noun
Especially a chef of high-end Japanese cuisine, often working in front of the cutting board. Dialectal (Kantō) usage.
See also: 板場 (いたば)
あの店の板前は、魚をさばくのがとても上手だ。
The chef at that restaurant is very skilled at filleting fish.
彼は有名な料亭で板前として修業した。
He trained as a chef at a famous traditional Japanese restaurant.
noun
chopping board area
Original meaning: the area of a kitchen containing the cutting board. Now rare; the chef sense is dominant.
板前は、もともと調理場のまな板のある場所を指した。
Originally, 板前 referred to the area in a kitchen where the cutting board is located.