Dmitry OrlovCommunity profile

Dmitry's journey to becoming the head chef at Bijou began in 2010 when he traveled to the United States as part of the Work & Travel program. He found himself in the kitchen of the cozy Azafran cafe, located on the Atlantic coast in Delaware. It was there that Dmitry first worked in a kitchen, also doing dishwashing. Upon returning to Russia, the idea of working as a chef lingered in his mind, but it took several more years for him to realize that working in a restaurant kitchen was truly his calling. In the intervening years, he worked as a courier, a plumber for Russian Railways, a logistics manager, and a construction manager for supermarkets, but he realized that office work was not for him, and that if he was going to learn to cook, he needed to learn from the best. This led him to Chefshows by Novikov (Novikov School), where he studied under Artur Ovchinnikov (who placed first in the Russian qualifying round of Bocuse d'Or). After completing his training, Dmitry was convinced that working in a kitchen was his true passion and dream. He then went on to internships at the Moscow restaurant "Chugunny Most," followed by the Italian restaurant Bocconcino, and then "Tsarskaya Okhota." "My 'baptism by fire' took place at the Bjorn restaurant, where I worked as a chef in the cold kitchen. That's when I experienced all the joys and challenges of working in a large restaurant kitchen, where every process is strictly governed by a schedule. It felt like I had joined a culinary army. This experience taught me strict discipline, cleanliness in my work, and a rational approach to time management." Next, Dmitry moved to the kitchen of "Petrov and Vasechka," where he worked for a year and a half before realizing he wanted something new. This is how the bar Dry&Wet entered his life. During his time there, Dmitry continued to learn and went on an internship at Umi Oysters, located at the Central Market, under the guidance of Chef Evgeny Meshcheryakov, to gain a deeper understanding of working with seafood. However, after a year at Dry&Wet, he returned to the "Petrov and Vasechka" bar and took on the position of head chef. For Dmitry Orlov, the story of the French bar Bijou began in December 2020. Nikita Zisman, one of the creators of the bar's concept, invited him to join as the head chef, where he now delights guests with classic French dishes every day: the legendary chicken pâté, escargots, gratin with mushrooms in cream, ratatouille, choux pastries with cream cheese/salmon rillette, and onion soup.