[shroomgirl]

Last Monday I worked the line at a friend's restaurant for a set farmer dinner.....67 guests, 3 hodos, heirloom tomato salad (his ricotta, green sauce, evo, salt, garnish), trout roulade with several components, pork loin with green beans potatoes sauce, spice souffle with apple compote.

Perfectionist! Everything was exact, x amount no more no less, everything in the right place.....etc.

So, I hired a couple of his people to work a party. When I asked one to melt butter on the stove he let it burn, ditto pecans.....?...

Each kitchen has it's OP. each dance is slightly different. every chef has different expectations. And every person needs differing amounts of education (training, what have you)

So, what are some of the differences in the kitchens you've worked.....

[marmalady]

Oh, dear, lol; I was blessed with the first kitchen I ever worked in; was hired as a prep cook with zilch experience other than assisting at celeb chef cooking classes. My first day, I was 'promoted' to pantry as I walked in the door. Chef was wonderful, took his time teaching me, made sure I wasn't hassled, and really helped me develop to the point where the sous chef, a CIA grad, was asking me for advice,lol.

Second kitchen; 'gourmet' to go type place; interesting mix of 'chiefs'; mom and dad who had the $$ but were very um, hands on and knew nothing; son who ran the place, was a foodie with no food experience,and a retired woman who really had some chops in very, very classical French cuisine. Learned the most from her; the son was a first class jerk; the things I did one day were completely wrong the next day, etc. Gave me a lecture on not cutting the plastic around the deli meat with my 'good knives'; then watched him as he grabbed MY knife one day to do the same!

On to the third kitchen; couple owned; both CIA grads. Can you say OCD? Onion bin had to be right -there - move it one inch, and you got belittled and screamed at. Tongs were for 'pizza chefs'; we don't use tongs. Towels and wipes - nonexistent. There were 2 potholders in the whole place which had to be put on top of the convection oven when you were done with them.

Fourth place, another 'gourmet to go' place. Was given responsibility and made to feel like I was a part of the team from day one.

Last place was a tiny catering job; she had been mainly doing corporate lunches, etc by herself, and was wanting to take on parties and weddings. Hired me as chef, and I truly had a blast planning menus myself.

I think the 'no tongs' place was the one I still shake my head at,lol!

[fryguy]

for me it's not so much the kitchen but the chef. I've been through 3 here so far.

We went from roasting our own turkeys for sandwich meat and producing stock to buying precooked turkey meat and chicken base. We buy sooooo much more pre-done items now it's really sad and the thing is we have the man power and dollars to do it right. It's just the latest chefs style or lack of. I realize as sous I need to do whatever I can do to make him and the kitchen as a whole sucsessful but it's really tuff after you do thing from scratch to doing thing from sysco.