Recently appointed as Chef de Cuisine of Indonesia’s first W property – W Retreat & Spa Bali-Seminyak, Chef Jack Yoss is an accomplished global chef who has served alongside some of the biggest names in the culinary world.

Yoss has had an incredibly diverse and exciting culinary career, marked by experiences and fortuitous relationships with some of the world’s most renowned and beloved chefs. He first embarked on his career in Las Vegas, eventually landing a coveted job as a saucier at Wolfgang Puck’s exclusive Chinois Restaurant in Caesar’s Palace.

Puck was an early fan of Yoss, and taught him about balancing flavors to create Chinois’ signature delicious and delectable sauces. Yoss then moved on to San Francisco – the home of innovative upscale cuisine – where he made a name for himself at Puck’s famed Postrio restaurant, working his way up from pastry cook to Chef de Cuisine.

Yoss also met and began collaborations with the famed Chef Jacques Pepin, who mentored Yoss and nominated him for Food and Wine’s “Best New Chef’s In America” in 2004.

Yoss donned his kitchen whites at prestigious restaurants such as Nine Thirty at W Los Angeles and joined the Celebrity Chef Tour, earning him the rare opportunity to cook at the prestigious James Beard House, New York.

After his tenure as Executive Chef at Ten-01 Restaurant in Portland's hip Pearl District, Chef Yoss embarked a culinary expedition that took him from Alaska to Bali, with stops in Italy, Belgium, France, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and Japan, amongst others.

L&S: You've been on quite an adventure 'one country at a time'. What motivated you to broaden your horizons?
JY: “One country at a time”...that seems like so long ago. My major motivation was to learn again. I had been an executive chef for seven years and felt that I was getting stuck in a routine, not really learning anymore. I wanted to reenergize myself and soak in as much of worlds cuisine and culture as I could afford on my limited savings.

Another important factor was to see and taste the food from its source. In America you can get anything imported but to taste say, Epoisses or Charcuterie in a small village outside of Limoge, France is completely different than in the comforts of your home or restaurant. That coupled with tours of the farms and in some cases getting to work at them was a priceless experience. My travels definitely changed and shaped the way that I think about and cook food. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

L&S: You're often referred to as 'the travelling chef'. What have been some travel and food highlights for you so far?
JY: Too many to name but here are a few:

• Having foie gras and truffles from a street side vendor in Perigeux, France

• Working in Chateaus and farms in Limoges, France. This was a real eye opener as it was grueling work, waking up at six a.m. to cook breakfast for the guests, then working the fields all day finishing with making dinner for the guests. Sixteen hour days on a farm is much harder than a kitchen. It taught me even more respect for the vegetables that we use.

• Visiting a Foie Gras producer in Bordeaux

• Consulting in Osaka and Tokyo. The Japanese are very precise in their cooking and the skill level is very high. It stood out as one of my great moments because I speak no Japanese and the cooks no English yet we still had the kitchen language and had no problem communicating through food.

• Eating street food all across Asia. We were traveling with a strict budget so even if we wanted to could not afford traditional restaurants. It was a good thing though because I learned so much from watching the street hawkers cook and chatting with them. To me they are the true chefs of the world

• The La Boqueria market in Barcelona was a chefs dream. The amount and quality of the vegetables, cheeses, spices and of course Jamon and charcuterie was stunning to say the least. I was able to shop there every day before doing my guest chef dinners at the W Hotel.
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L&S: Has living in Bali allowed you to experiment with certain ingredients you wouldn't normally use in your cooking?
JY: In America I did not use the tropical fruits that we have here. I always try to cook with locally sourced vegetables as I can wherever I am working so I am pretty excited about all of the new fruits that are predominant here. As well we have a farmer in Bedugul that has imported seeds and is growing product strictly for us.

What most other hotels and restaurants are buying from Australia and France we are sourcing right here in Bali. That is very exciting as they are helping us and in turn it is providing jobs and even more agricultural awareness in Bedugul. My hope for this farm and community is to grow into a point where no restaurants or hotels need to outsource vegetables. It is a win win situation for all.

L&S: Kitchen essentials any cook should have:
JY: A sharp knife. You can have all the gadgets in the world but in the end a sharp knife is the most important tool for precision cooking. My personal favorite knives are Misono from Japan but I would not recommend them to everyone. It is very important when buying a knife that you hold it and test the weight in your hands for at least ten minutes.

As you cannot use them in the store when buying them this will give you the best idea whether or not the knife is suitable for your hand size and that the weight is also proportionate. Every person holds knives differently and has different grips and textures to themselves which makes a huge difference when purchasing a knife.

When purchasing your knife also buy a wet stone for sharpening and get the store to give you lessons which most will. If you buy it on-line look on YouTube for a sharpening technique clip. Having a sharp knife will make your time in the kitchen quite a bit more enjoyable and it will show through in your end product.

L&S: What dishes would you recommend for first timers to South East Asia:
JY: The most important thing to recommend to first time visitors would be to eat the street food. Street hawkers generally only produce one or two dishes that they have been making all their lives. These recipes and stalls are passed down from generation to generation and it shows in the product. I try to eat street food as much as possible.

Bali: Babi Guling and Bebek Betutu. Both are dishes native to Bali and amazing in terms of texture, flavor and aroma. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

Thailand: Find a night market that is predominately filled with locals and eat everything. Some of the best food I have had in the world has cost me about fifty cents in these pop up food havens. If one dish though: green papaya salad from a street vendor.

Malaysia: In Kuala Lumpur I spent most of my time on Jalon Alor. Almost everything I had there was amazing. When I think about it the first dish to come to mind is the slow grilled chicken wings with honey and lime. So tender they mimic confit with a sweet, tart and smoky flavor, they are addicting.

Langkawi and Penang: Both of these islands have great hawker food although Penang is the best for Hawker stalls anywhere. On both islands I had the best fried chicken of my life, by a long shot.

Tokyo, Japan: You must visit Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo. Get there about six in the morning, check out all the fish and get in line for one of the tiny sushi restaurants. Even at six in the morning you could end up waiting outside for an hour in line but the fish is spectacular and worth every second.

After getting your fill of sushi stop by one of the knife stalls and check them out. They have many obscure knives at great prices you can’t get anywhere but there.

Related Feature on LifeAndStyle.com.my: W Retreat & Spa Bali-Seminyak