Chef.... why? its not worth it!

[lynne]

Afra,

I know you love to cook and learn about different foods which has lead you to question whether you would like a career in the food industry. Before you move, pay a hefty fee to another culinary ed program, I have to ask -- have you ever really worked in the industry? Have you spent all week on your feet running forward full tilt? If yes, and you still want to go through with it, then do so and enjoy. If not, I strngly urge you to go out and find a job where you will experience the adrenaline rush of being on the line during the dinner slam, and experience the monotony of peeling a mountain of shrimp.

Regarding financial concerns, there are many ways to be active within the food industry without being in the kitchen, check into those if you are concerened about hours worked to salary.

Most of us work because we love it -- not because we expect to become the next Emeril or Bobby Flay.

But most of all Afra, you have to follow your own heart strings and see where they may lead. You can ask questions and evaluate the responses given (remembering that sometimes this is a place where people vent when they are tired and frustrated). But the ultimate decision has to be yours.

I wish you the best of luck in whichever career path you may follow, I know it's hard to make that kind of commitment without knowing what is really in store. Whether you become a computer programmer with a rabid passion for cooking or if you can flame in the kitchen, dabble with computers and of course, chat with all your online friends here at cheftalk it is up to you -- you can achieve your dream!

[ May 08, 2001: Message edited by: lynne ]

[CWK]

Afra,
It seems as though you have a plan that sounds good on paper.Chef and Computer specialist.Part time at each, keeping a back door open just incase...The problem I see is the classic "You can't serve two masters".I tried a long time ago and got more burn-out than I bargined for.If you wish,Cook,Cook,Cook.Save your money (if you can)and when you are in a position to get a day or two free (remember, you DO have a boyfriend) then look at a class in the information management area.I have noticed in my years that no matter what the economy does we will allways have a job as a cook.This can be a stepping stone to something more rewarding (I don't know what).
If it takes working at a low wage - so be it!
If it takes living in a crappy flat - so what!You only know where your heart want's to go.Good luck and keep on keeping on.
I wish you the best! Bill

[Eeyore]

Re: education and wages. Most agree that the trend toward hiring educated chefs is good for the industry. However I dont see it raising wages much. What happens when the cost of education is so that it is almost impossible for some to cover it when they are going to be making bubkis for years. After all even with the degree you need alot of practical experience.

In most professions you plan on the degree helping you get more pay so you can pay off the school loans.

Re: Cost of living and large vs. small cities--I am so glad to be in B'ham. It is the best kept secret in the US. We have most all the benefits of large cities( B'ham has 1 million people) with few of the downsides. No wonder it is constantly ranked in the top five cities to live in in the US--spending several years at #1.

If anyone is wanting to relocate and spare the expense and hassle of a mega-city but still want plenty of job oportunity and culture and fun, this is the place.

There are also 2 culinary schools here.

However we are lacking one thing, Afra, your boyfriend.

eeyore

[chefjohnpaul]

Hey, I was on the line for almost 18 years and a restaurant chef a good part of that time, working in a major hotel. I suggested having a compensation system for the line like the % system waiters work on. The idea got poo pooed. I was quickly approching burnout.

I took the California State test and went to work in an institutional kitchen for the State government. Right off the bat my probation pay was higher than 10yrs. with the last hotel I was at. Of course the medium is different but my Wustoff still feels great in my hand, and at higher wages,and 1/8 the stress plus normal hours? Hey, great alternative when you start to get older. I could feasibly do this job well into retirement years. I'm glad I did gourmet all those years, but hey, chefs out there, if you are approaching burnout- no need to get completely out of the kitchen, there is always an alternative medium.

[Kimmie]

This is such a great input, chefjeanpaul!

You moved me with your quote:

(...) hey, chefs out there, if you are approaching burnout- no need to get completely out of the kitchen, there is always an alternative medium.

[mofo1]

DeBord,
Sometimes it really isn't about the money. I am a "part-time" chef. I only put in about 30 hours a week cooking. Big deal, right? The thing is, I do this AFTER working in a factory for 40-50 hours a week. I also am a husband and a daddy to two little girls. For my cooking efforts, I make 8.50 an hour. Not too bad for part time, but not great. The thing is, the money is like the icing on the cake. I have complete autonomy in the kitchen. If I ask for something, I get it. I set my own schedule, I help write new menus, I get to work with and teach young people who revere me as some farout kitchen God. (I'm not.) I cook. Not for the money...not for the owner....not for the notoriety....****, not even for the customer. I cook...for me. Just don't ask me to do it on Mother's Day.
p.s Would I cook for free? Of course! I often have and will do so in the future.

[mofo1]

Afra,
I noticed that you are going to get a job cooking soon. I wish you good luck. I hope one of two things happens: 1. You are absolutely horrified at how difficult an 8 hour full- tilt line jam can be and never think about being a chef ever again. OR!!!!! 2. The whole experience is so exhilerating for you that you will allow NOTHING to stand in your way of fulfilling your dreams. Let us know what happens. Chris

[Papa]

Dear Friends:

I have read your postings on this issue and I decided to add another point of view.

