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What do you wear in the kitchen?

post #1 of 90
11/30/09 at 3:01pm
Thread Starter 
Kitchens vary when it comes to dress I know but for the most part each kitchen has its own uniform. I interviewed a guy today (KM was off and I had to do it) and he seemed surprised that all of us wear chef coats and hairnets and hats... so I asked him at his current job what they wear and his reply was... whatever we want. I found that kind of interesting as I have always had to wear some kind of uniform no matter where I was working at the time so I was wondering.. how do you dress in your kitchen and is it an open or closed one?


I've worked in both open and closed kitchens and in three of the kitchens (including the one I am in now) I have always worn whites. The hospital was their uniform issue (kitchen scrubs) and when i was at the cafe it was a red tshirt with the cafe logo on it and black bottoms and shoes. Currently I'm in an open kitchen and we wear chef jackets, black chef pants and caps. Not baseball caps but the fabric ones... sorry I forget the name of them!
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post #2 of 90
11/30/09 at 5:13pm
No code, just look professional--it's pretty much my galley unless I screw up?
I wear checks, white polo shirt, black Danskos, kerchief or baseball cap. Have cooks coats on board but depending on where we are they can be too hot.
My second wears black pants, gray polo shirts, black clogs, kerchiefs.
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post #3 of 90
11/30/09 at 5:51pm
In the past I have mostly worked in open kitchens (pizzerias) and have usually worn whatever T-shirt has been provided to me, sneakers, whatever kind of pants or shorts (these are covered from view by a folded apron) and a baseball cap.

At my current job, I typically wear cargo pants or Dickies, Birkis clogs, a white jacket with a folded apron tied over w/ hanging side towel and a bandanna. It is a closed kitchen but I occasionally walk into the dining room, either to run a salad out to the window or grab something to drink. We don't really have a set 'dress code' so long as you look 'clean'. I suppose it's pretty standard dress for a closed kitchen, I just can't handle chef's pants. ugh.
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post #4 of 90
12/1/09 at 1:32am
I provide great uniforms for my chefs, below is a link to a recent photo I took last week at a local competition.



UNDER PRESSURE AT PEMBROKE
Cooking sous vide at Cambridge's third oldest College
http://thepembrokekitchen.blogspot.com/
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post #5 of 90
12/1/09 at 1:58am
Checks, black clogs, white coat, blue apron.
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post #6 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:01am
Thread Starter 
Very professional looking.. I like it! Our uniforms are similar to yours.. at some point I'll get some pictures on here...
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post #7 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:12am
Thread Starter 
I think as long as a kitchen looks professional that's what matters the most. The way our place is set up is that as soon as they walk in the door they see the kitchen so we have to look clean and professional at all times. We have a good crew and we work well together and it's not uncommon for us to be laughing as we work and customers have commented that the kitchen seems so happy but when the stuff hits the fan we all buckle down and get it done.
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post #8 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:16am
White coat, black pants, black apron, non-slip shoes. And everything that can be ironed, better be ironed! MY credo: Want to act professional? You have to look professional.

825127c1_StaffBBQ-10.jpg

Invention, my dear friends, is ninety-three percent perspiration, six percent electricity, four percent evaporation, and two percent butterscotch ripple

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post #9 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:23am
Thread Starter 
Very nice, Jim!
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post #10 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:27am
At school, Skullcap, Neckerchief, Long Sleeve Double Breasted Jacket, Checks, Black Leather Enclosed Shoes.
At work,(open kitchen) Jacket, checks, any safe enclosed shoes (everyone apart from the sous wears trainers he wears birks)
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post #11 of 90
12/1/09 at 3:29am
how did you get the actual photo to display? Is there a file size limit? I've tried without any luck..
UNDER PRESSURE AT PEMBROKE
Cooking sous vide at Cambridge's third oldest College
http://thepembrokekitchen.blogspot.com/
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post #12 of 90
12/1/09 at 8:04am
I dropped it in your post for you.

Invention, my dear friends, is ninety-three percent perspiration, six percent electricity, four percent evaporation, and two percent butterscotch ripple

My Author Page

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post #13 of 90
12/1/09 at 9:36am
I'm in an open kitchen now. Most of the crew wears jeans, chef's coat and a black apron. I rock the checks just cause it feels like I'm working in PJ bottoms. They're SO comfortable!
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post #14 of 90
12/1/09 at 10:04am
In the lab I wear a chef tunic, no plastic no buttons only snaps(GMP's) and black pants with black shoes(steel toed), when I go out to see customers its a formal coat, slacks and shoes. When I had my own place it was short sleeve coats for all the cooks that I provided, checks and black shoes.
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post #15 of 90
12/1/09 at 2:53pm
Everyday whites and checks... BUT my kitchen is 7 steps from the house and on big event days I've opened the kitchen at 4am in my dressing gown and slippers to get things started... Not a pretty sight, but then nobody's about.Including EHO so what the hey
"If we're not supposed to eat animals, why are they made of meat?" Jo Brand
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post #16 of 90
12/2/09 at 6:12am
Thread Starter 
I can just imagine you in your slippers in the kitchen Bughut! That would be a funny sight but you have to do what you have to do to get the job done.

