by chef paul cotter (part 1)
Reality of chef life
Being a chef is not for the faint hearted or the easily offended. Being a chef is stressful, physically and mentally draining. We will work on average a 50 to 60 hour week on our feet all day using hot pans, ovens, grills, sharp knives (in most cases) and fire. So it is inevitable that we get cut and burned on a semi regular basis. Personally I constantly get little Knicks that you don’t notice until you go to season with salt and you get this stinging sensation in the top of your finger it didn’t hurt it’s just annoying at this stage for me.
Many of us in relationships have seen a fair share fail and those few lucky enough to find a woman/man that will stick through the absentee partner, being asked where is s/he and responding oh they are working.
However hard the kitchen life is, it is lessened when you have a good team to stand alongside for 50-60hours a week and a strong understanding partner, who reap rewards of really nice dinners on our time off. I suppose it’s the perks to being in a relationship with
a chef though we may not cook all the time, when we do cook you know it’s gonna taste good.
The important word here is team both in the kitchen and out of it, as the chef’s reading this will know it’s run like an army brigade in the respect that the head chef’s way is the only way for the establishment of a consistent standard of food that leaves the kitchen. Everything goes through the head chef you run out of something you suggest an alternative DO NOT change anything without letting them know 1st as they may have another item to use or already have the backup ready
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