# Cooking in Spain



## rubenguayasamin (Jul 11, 2013)

Hello, I am a Canadian citizen who wishes to move to spain at the end of august with the hopes of finding work as a cook. I am fluent in Spanish, and can speak moderately in Italian and French. I understand that the unemployment in Spain is at an all time high, but my career as a chef depends highly on an opportunity to cook in Europe or places where I may perhaps enter a Michelin rated restaurant (Michelin doesn't exist in Canada). I am over 30 years old, and work visas are hard to get at my age, however Spain's restrictions on Canadian expats are limited, so the borders are open for someone looking to work full time. 

My question is, where would be the best place to look for work as a chef/cook? That is to say, where should I move? I would prefer on of the regions praised for it's cuisine (i.e. Asturias, Galicia, Girona, Andalusia) but am not limiting myself. Obviously, living near the coast making a decent wage doing what I love would be the ideal situation, but my main objective is to find a respectable restaurant where I can learn traditional Spanish cookery.

Thank you all in advance for your time.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

rubenguayasamin said:


> Hello, I am a Canadian citizen who wishes to move to spain at the end of august with the hopes of finding work as a cook. I am fluent in Spanish, and can speak moderately in Italian and French. I understand that the unemployment in Spain is at an all time high, but my career as a chef depends highly on an opportunity to cook in Europe or places where I may perhaps enter a Michelin rated restaurant (Michelin doesn't exist in Canada). I am over 30 years old, and work visas are hard to get at my age, however Spain's restrictions on Canadian expats are limited, so the borders are open for someone looking to work full time.
> 
> My question is, where would be the best place to look for work as a chef/cook? That is to say, where should I move? I would prefer on of the regions praised for it's cuisine (i.e. Asturias, Galicia, Girona, Andalusia) but am not limiting myself. Obviously, living near the coast making a decent wage doing what I love would be the ideal situation, but my main objective is to find a respectable restaurant where I can learn traditional Spanish cookery.
> 
> Thank you all in advance for your time.


:welcome:

I'm pretty certain you can't come over & hope to find a job - you really need to apply for positions from Canada & hope that a restaurant will want you enough to sponsor you for a work visa - & even then they'd still have to prove that there are no EU citizens capable of filling the position ...........


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## rubenguayasamin (Jul 11, 2013)

xabiachica said:


> :welcome:
> 
> I'm pretty certain you can't come over & hope to find a job - you really need to apply for positions from Canada & hope that a restaurant will want you enough to sponsor you for a work visa - & even then they'd still have to prove that there are no EU citizens capable of filling the position ...........


Thank you for your quick response. After having done some research, I found out that Canada and Spain have signed an agreement that allows citizens between the ages of 18-35 to work in Spain on a casual basis without a pre-arranged contract: 

hxxp://yyy.exteriores.gob.es/Embajadas/OTTAWA/en/Embajada/Consularsectionoftheembassy/Longtermvisas/Pages/Agreementbeetweenspainandcanadaonyouthmobilityprograms.aspx]Agreement between Spain and Canada on Youth Mobility Programs[/url]

(replace the "x"'s with "t"'s in hxxp and the "y's with "w"'s)

If I however, did have an agreement prior to entering Spain I could work as one might say "full time". I, on the other hand, am trying to gain skills pertaining to my career; namely, gastronomy. So what I would like to do is float around more or less, doing volunteer "stages" and working "casually to supplement my costs of living in Spain. I would of course have to prove I have sufficient savings, as per the agreement, but the minimum stipulation is not enough to satisfy living costs for up to 12 months, herego the need to work casually. 

So if I may reiterate my question, where would the ideal region in Spain be for me to find a high volume of quality restaurants that may provide gainful employment after the tourist season is over (assuming that the tourist season is the same across the nation).


