by: G&M editorial team
Every month, Gault&Millau introduces you to exceptional Chefs who work in Czech restaurants awarded our toques.
Behind every perfect dish that lands on your table, there is not only a precise technique and high-quality ingredients, but above all, a personality. Who are the Chefs who prepare unforgettable gastronomic experiences for you?
In this series, we reveal their human side. You will learn where they come from, what inspired them to become Chefs, and what path led them to their current position at a Gault&Millau-awarded restaurant. But that's not all—you will find out who they are when they take off their Chef's jackets, how they spend their free time, what energizes them, and what little things they always have with them, no matter where they are.
Meet Roman Kintler from La Finestra in Cucina, a restaurant awarded 15 points and 3 Gault&Millau toques, who naturally switches between his native Slovak and fluent Czech during the interview, drinking coffee in the garden and radiating an incredible calm.
1. Who is Roman Kintler?
A 36-year-old head chef at La Finestra, young, handsome, and childless (laughs). I come from a small wine-growing town called Modra, not far from Bratislava. My family has a winery, so I grew up in the vineyards and also on sports fields, because I played hockey and ice hockey for a long time. In short, I did a lot of sports and went to the gym.
2. What did you study?
A private hospitality school in Trnava. Originally, I wanted to go to art school to study drawing and illustration because we used to do graffiti when we were kids. But in the end, hotel school won out because my grandfather wanted to be a chef and I always enjoyed cooking, so I went there instead and I still really enjoy it.
3. How long have you been cooking and what has your journey been like?
I've been cooking for eighteen years. Right after I graduated, I started at a local pub with ten fryers. When I came to Prague, I didn't even know what a shrimp was. Then I went to cook at La Bottega di Finestra, then returned to Slovakia for a short time, and then back to Prague, this time to La Bottega Linka. There, I was quietly working in the back on the grill, and then I took over as the Chef. Now I'm in my third year as the Chef at La Finestra, where I have a great team and feel at home.
4. How did you learn to cook properly?
It comes naturally to me, I really enjoy it. Especially using and combining different ingredients... And then, I really love the pace, the pressure in the kitchen. I'm among my own kind there, in our world.
5. What is the best advice you follow?
Every day is the one and only day. Don't plan, give 100 % today, and do what you enjoy. I really look forward to going to work every day, every single day. I can't imagine going somewhere else where I wouldn't enjoy myself; that must be awful.
6. Would you do anything differently in your life?
I wouldn't change a thing. Maybe when you're younger, in those wild years, you should spend more time with your family...
7. Who cooks at your house and what do they cook?
My girlfriend Anička cooks more at home, and I have to say she's good! (laughs) I'm a really easy eater, I'm happy with just buttered bread with ham; that makes me the happiest person alive. And when I cook, it's mainly meat, which I also prefer to prepare at work, especially beef.
8. What's your guilty pleasure?
Definitely a Big Mac from McDonald's! When I hit the highway, my first stop is McDonald's, I love it. And frozen pizza from the supermarket, which I customize at home to my liking. And sometimes bubbles, but that's not so good with age, my head doesn't work as well as I'd like it to in the days that follow. (laughs)
9. What was the worst advice you´ve ever got?
That I should give up because I couldn't achieve anything. I ignored it and told myself that the best thing to do was to prove it with results.
10. When did you first manage to cook the perfect meal?
As an Aquarius, I am never satisfied. When I create a new menu, for example, we do a tasting with the team, approve it, print the menu, and then start serving it at 5 p.m. – and I'm already annoyed. I would rather start doing something else and replace it. Otherwise, of course, I would never let anything leave the kitchen that I wasn't completely satisfied with.
11. What do you think about cookbooks?
I like cookbooks, especially those that show different preparation techniques, such as how to fillet a fish and so on. In short, techniques and how to prepare ingredients. I also enjoy reading foreign cookbooks and would definitely like to publish my own cookbook one day, why not?
12. What kind of music do you listen to?
I like good rock, rap, sometimes I listen to American country, I hate techno.
13. How do you relax?
Probably best at home in silence, just being at home and doing nothing, peace and quiet. I also like driving, it calms me down.
14. Do you have any life hacks?
The key is to get a good night's sleep. It helps you think better. I need at least seven hours of sleep. I get up at 7:30 a.m. and I am in the kitchen by 9 a.m. So getting a good night's sleep is essential.
15. What do you wear when you're not wearing Chef´s jacket?
I like comfortable clothes, loose jeans, sneakers, T-shirts. But I like my uniform, I like being at work best, I feel a little uncomfortable among people outside. I just feel best among my colleagues at work, that's where the world is all right. (laughs)
16. What is underappreciated in our gastronomy?
Pastry chefs and sommeliers. Pastry chefs are hard to find, and I think they have a tough time because they don't get the same recognition as Chefs, for example. And sommeliers also have to know the trends, visit wineries, be able to talk about wine, and know how to pair it with food... and they don't get the same recognition as chefs either.
17. What do you miss in the Czech Republic?
The sea, that seaside atmosphere, and buying fish at the market...
A pen, I always have to have one with me to write down ideas, I'm "old school" and I like to have everything written down.
Every man should have a knife, not a child, but a man. And not just one, ideally at least ten.
A headscarf, when it's really hot in the kitchen, always comes in handy and I wouldn't go anywhere without it in the summer.
Perfume, but I only wear it outside the kitchen. I can't stand perfumes in the kitchen.
A watch and a cell phone are essential.
Tweezers, no matter what anyone says, some say that it´s big-headed, but I don't care, I couldn't do handing out without them. And if they help me improve handing out my cooking, I'll keep using them.