[kevinvan]

im a line cook at a fine dining restaurant in san francisco, saving up for the year or so i plan to be a stagiaire in france, except i have no clue where to start as far as getting a stagiaire's position in the big three star temples of france. i know where i want to work, but how do i go about contacting them and what do i say? any former stagiaire's out there have any advice/tips/stories they can share?

[Plongeur]

The restaurant where I work, http://www.agassins.com welcomes stagiaires, but you'd need to be able to speak decent French; and we don't have 3 stars either, so may not be up to your required standard.
What are you looking to learn? Or do you just need to put some 3 stars on your CV?

[kevinvan]

im working on learning french, i take classes at the local college on my spare time. my standards are varied, i want to experience a 3 starred restaurant for its refinement and quality and standards, but i also want to experience what its like to work at a 2- and 1-starred restaurant, even a bistro. i want to learn what its like to cook on every level, from the highest haute cuisine to the simple bistro. im only a year out of culinary school and the restaurant im at now is the first restaurant ive ever cooked for (masa's restaurant, san francisco) so basically, ive got a lot to learn the reason why i want to work in europe is so i can see what its like to cook for the best.

[Plongeur]

If you can get a CV together in French (see an example of what they expect at http://mostxlnt.co.uk/diary/?page_id=7) I'd be happy to pass it on to my chef. Most of the stagiaires we get come from cookery schools all over France, but we've had Germans, Austrians, Italians and Portuguese in the kitchen too. Sometimes they get to play 'chef de partie' in the patisserie for a while, or doing the entrees, or do the garde manger - it depends on how good they are and how busy we are. And they get to do the plonge when I'm on a day off .
Chef speaks some English, but really to make the most of any stage in France you're going to want to speak the best French you possibly can; I've lived here for eight years and have been studying the language for the past 34 years, and I still miss a lot.

[Txacoli]

First: check the spelling.....''aire'' implies ''air.'' Think "Frigidaire."

Second: Most cooks in the US have no clue. When you say you want to experience the 3 star situation........you have no idea. The main differences between a one and three star are in the dining room.....and the politics. If you don't have extreme skills, experience and connections....forget the three star. You don't want to work there anyway.....unless you want to scrape pots or make potato balls for three months.

A one-star stage for an American cook with no connections would be cause for celebration. Really. And you will still probably scrape pots and make potato balls.

And why France? If you are working in an SF kitchen your Spanish must be better than your French....and right now the food in Spain is decades ahead of the food in France. In the past year I have worked with French 3 star chefs and Spanish one-star chefs.....and there was no comparison. The Spanish blow the French out of the water every single time: technique, ingredients, connections, vision, imagination....everything. The same is true in the dining room as a customer. There are 17 Michelin stars within 30 kilometers of San Sebastian in Spain.....cheaper rent, transport, better food and soccer...nicer people.......

If you REALLY want to work in France, you have to understand that they have gruelling work, visa, and immigration rules. During the vendage...the grape harvest.....they have helicopters that fly over Burgundy and fotgraph the vineyards to double check the work rosters for illegals. For picking grapes!

The offer of the previous poster would be one to consider. Screw the stars...

If your ''fine dining'' place of employment has no connections to anywhere in Europe, I would be really worried. Who are these guys? I own a crappy country store and catering kitchen in the mountains and I have connections in Europe......

Failing that......pick up a copy of the Michelin Red Guide for the country of your choice. Just start emailing and calling every rated restaurant in towns you think you can afford to stay in. You will need decent French just to pull this off, but with the French....determination and imperiability to insult are everything.

Failing that, there are stages available here in the US. Events such as The Masters at the Highlands Inn in Carmel give you an opportunity to rub elbows with Europeans and show your stuff......or at least absorb the ambience of a highly competitive kitchen. My crew picked up two European stages working there last year.....though this year's line-up looks pretty grim.

Finally......there are stages available in the US. Some of our restaurants are equal to anything in Europe. Your ''fine dining'' place must have contacts somewhere. For instance....amongst the stagiéres wd-50 in New York and Clio in Boston are highly sought after spots. Chicago is also big. French Laundry is an hour's drive for you......The Europeans consider him and Wylie duFresne the best of the best.....

If you want specific help, send me a private message......

[Mikeb]

BTW, the spelling IS actually "Stagiaire". And no, "aire" at the end of a word in French has absolutely nothing to do with air (although "Air" and "Aire" by themselves are words in French).

[Plongeur]

It's actually just 'stagiaire' - 'stagière' doesn't exist.