Today we’d like to introduce you to Chef Christophe Rull.
So, before we jump into specific questions about what you do, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born in 1984 in Marseille, a city south of France.
Being raised by a single mom with two big brothers in a suburb really challenging neighborhood where burned stolen cars, drug traffics, rapes, robbery, street fights, etc. were part of the daily routine.
I had the chance to get good support from my dad (a retired cop) which used to take me every two-week ends and provided me the needed education to stay away from the troubles.
Even though I had this education from my dad, I had been a difficult child to my mom and she couldn’t handle me any longer when I was 13 years old.
One day, I was at home watching TV and the doorbell rang, I open the door and the police was here to let me know someone contacted them to report a suicide attempt.
My mom took a bunch of pills and survived. The police called my dad and told him, two choices, you pick up your son or we bring him to the child services. Since that day, it was life-changing for me as I was taken out of this neighborhood.
My mom used to cook a lot for the three of us and I was always interested to help in the kitchen.
When I moved out of my mom and live with my dad, the cooking was one of the main conversation topics in the house.
My dad is a great house cook and I still remember spending hours peeling vegetables in the kitchen with him.
At 15 years old, I had the choice to either continue school or learn a job. this is when my Culinary adventure began.
Starting to work and learn on a star Michelin restaurant where perfection and discipline are the main components of the operation success. In order to be respected in the kitchen, I had to give my 100% every day.
After five years of apprenticeship in both savory and pastry, I started to travel in France to gain experience, network and learn from the bests.
To name a few places, I worked in a 3-star Michelin restaurant for the famous chef Marc Veyrat.
I have been an assistant teacher at one of the best professional pastry school in France called ENSP at Yssingeaux where I could learn from different MOF and world Pastry Champions.
In 2009, I had the opportunity to come to the US to be part of a huge hotel and casino resort team and be part of the opening of ARIA in las Vegas. My experience there were eye-openers and I realized that opportunities are limitless and when there is a will, there is a way.
To give you an idea, every new year, I had to execute with the team 2000 chocolate or sugar showpiece for our most VIP event of the years, we are talking about 800 lbs of artistic entire edible plates.
After three years at Aria, I have been promoted as an assistant executive pastry chef in MGM Grand Las Vegas.
there, I continue to learn management skills, 60 employees in the bakery, communications, organization and different style of kitchen as we used to produce for more than 20 different outlets. Chinese, Italian, steakhouse, pool, banquet, coffee shop, room service, etc.
During my time in MGM Grand, I joined two National Chocolate showpiece competition when I won both times the best artistry showpiece. the name of the competition was Pastry Live in Atlanta.
In 2016, I got the opportunity to showcase my skills to the leadership team in Carlsbad, California at Park Hyatt Aviara and assumed the position as Executive Pastry Chef.
During the last three years, I participated in two Food network competition and got first place for both.
Halloween wars and Holiday wars. one of my specialty is artistic and two of my Christmas display has been featured in Forbes magazine two years in a row.
This year, Mike Brown, a professional pumpkin carver, and his twin brother Matt will be joining me to create another whimsical Christmas display.
Looking back from where I am coming from, today, I already realized some of my biggest dreams and being an executive Pastry chef in one of the best resorts in California is a huge career achievement that I always worked for and I can tell that I am proud of this achievement.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Coming in the US with a minimum of English and had to manage a team of 15 people at first wasn’t easy every day.
I had to learn on a spot and get up to speed fairly quick to be able to continue to lead.
The most challenging part has been to deal with a different work ethic, diverse personality, PEOPLE.
In France, the way I learned was YES CHEF atmosphere. here in the US, I learned that if I want to be successful I needed to empathize with people, listen and managed my emotions.
I am fortunate enough to work for Hyatt where “Care for people so they can be their best” is not only the value of the company but a lifestyle.
Today, I have an amazing team with me and we are pushing really hard to end the year and provide our guests with the best holiday pastries.
What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
I am the executive pastry chef for the Park Hyatt Aviara, more details about the resort can be asked to a marketing team. Please let me know if you would like to get in contact with them.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Positivity. Never give up, love what you do, be passionate. If you don’t, do something else and find what’s making you happy.
Image Credit:
Hai Tran
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