A Tribute to Head Chef Duong Van Huu at the End of His 8-Year Journey

Eight years with STAVI is also how long Head Chef Duong Van Huu worked tirelessly in the Tasei kitchen at Phuc Dien Industrial Park. Every day he served nearly 1,000 meals, and the work was always hectic, yet whenever he met people they usually found him calm, enthusiastic and smiling warmly. Perhaps it was this way of doing his job that, for so many years, earned him the trust and affection of colleagues and good reviews from customers.

Anyone who has worked in an industrial kitchen understands that getting a hot meal to nearly 1,000 workers on time is no easy task. The kitchen's work begins very early. Every delivery of food must be checked under a strict procedure before it is prepared, portioned and cooked. One dish follows another onto the stove, one pot after another pan. Then serving time brings a different rhythm of work, where everything must be fast and precise to meet the workers' mealtime. Day after day, the kitchen runs to a schedule that allows almost no delay.

As head chef, Mr. Huu was used to being there from the very first stages, preparing alongside the team and following the work closely until the meal was complete. A kitchen has many people, each with their own task, but the head chef has to keep track of every step: what is on today's menu, how good the ingredients are, how the dishes are being cooked, how far along the work is, whether the food is seasoned just right...

STAVI pays tribute to Head Chef Duong Van Huu of the Taisei kitchen after 8 years of dedication

And so, over a long stretch of time, the Tasei kitchen became the place where he spent most of each day, and the place that holds the record of nearly 8 full years of work with STAVI.

Cooking a single family meal is already hard enough to please everyone's taste, so cooking nearly 1,000 meals a day is harder still. Each worker has their own palate: some like it strong, some like it mild; a dish praised today may not suit everyone tomorrow. Mr. Huu understood this, so throughout his work, whenever he received comments about a meal, he always listened very carefully.

When customers gave feedback on a dish, he took it on board. When colleagues said a dish was not quite right, he discussed it with them and made adjustments. Seemingly small things like the tenderness of the meat, the taste of the soup, or how to vary the dishes so the meals did not become monotonous were all things this cook paid attention to every single day.

He rarely talked about grand ideas, because for him, cooking was first and foremost about making sure the diners enjoyed their food, that meals were served attentively and that the work in the kitchen was always done properly. Perhaps it was precisely this sincere way of receiving feedback that helped him keep the customer's trust for so many years.

Colleagues from the STAVI office who visited Tasei were probably all familiar with the sight of Mr. Huu bustling about in his chef's whites. The time just before mealtime is the busiest. A kitchen serving nearly 1,000 meals rarely gets a moment to rest. One person preparing, one at the wok, one portioning the food, no one needing to be told what to do, the work flowing along like a habit. The head chef has even less chance to pause, standing at the stove continuously to send dishes out and make sure the food is still piping hot when the shift comes to eat.

And yet, every time a delegation from the Company came to visit or to work, Mr. Huu would still come out to greet them warmly. If something needed discussing, he shared his thoughts readily. If a problem needed coordination, he worked with everyone to find a solution. The work might be half done, he might be tired after hours at the stove, but he was rarely seen to be irritable or offhand with anyone.

A greeting, a smile or a willingness to cooperate may all sound like perfectly ordinary things. But keeping those ordinary things up for many years in a high-pressure working environment is something truly admirable.

The customer Tasei also praised him on many occasions. They valued the skill of the long-serving head chef and appreciated the way he communicated, took feedback and approached his work. For someone in the service business, there is perhaps no recognition more meaningful than the people you serve feeling satisfied and confident in you.

Head Chef Duong Van Huu always put his heart into every meal

During his 8 years at STAVI, Mr. Huu earned the title of Outstanding Head Chef for many years. The cooking profession has little glamour; the result of a whole session's work is sometimes contained in a meal that lasts a few dozen minutes. The diners finish, the trays are collected, the kitchen is cleaned, and the next day everything starts again from the beginning. But it is precisely in that repetitive work that the dedication of a true professional is seen most clearly.

From one day to one month and then to many years, no one can remember exactly how many hours he stood at the stove or how many meals he prepared with the team. All we know is that during that time, thousands of meals went out from the Tasei kitchen to the workers, and that journey carried his effort together with that of the whole kitchen team.

After 8 years alongside STAVI, Mr. Huu decided to leave to pursue a new direction. The company is very sorry to lose such an outstanding employee, but fully supports his decision. On the day Mr. Huu left, the Company prepared a small gift for him as a token of gratitude for 8 years of commitment and dedication.

Eight years is long enough for a person to become the familiar face of a kitchen. Long enough for a working relationship to turn into the understanding shared by people who have spent years solving countless problems, big and small, together. And long enough that when one person leaves, those who stay have much to remember.

He earned the title of Outstanding Head Chef for many consecutive years

STAVI values Mr. Huu for everything he did throughout that time. We value a head chef who was skilled and responsible, who knew how to listen to customers and always kept an enthusiastic attitude towards his colleagues. The times he was recognised as Outstanding Head Chef and the good reviews from customers are a fitting reward for the years he devoted to his work.

Head Chef Duong Van Huu's journey at the Tasei kitchen comes to an end after 8 years, but the meals he cooked, the days spent at the stove with the team, and the affection his colleagues hold for him remain beautiful memories for STAVI. We wish him good health, happiness and every success on the road ahead. And wherever he continues to cook in the future, we hope he keeps the same passion for the profession that everyone came to know in him during his years at STAVI.