Park, Manager of Sushi Ga Ga (LONDON, UK)

Park, Manager of Sushi Ga Ga

As she bustled around the restaurant, Park, the Manager of Sushi Ga Ga in London, initially came across as being a bit cold in the practical sort of way. She looked stressed, and gave off the vibe that people of certain authority tend to. But once she sat down and warmed up to our chat, a completely different side to her came through – she became very bubbly and answered everything I asked without reservations.

‘I suppose I’m used to England now, but it does feel very lonely here sometimes,’ she confessed wistfully. Being half Korean and half Chinese, Park spent her childhood in both countries. She decided to move to London after graduating from a university in Shanghai with a degree in Hospitality Management, which was a brave move seeing as she had no friends or family here. ‘I came here because I wanted to become a make up artist and I think London is the place to be for that.’ Passion has to give way for practicalities for the time being, however, and she took up her post as Manager in Sushi Ga Ga five months ago. Her ability to speak English, Chinese and Korean gave her an obvious advantage because she is able to communicate with most of their customers, and her knowledge in both Japanese and Korean cuisines consolidated her claim to the job. So what is it like working at the restaurant? ‘People politics are difficult to deal with sometimes. Not just the relationship I have with my staff, but also that between the staff themselves. I enjoy working here though,’ Park added. ‘I just prefer to separate my personal and business lives. When I’m working, I work, but when I’m off work my colleagues and I will happily go out for meals and things. I also like making friends with our customers as I’m quite an outgoing person. We’ve had some interesting diners, including some intoxicated ones who would come and chat with us till the early hours, and then come back the next day to apologise for keeping us up!’

Park is hoping to go back to Beauty School next year to get an International Make Up Artist Certificate, but ultimately she hopes to open her own restaurant. ‘If I could turn back time I probably wouldn’t have bothered with a university degree, to be honest. The course did not teach me anything about how to deal with the things I’m learning on the job at all. It was,’ she declared, ‘a waste of time, really.’

Finally, any tips for people who are about to move abroad for the first time? ‘I’d say trust no one apart from your parents and yourself. Don’t take anything anyone tells you for granted until you’ve experienced it yourself.’

I thanked her, shut my notebook and asked for a quick picture. ‘NO!’ Park protested. After a bit more persuasion, however, she relented, flashed a smile, and made the ‘V sign’. True Asian to the T.

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