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

rubenguayasamin said:


> Thank you for your quick response. After having done some research, I found out that Canada and Spain have signed an agreement that allows citizens between the ages of 18-35 to work in Spain on a casual basis without a pre-arranged contract:
> 
> hxxp://yyy.exteriores.gob.es/Embajadas/OTTAWA/en/Embajada/Consularsectionoftheembassy/Longtermvisas/Pages/Agreementbeetweenspainandcanadaonyouthmobilityprograms.aspx]Agreement between Spain and Canada on Youth Mobility Programs[/url]
> 
> ...


ah yes, the Youth Mobility scheme - it didn't sound as if that's what you were interested in ....


to answer the question.... anywhere coastal will have a lot of restaurants......but there are only a few Michelin starred restaurants & they seem to be in the north...


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## 213979 (Apr 11, 2013)

Take advantage of the Youth Mobility Scheme. You guys are so lucky!

As for where to go? País. Vasco. You're also close enough to hit the Cantabrian and Navarran restaurants if you get bored. The food in País Vasco is out of this world and there are a ton of Michelin stars for such a small region. You could easily live in the center of the region and commute to different parts of the region throughout the year as long as you are ok with driving. (Check whether Spain allows Canadians to automatically legalize their licenses though.)

Good luck!


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## rubenguayasamin (Jul 11, 2013)

elenetxu said:


> Take advantage of the Youth Mobility Scheme. You guys are so lucky!
> 
> As for where to go? País. Vasco. You're also close enough to hit the Cantabrian and Navarran restaurants if you get bored. The food in País Vasco is out of this world and there are a ton of Michelin stars for such a small region. You could easily live in the center of the region and commute to different parts of the region throughout the year as long as you are ok with driving. (Check whether Spain allows Canadians to automatically legalize their licenses though.)
> 
> Good luck!


Thank you very much Elenetxu. I was also very drawn to this region because of San Sebastian, which is home to two of my favorite chefs Andoni Aduriz and Juan Marie Arzac at Mugaritz and Arzac respectively. I'm unsure however because what I imagine will happen is that I will have to take asylum, so to speak, in an entry level position at a small unknown restaurant until I have gotten myself situated enough that I could even consider staging at a place like that, so I am looking for a region with lots of options for desperate cooks, and then go to where my dream job is later. Girona is known for El Celler de Can Roca, and previously El Bulli before it closed. I know of some other world renowned places throughout the country, but like I said, I need options at first. 

I will do more research on what is available in Pais Vasco though. Is there a Spanish website that is used frequently amongst spaniards for searching job advertisements and the like. In Canada and the U.S. we use craigslist but I'm not sure if there is an equivalent. I found Segundamano but I'm not sure how much it is used.

As for my licence, I lived in Italy a few years back and was able to get a Shengen paper licence that I used when I drove across Europe. I circumvented Spain without a problem then so I don't see a problem with that.

Thanks again.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

rubenguayasamin said:


> Thank you very much Elenetxu. I was also very drawn to this region because of San Sebastian, which is home to two of my favorite chefs Andoni Aduriz and Juan Marie Arzac at Mugaritz and Arzac respectively. I'm unsure however because what I imagine will happen is that I will have to take asylum, so to speak, in an entry level position at a small unknown restaurant until I have gotten myself situated enough that I could even consider staging at a place like that, so I am looking for a region with lots of options for desperate cooks, and then go to where my dream job is later. Girona is known for El Celler de Can Roca, and previously El Bulli before it closed. I know of some other world renowned places throughout the country, but like I said, I need options at first.
> 
> I will do more research on what is available in Pais Vasco though. Is there a Spanish website that is used frequently amongst spaniards for searching job advertisements and the like. In Canada and the U.S. we use craigslist but I'm not sure if there is an equivalent. I found Segundamano but I'm not sure how much it is used.
> 
> ...


I'm not sure what that is.......

on your Canadian licence you can drive for 6 months here as a resident (which is what you would be) - you also need an International Drivers Permit to go alongside it which you can get from the CAA

after that time you'd have to take a full written & practical driving test


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