Odalys — Electronic Profile

My name is Odalys Diego-Carrera, I am Mexican American, born and raised in NYC. Before I decided to pursue a degree in Hospitality Management at City Tech, I was fortunate enough to be able to experience different fields such as law, child-care, and healthcare. While I enjoyed learning and working in the field, I knew it was not something I wanted to do in the long run. I was undecided on what career path to take and felt like time was passing on fast and needed to decide quickly. I thought about all my experiences and enjoyed working in the restaurant industry the most because every day was something new. New people, new experiences and everything always fluctuates. However, I only have ever worked in front of the house and decided I would want to one day be able to manage a restaurant, bar or club but first needed to understand every role. I wanted to go back to college but was not sure, so I decided to complete a 3-month culinary program in the UES. In those months I learned a lot, the role of a dishwasher, prep, line cook and was able to intern in a commercial kitchen where I met diverse number of chefs. After graduating from the culinary program, I knew it was something I wanted to commit to for a long time, I finally felt like I had a sense of what I wanted in life. 

Besides from my experiences I have gained throughout the years, I feel like this career path will be ideal for me due to my organizational skills, discipline and being able to take constructive criticism. In this field, especially as a beginner, one must be open to new ideas. A career goal I have is being able to expand more into commercial kitchens and even open one in the future. I feel like they are overlooked, and it is the future for many small businesses looking to expand their business no matter their specialty. Besides being convenient for many growing businesses, it is also a suitable place to network and elaborate. I look forward to learning more about this field, including how to manage, and business aspect of it.