Professional Cooking?

[Marko]

Bang on Weeks!

Good chefs have BIG egos and tend to be larger than life. The intense, fast paced environment is stressful and things get said in the heat of the moment sometimes. This takes a thick skin!

Have we mentioned the girls yet??!

Marko

 

[Weeks]

Oh GOD... I haven't had the privelidge of working with a female line cook yet, but I've known a few, and they have more balls than most male line cooks I know. (tell me if I'm stepping over the language line here) Most females in the kitchen have chips on their shoulder and will work themselves into the ground to show they're not only as good but BETTER than any guy at their station.

Word of advice: Do NOT sexually harass a female line cook. She has a knife, and is probably more adept at its use than you are.

 

[Marko]

I've had a lot of women work in my kitchens. They're awesome!!

 

[jpmcgrew]

Oh GOD... I haven't had the privelidge of working with a female line cook yet, but I've known a few, and they have more balls than most male line cooks I know. (tell me if I'm stepping over the language line here) Most females in the kitchen have chips on their shoulder and will work themselves into the ground to show they're not only as good but BETTER than any guy at their station.

Word of advice: Do NOT sexually harass a female line cook. She has a knife, and is probably more adept at its use than you are.

You said it. I'm female and have worked as the only female in many all male kitchens you gotta know how to take and give it back and never ever let em see you cry. It can get pretty brutal in the kitchen so you better have all your ducks in a row. When I worked the mesquite grill on the line I would sweat like crazy the pace so fast the adrenaline so high that when the shift was over I would literally become nauseous for about 10-15 minutes as the adrenaline subsided. I believe there are a lot of Type A personalities in the kitchen no room to be mellow and slow there. No room for panic when you are so deep in the weeds it feels like it will never end. Whew!

 

[VeraBlue]

Oh GOD... I haven't had the privelidge of working with a female line cook yet, but I've known a few, and they have more balls than most male line cooks I know. (tell me if I'm stepping over the language line here) Most females in the kitchen have chips on their shoulder and will work themselves into the ground to show they're not only as good but BETTER than any guy at their station.

Word of advice: Do NOT sexually harass a female line cook. She has a knife, and is probably more adept at its use than you are.

All the women that work in my kitchen are better than the men....sans the chips you mentioned. They call out less, they offer to work extra shifts if necessary, they cover more for those who do call out. I don't mean to rain on your parade, but that kind of generalization is unfair.

 

[Weeks]

I did not mean to offend, certainly quite the opposite. It's just that my own experience with women in the kitchen is that they seem to be far more driven than their male compatriots. Women working as professional cooks have nothing but my utmost respect, as it can be, and usually is, a very unforgiving environment and career choice.

 

[VeraBlue]

I did not mean to offend, certainly quite the opposite. It's just that my own experience with women in the kitchen is that they seem to be far more driven than their male compatriots. Women working as professional cooks have nothing but my utmost respect, as it can be, and usually is, a very unforgiving environment and career choice.

Fair enough. It's not chips on their shoulders that drive them (myself included)...it's simply dedication, a great work ethic, and love of the art.

 

[crono760]

This has been some really great advice. I actually took the time today to talk to a few kitchen managers, and I liked what they had to say: if I were to apply, I'd be a prep/lowest level person, experience can be gained, and yeah, it's a hard job to do

Theoretically I have worked in a coffee shop for about 3 years, although I realize that the ability to make 3 cappuccinos in 2 minutes isn't the same as working in a kitchen. I learned the hard way that padding a resume is the wrong way to go: I once told my professor that I "had tons of experience with that kind of math"...so naturally he put me on a project (as a summer student) that proved me wrong

Mike

 

[kitchenelf]

crono - good for you for getting out there and making your presence known! Go for it!