The discipline of prep
Why mise en place is a mindset before it's a tidy station, and how I drill it into first-year cooks from day one.
Read note →
01 · The chef
— Anitha Thomas
Mise en place is a way of thinking
Sous chef with twelve years in resort and hotel kitchens, specialising in Kerala and coastal seafood cooking alongside large banquet production. Runs daily kitchen operations, rosters and ordering for a brigade of 30, and leads hygiene audits and menu costing.
TICKETED
Chef card
Particulars · one glanceBaseKochi, Kerala
CuisinesModern Indian · European · pastry
TeachesDiploma · pro · hobbyist
AlsoMenu & kitchen consultant
LanguagesEnglish · Hindi · Malayalam · Konkani
StatusOpen to school & exec-chef roles
02 · The station
What I cook & teach
Knife to plate, larder to pastry, and the discipline that ties a kitchen together. Here's the range.
Kerala cuisine
Seafood handling
Banquet production
Menu costing
Kitchen rostering
HACCP systems
Vendor ordering
Team training
Menu development
03 · Service
Respect the ingredient. Respect the line.
Cooking looks like flair on television and is actually discipline in real life. Mise en place — everything in its place before service — is the whole craft in three words, and it's a habit of mind long before it's a tidy station. I teach cooks to prep like the rush is coming, cook like the ingredient deserves it, and clean like their name is on the plate. Flair is what's left once the discipline is automatic.
- PrepMise en place first, always. A cook who preps well has already won most of service before a single order lands.
- TechniqueThe fundamentals that never change — heat control, seasoning, knife work. Master these and every recipe opens up.
- TasteSeason, taste, adjust, repeat. I teach the palate as a tool you sharpen, not a gift you're born with.
- SendConsistency under pressure. The tenth plate at the height of service is as good as the first, or it doesn't leave the pass.
04 · The line
Sixteen years, station to pass
Sous Chef
180-room backwater resort with three outlets
Run daily operations for a brigade of 30 across the speciality restaurant, all-day dining and banqueting. Kept food cost between 30 and 32 percent by weekly yield testing on fish and seasonal changes to purchasing.
5 years
Chef de Partie, Indian Kitchen
5-star business hotel
Led the Indian and seafood section for 250-cover lunch and dinner service, supervising four commis and a demi chef. Standardised 60 recipes with portion sizes and photos, which kept dishes consistent across shifts and outlets.
3 years
Commis I
Heritage hotel with banquet halls
Prepared curries, stews and appams for banquets of up to 800 guests, following batch-cooking plans set by the chef. Handled receiving checks on fish and meat, rejecting stock that failed freshness or temperature standards.
05 · Training
Education
Diploma in Food Production
Central government-run hotel management institute
06 · Credentials
Certifications
FoSTaC Advanced Catering (Food Safety…
HACCP Level 3 certificate
First aid and fire safety training
07 · Honours
Plated & awarded
Culinary Educator of the YearState hospitality-education awards
2023Best New Restaurant (as head chef)Times Food critics' award, Verde
201690%+ graduate kitchen placementDiploma programme, verified
2018–Featured — 'The Discipline of Prep'Food & wine feature on training cooks
2022
08 · The pass
MAY 2026 FEB 2026 OCT 2025
Notes from the kitchen
Teaching the palate
Taste is a skill, not a gift. The seasoning ladder I use to train a beginner's palate in a single term.
Read note →Calm on a full pass
How to keep a kitchen — and a nervous cook — composed when twenty tickets land at once. Systems over adrenaline.
Read note →
09 · From the brigade
What they say
FROM THE BRIGADE · 01
Chef Anitha taught me the line without ever making me feel small for not knowing it. I run my own section now because of how he taught.
Former studentNOW CDP, 5-STAR HOTELFROM THE BRIGADE · 01
He opened two kitchens for us and left both running like clockwork. Rigorous about standards, generous with knowledge.
Restaurant ownerBENGALURUFROM THE BRIGADE · 01
The only chef-instructor I've seen who is calm at the height of service AND patient with a shaking first-year. Rare combination.
Programme headIHM GOA
10 · For kitchens & schools
The hiring ticket
● NEW INTAKE 2027 · PUT ME ON YOUR HARDEST SERVICE OR YOUR GREENEST CLASS
Current roleSous Chef, 180-room backwater resort with three outlets
Open toHead of culinary · executive chef · consulting instructor
TeachesPro diploma · CPD · hobbyist masterclasses
Expected salary₹10–15 LPA / negotiable
Notice period60 days
Willing to relocateYes — Goa, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Gulf · schools & kitchens
Programme Head, IHM GoaCURRENT · SHARED ON REQUEST
Owner, Verde Restaurant2013–18 · SHARED ON REQUEST
11 · Book a class