Samson Tan, executive chef of Hafa Adai Beach Hotel in Garapan, finished an electronics course in college — which is not exactly related to his passion and career.
A day at work starts at 7 a.m. checking the staffers, the menu, food supplies and getting everything ready for the breakfast menu. Breakfast ends at 10 a.m. but it only signifies the beginning of the lunch preparations. Tan’s schedule slackens a bit after lunch time where he gets a couple of hours, but at 5 p.m., preparations for dinner and BBQ buffet start again.
This seemingly never-ending routine may be boring for others, but not for Tan, whose creative mind keeps thinking of ways and dishes to please the customers.
“The biggest reward a chef or cook gets is when he sees that the customers liked his creation and empties the dishes,” Tan said.
Beginnings
After finishing his electronics course, Tan worked for a television company in the Philippines for several months, but the lure of the kitchens kept calling him. He finally got a job as a waiter at one of the top hotels in Manila, and that’s where “real life” began for him.
Tan arrived on Saipan in the early 1990s as a waiter for the Saipan Diamond Hotel, now Saipan World Resort. He couldn’t keep his hands off from the kitchen.
“Waiters were not supposed to enter the kitchen, but I always did, observing how the chefs cooked and created dishes out of the ingredients,” Tan said. The chefs got irritated, exasperated and finally gave in to the idea that he could always come to the kitchen.
“They decided to accept me as a regular fixture in the kitchen and finally taught me to cook,” Tan said. The kitchen became his actual school as he absorbed every new creation and banked them in his memory for later use.
Moving to Salt and Pepper in the now-defunct La Fiesta Mall as a waiter gave Tan the break that he needed. He was asked to create a menu for a party and he did it with gusto. When asked if he could prepare everything, he jumped at the chance and breezed through the party with flying colors. Thus began a new level for his culinary career.
Tan worked for several more establishments and with each new environment, he learned something new — knowledge that he eventually found useful when he finally took the helm as executive chef.
Tan got first hand training from top executive chefs from various hotels and restaurants on island over the years, specializing in various cuisines like French, Japanese, U.S., German, Indonesian, Filipino, Chinese, Spanish and Italian and more. Most of the chefs Tan trained with are now working for big hotels all over the Europe and the U.S.
For Tan, learning is a continuous process, especially in an industry where the trend is always changing. To keep up, Tan took and finished online courses in gourmet and catering, enrolled in short-term culinary courses offered here and in the Philippines.
He continues to think of delightful new dishes that will not only satiate the hunger of diners but will make them come back for more.
Tan is one of those who have seen Saipan’s economy flourish and fall over the past two decades, but he is still here because he knows that people will always eat and the food industry will always be there.
