The profession of chef is highly valued in our country...
What is the experience of working in the most elite five-star hotels and restaurants in Montenegro?
- In such hotels, you have the possibility of advancement, which is very good, because it always motivates you to improve yourself... Over time, you have more knowledge, and thus you get a higher salary. As in any job, this one also needs a strong will and a lot of commitment....
What was the most difficult dish to prepare in your career so far?
- To tell you the truth, there are no difficult dishes, there is another side, and that is ignorance! If I don't have the knowledge, it will be very difficult for me to prepare that dish... That's why, every day I follow the news and try to improve myself, with the aim of being able to meet the demand.
Is cooking difficult for you (difficult profession)?
- Cooking can be tiring, in a physical sense, because sometimes it is done non-stop for 24 hours or more... However, when I directly create delicious and beautiful dishes, it helps me to forget fatigue and to be happy in what I do....
The best feeling is when the guest is satisfied and happy, thanks to the chef... This is, by the way, the basic driver of all chefs, to prepare the same dish over and over again, with special attention and lots of love!
How and when did you become interested in healthy eating and nutrition?
- Realizing, through practice, that we can always eat healthier than the habits were until now, I slowly started to improve in that part... I managed to perfect healthy food with the advice and help of chef Toni Radić, and then with the help of literature. The fact that I completed my studies as a nutritionist at the Institute for Natural Studies helped me a lot to get to know this field even more deeply.
What is your advice to those who want to eat healthy?
- We already know a lot, or have heard about healthy food, but we never decide to apply it more in practice, and that's where the basic mistake is.
Therefore, everyone who decides to eat properly is already on the right path by the decision itself... One should use as much as possible various vegetables, cereals, drink as much water as possible...
Have you started your own business? What are the experiences?
- I recently started a business with the aim of providing cheap and good meals to people... The experiences are very good and every day I have more and more new clients...
What is your favorite recipe to make for the family?
- For the family, I like to prepare Podgorica Popeke...
Žarko Vučinić, short biography:
- 2003 – he graduated from Sergije Stanić secondary school, majoring in Culinary Technician
- 2004 - he completed his specialization in National Cuisine, with Vuk Mitrović
- 2005 - 2006 - he completed the specialization for a chef in Italy: specialization in Italian cuisine and a certificate for meeting European standards
- 2006 - he completed his studies at the Institute for Natural Studies, major: Nutritionist
Žarko Vučinić worked in the following places:
- Podgorica, Hotel Imanje knjaz, 5*, 2003 - 2004. - shift chief position
- Podgorica, Hotel Ambasador, 4*, 2004 - 2006. - the position of head chef
- Budva, Hotel Splendid, 5*, 2006 - 2008. - position of First Cook at Fine Dining Restaurant Window of Montenegro
- Mr. - Aman Resort, 5*, Sveti Stefan, position of chef
- Mr. Ski center in Kolašin - position of Executive Chef
- Budva, 2010 - 2013, hotel Splendid, 5* - position of chef Ala Cart
- Podgorica, 2014, Hotel Oasis, 4* - position of Executive Chef
- 2014 - 2015, Mr. Bonella, head of the hot kitchen
- 2015 he started an independent business, with the aim of making the food the most affordable in the region... and, of course, he succeeded in that
2015, April
Interview led by: Miodrag Ilić
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