I love chef pants... they are so comfy! We don't wear the checks but the baggy black pants and I don't get mine from the supplier we use... I find the womens pants aren't the best so i go to a uniform store and get mine. The ones I like are made by premium uniforms and they're called chef's choice. Nice wide waistband, baggy but tapers nicely at the ankle...
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post #17 of 90
12/2/09 at 6:56am
Apparently my poor attempt at humor wasn't appreciated.
:roll:

Oh well.

I wear black Chefwear cargo pants, navy blue chef coat, birkie londons on the feet.
My Sous Chefs wear the same coat, all other cooks wear white chef coats.
All coats have the company logo embroidered above the left breast pocket, though I occasionally wear my own stuff without the logo.
Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
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post #18 of 90
12/3/09 at 10:19am
chef whites & jeans... open.
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post #19 of 90
12/7/09 at 4:59pm
Some of my students. :smoking:

Baruch ben Rueven / Chanaבראד, ילד של ריימונד והאלאן
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post #20 of 90
12/7/09 at 7:14pm
I have a dress code at my current place,chef coat either checks or black pants non slip shoes that are black apron,all black baseball cap or black /white chefs beenie,flop hat or toke.My last kitchen was open with no dress code.Personaly my dress at work i see as functional i like hat or hanker chief on my head preferably hankerchief i find it keeps the sweat out of my eyes and off plates the best a full sleeve chef coat with breast pocket therm and pen holders on the arm a bistro apron cause of the pockets on the front the pen holder an the pocket holds a grill lighter perfectly.six towels hangin around me from my apron (dont know about your kitchen but towels are a hot commodity ,gettin stolen if left lying around what gets my goat its always when i need it the most.)chefs pants with cargo pockets (never shorts i dont care how hot it is ive slopped the contents of a ten gallon stock pot on my legs before hurt bad enough with pants forget on bare skin ouch.)i like pockets lots of pockets,basicaly as close to a walking kitchen as possible.i keep a bio therm,tasting spoons,small peeler recipies guest check book for notes or on the fly prep lists, gloves,pen and sharpy marker at all times just some tools ive become accustomed to having on my person or quick access too.might seem extreme but it just makes my life easier.
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post #21 of 90
12/7/09 at 7:31pm
do ppl wear toques these days? i cant recall the last time i actually seen one of those in action...
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post #22 of 90
12/7/09 at 11:17pm
Black Chef coat, blue jeans, dansko's and black bistro apron, oh, and a "**** hat" you know, the kind of cap that snaps down in the front. Except in the summer, when I wear a straw "pork-pie" hat.
nel maiale, tutto e buono!
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post #23 of 90
1/24/10 at 11:21am
in the kitchen i wear

black le chef trousers
white long sleeve le chef jacket
black le chef cap with logo
black apron
we're as good as our last meal.
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post #24 of 90
1/25/10 at 1:38am
Closed kitchen for me, but I do spend some time out front shmoozing tables and running the occasional plate. The dress code is really relaxed. As long as your wearing a chef coat, you're good to go. I usually wear black jackets, black Dickies, black shoes, and a black skullcap/commis hat. If I know I'm not going to be running all over the club and I'm feeling lazy, I'll go with a short sleeve jacket and blue jeans with a bandana on the head. If I'm working a banquet where I know I'm out front, I'll go with a nice, white, pressed jacket, classic check pants or something stripey and a black waist apron.

There's plans for shorts in the summer time. I'm not too sure how I feel about that....
"An Ye Harm None, Do As Ye Will"
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post #25 of 90
1/25/10 at 12:24pm
white coat easily get dirty...
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post #26 of 90
1/25/10 at 8:15pm
-
I see that as motivation to work neat and tidy. I usually just wear a t-shirt during prep then change into my jacket before service starts and on most days (unless it gets completely hectic) I'm still spotless at the end of the night :)
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post #27 of 90
1/25/10 at 9:31pm
White full sleeve jacket, black or houndstooth trousers, bandana and toque/skullcap(depending on the weather), and Dickies sneakers if I know I'm BOH all night and Danskos if I know I'll be in and out into the dining room(they look nicer).
Dammi un coltello affilato e vi mostrerò l'arte più belle del mondo.
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post #28 of 90
2/11/10 at 8:12am
I, too, find women's chefwear to be subpar. I usually go for plain black hospital scrubs- the drawstring waist is way better than elastic without losing any functionality, the material is just as heavy duty, and they're (slightly) more flattering. ;)
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post #29 of 90
2/11/10 at 9:27am
A white coat attracts marinara like a magnet attracts steel.
I swear I don't have to be in the same room, but I'll find a spot on my coat.
Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
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post #30 of 90
2/11/10 at 10:45am
Wherever I work, I always find myself in a White double-breast (Long Sleeve), a White Bistro apron, Black Pants and Croc's.
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