When I was growing up in Greece and after Chef Ypatia had died, my family always went to the same restaurant for lunch every Sunday and for dinner every Wednesday. Chef Apostolos, who was also the proprietor, and his staff were like extended family to us. Our table was always waiting for us although we never made a formal reservation. If we did not show up on one of our regular days, they knew that something bad had happened and the Chef took time to sit with us and ask us about what was going on in our lives. When I became a teenager, Apostolo's Restaurant was the place where I took my dates for dinner and the place where my college friends and I will share meals, experiences, poetry and argue over politics, love and life in general. In many ways, this restaurant was the place where wine and good food opened hearts and minds, and big part of who I am today was formed.

When my Mother was sick and visiting his restaurant was not an option for my parents anymore, the kind Chef would cook meals for my parents and have them delivered by a member of his staff at no additional cost.

I remember my first date with my wife in California. It was at Carno's, a restaurant in Newport Beach. We were so taken with our conversation and with each other that we spent four hours with a glass of wine before we finally ordered something to eat. I do not think that they made any money from us that evening. The waiter kept coming back with the same warm smile every forty five minutes or so asking us if we were ready to order only to get a request to come back later. By the time we ordered, it was so late that we only had a salad and a pasta dish each. I left that waiter a bigger tip than the whole bill was worth but most of all I never forgot that wonderful experience. Whenever my wife and I are in Southern California, we always eat at Carno's.

There is no such thing as an easy job. Few jobs or professions will give you the opportunity to influence people lives and give them some of their best lives memories the way yours does. In answering your question, I would like to say that YES it is worth it! You affect people's lives every day and in so many ways that you would not even imagine.

[cape chef]

Papa.....

Leave it to you to express you opinions through passion.

for the reasons you just mentioned are the reasons I am a chef.
thanks for sharing that romantic and touching story
cc

[Devotay]

I once worked for a chef who said "I got into this business for the great money and the great hours. Boy did I get screwed." A grain of truth, I suppose, but I'm in it because I'm passionate about food, and I believe more what Charlie Palmer said: "I'm a chef. It's a simple, direct profession. I put the food on the plate, send it out to the guest, I see the results right away. On a busy Saturday night, when the juices are really flowing, I get to score a touchdown a minute. I know of no other profession that is so rewarding and so convivial."

WoW

Interesting responses,ALL!!

I am a little concerned but not the least bit surprised that the majority of the reponses are negative. The reality is that there are (just as any other profession) many who are just in it for the paycheck and because they don't know how to do anything else. There will always be people who are "Glass is half empty".
Slowly but surely "The Chef" is reaching what I call "Skyblue" collar status in this country. Meaning that we are getting alot closer to White collar status rather than just being white collar servants, but we will never be truely white collar as it is impossible to completely get rid of the apron (and who would want to)

Many years ago I read a book titled "Do what you love, the money will follow". I never believed it but went the route of my true passion anyway and now 13 years later I look back and wouldn't change a single day. Every Chef that I have known, mentored or been mentored by who truly loved his profession is being paid well.

I encourage all young people who feel the call to go after it with reckless abandon...just don't expect the world to fall to their collective knees and begin speaking in strange tounges in an attempt to worship your very being...at least not for a FEW years.
Good luck to all of you and may we all work together to improve the public perception of our profession.

"Part of the secret of a success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside."

~Mark Twain

[ May 20, 2001: Message edited by: DogChef ]

[chefjohnpaul]

I feel to reach the top of any profession there is sacrifice, so after a point one would have to consider, 'what is the cost of where I would like to go?' I have seen executive chefs of large hotels sacrifice their families for their work. All of us have certain obligations in life and there needs to be a balance reached to fulfill all of these.

Let's face it if you have a family to care for(physically, emotionally,and spiritually) and other responsibilites that demand your attention chances are you won't be a Thomas Keller, or a Daniel Boulud, there just is not enough time in the day and the stress level would drop you before you're 50, if you try to cover all these bases.

I think it is important for an individual to do their very best at what they do, be it a chef, mechanic,ect... and not just for the paycheck, look if you don't enjoy what you do then life becomes very monotonous, but also for the love of the work. But, also one needs to work within the structure of their other responsibilities without sacrificing the true needs of others that they are responsible for. If that means adjusting ones career to accomodate other responsibilities that are necessary, be it monetary, more time with family, spiritual pursuits, ect... then a person should make that descision responsibly. There is more to life than just being a chef.

Bon Appetit'

[Pastachef]

I believe that cooking for a living, whether you are a professional chef or a mere cook in love with cooking, is a calling of sorts. I've read that a writer can't 'not write.' It's something they just can't stop doing and comes from the inner core of their being. The same goes for 'cheffin' . It definitely comes with many problems, hard work and tears, but we do what has to be done. By the way - Thanks to all of the new ideas and recipes I've learned from this site I got a second sizeable raise at work. THANKS FRIENDS!

[chefjohnpaul]

I agree Pastachef, there is a natural afinity for visualizing and imagining tastes and textures and being able to convert them into a finished product/work of art. My wife has that ability and she does not cook for a living, it's just a part of her as well as myself, and I do cook for a living and love every minute of my work. But in response to the issues involved, if one can't make ends meet, or the stress is too much, or they are sacrificing things they shouldn't be sacrificing then it is time to re-evaluate. That does not mean one would have to stop cooking even if one chooses to make some changes.

[Pastachef]

You are right, ChefJohnPaul. I'm sure that we all have to stop and re-evaluate and establish priorities in our lives over and over. I once met a young chef who gave up his profession because the hours that his job demanded was destroying his marriage. He went into food service as a purveyor.