It started in an unassuming manner – you needed a job, a local restaurant was hiring, and it just seemed to fit the bill. Maybe you began as a dishwasher or counter person in a quick service operation or an assistant to a prep cook, peeling onions and carrots, pushing potatoes through a French fry press, putting stock away, cleaning sinks, or any other non-skilled task you were told to perform. At first the appeal was a paycheck, but then you connected with the people who were hard working, transparent, and sometimes a bit over the top. The environment was fast paced, a little chaotic, always different, and interestingly fun.

Over time you were shown how to add a few skills to your bag of tricks – how to handle a French knife, use a food processor, set-up a workstation, read a recipe, blend ingredients for a salad dressing, clarify butter, etc. You felt good about finishing a shift having learned something new, having checked everything off a prep list, and being trusted by the chef or manager to be on your own without constant supervision.

A few skills grew into something more substantial when you were given a cook’s station on the line. It may have been an assistant to the breakfast cook – setting up plates, reading tickets, griddling pancakes, and one day, attempting to flip your first eggs over easy. You beamed with pride as this transitioned into working solo one day – the station was yours and the tickets off the POS were your challenge and yours alone. Or maybe it was a line cook’s position for the holy grail – the dinner shift. You started as the “fry guy” handling pommes frites, fried fish, calamari, or crispy garnishes like fried leeks, gaufrettes, or matchstick potatoes for dinner plates. You learned how to work as a member of a team where timing and interdependence were critical to success. At the end of the night, the camaraderie was so gratifying and the stories of “winning” were tucked away in your subconscious mind. From “fry guy” you moved through all the stations: sauté, grill, garde manger, and even expeditor on slower nights. Suddenly, or maybe not so suddenly, you were hooked.

Eventually you became identified with what you did for a living and building new skills, speed, and efficiency were the objectives of the day. You began to pay attention to what the chef did and how he or she approached the planning part of the job. You watched as the chef created menus, ordered ingredients and inspected what arrived from vendors. You wondered how the chef knew flavors and how to build them and even how in the world, selling prices were determined. How the restaurant made money. Each day brought new questions and the need to grow and learn more. You started to read some of the chef’s personal books and asked if you could, on occasion borrow one for a few days. You found yourself visiting markets to inspect fresh produce and even traveled to a few farms to see how they grew those vegetables.

Everything was intriguing. How did the baker learn to make those incredible loaves, fold those breakfast pastries with so many layers, or make the best ice cream you had ever tasted. You worked alongside seasoned cooks as they made stocks, soups, and those silky-smooth sauces. You spent time with the chef during fabrication of fresh fish from all over the world, primal cuts of beef, pork and lamb, and watched as the chef made those incredible fresh sausages, piping them into intestinal casings. Most importantly, you started to taste everything and learn that flavor was far more complex than taste. Flavor involved what you smelled, what its texture was, how it looked, and even the sound that it made while being cooked and when it was chewed.

One morning, you looked in a mirror and realized something incredible – you had become a cook, and this was what you were meant to be. You loved the environment of the kitchen, connection with the people, how you had developed important skills, knew what it meant to be responsible and trusted by others, that you were passionate about the ingredients, and hungry to learn more. What once was a job, a means to an end, had become your passion.

You moved from restaurant to restaurant now; not in search of a higher wage (although that was always nice) but to find an environment where you could continue to learn and experience all about the kitchen and the job of chef. From a paycheck to a goal, you wanted to become a chef, to be the person who led a team of equally passionate people and to eventually put your signature on each plate that left the kitchen.

This may not be the path for everyone. Some may find that it begins and ends with a paycheck and a job, but for some the kitchen calls and you approach every day with open eyes and excitement. The kitchen provides space for both individuals. Which one are you?

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Be all that you can be – be a cook

www.harvestamericacues.com – BLOG

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