10 things you didn't know about chefs

Through new shows streaming all over the world, podcasts about the secrets of a restaurant  and chef influencers, the conversations of a chefs life are becoming one of the most popular topics to speak  about on a everyday basis. There are just a few  unspoken habits that a chef unknowingly falls into and can only fully be understood by another chef or someone who has worked within the hospitality industry.  Here are just a few things that you definitely didn’t know about chefs that can help you understand their secret crazy lives.

1.      Chefs don’t cook at home

To be a chef within the hospitality industry means racing against the clock to produce a perfectly balanced plate of food for the guests to enjoy and hopefully not only enjoy the taste and flavor of the dish but to also feel that the dish can be described as an experience, while having many people speak about this creative, well-balanced plate. With the pressure of cooking everyday, chefs tend to not cook in the very little free time they have. A chefs best friend is the closest fast food outlet or a packet of quick noodles to slurp before shutting their eyes . When a chef starts dating someone they will prepare a few delicious meals to show off a bit of their skills but after a while the roles will reverse and a home cooked meal from your chef partner will only occur on extremely special occasions. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

2.      Chefs enjoy rotting in bed

Depending on the establishment where chefs work, a chef will most probably get two to three days off and on one if not all of those days, chefs tend to rot in bed, consuming different forms of media and partake in doom scrolling , eating a takeout meal and hiding away from the things that drains them the most… people. The standard procedure feels as if it is the only way to avoid being burnt out and truly feels like the best way to re-centre before the next shift where overstimulation is a reoccurring factor. Waking up on an off day knowing that nothing is planned, no problems to solve and staying in pajamas all day is like Christmas for a chef. No wonder people think chefs smell so much!

3.      Tattoos are cool but scars are even cooler

In the eyes of the public, people do tend to notice tattoos on a chef before any scars but working in the industry chefs block out the tattoos and almost always notice the scars first. Scars are cool to chefs because each one carries a different story about the people and places they have worked with and each story told about the scar you start to realize chefs are actually an insane group of people because what do you mean someone put a hot spoon in oil and touched you with it as a joke. Scars not only tell a story but also show experience. A well oiled and well seasoned chef will most definitely carry a few scars that are so bad, one would question if they were a pirate before becoming a chef.

4.      Chefs will probably never text you back

It is obvious at this point that chefs barely have any free time . Constantly receiving messages from suppliers, handovers of prep and MEP lists, updates of the latest dish on the menu and constant messages of bills that need to be paid. Your friend who is a chef will probably never text you back. You would probably need to call them several times to get a response or spam their phone with messages asking when their next off day is. On some occasions a chef will see the message you sent and will try and remember to respond but just won’t have the capacity to speak to anyone. Don’t take it personally, it’s definitely not you but them!

5.      Chefs love working in a restaurant but also can’t wait to leave

Chefs definitely never get paid enough for the problems they have to deal with on a day-to-day bases and with that in mind along with the back pains, tiny cuts on every finger, and click clacking knees, chefs speak more about when they want to retire than actually saving for retirement. It will take a lot for a chef to actually leave the industry but chefs are also big dreamers who are so burnt out that an early retirement always sounds like a great idea. Chefs sometimes try to romanticize the idea of working a basic 9-5 job but are discouraged by all the admin that follows with. Chefs will never admit it but they love the chaos of the kitchen because for some odd reason it makes them feel more normal in the crazy world of hospitality. If anything, the guests might be even more crazy than the chefs themselves.

6.      “never trust a skinny chef” is inaccurate

Chefs will never need to get a gym membership because the kitchen is filled with tasks that are so incredibly labour intensive with it’s very own sauna because a kitchen is probably one of the hottest places to work, with open flames by the grill, stoves on the highest temperatures and the oven running for the whole 16 hour shift. Chefs will hardly ever put on weight because they tend to burn more fat than they consume. When young aspiring chefs first start out working in the kitchen, it is a known fact by experienced chefs that they will lose a bit of weight. The smallest chef in the kitchen might even be the one carrying the 12.5 kg bag of flour. Never let those skinny arms fool you.

7.      Chefs cry in the walk-in fridge

Who knew a giant fridge that holds all the fresh produce a restaurant uses to make all the dishes would be a very grounding and quiet place to shed a few tears after getting yelled at. The walk-in fridge is a place of peace where chefs have a single second to process what they need and maybe take time to think about what just happened and figure out how the problem will be faced. The walk-in fridge is an escape from the realities of what is happening in the restaurant, it is a chefs safe haven, it is a place where chefs can feel like themselves for a short moment before stepping out onto the warzone known as the restaurant.

8.      Any meal is a good meal that chefs don’t cook themselves

Most people are too scared to cook for a chef because they might think that the chef is going to judge their food as if it were supposed to be a perfectly seasoned composed plate  but the reality is a warm plate of food that is tasty and the chef did not cook is better than most things and is greatly appreciated. When cooking for a chef, it can be simple and delicious like A basic creamy pasta, roasted chicken, a plain pizza. The most important aspect of preparing the food is to let the chef sit and enjoy the meal.

9.      Chefs judge how people hold a knife

Although a chef never judges the meal that was cooked for them, one should never let a chef see how they hold a knife because they will have a lot to say. When a chef looks at how a home cook holds their knife, it feels as if you are watching the inevitable future of someone that is going to cut themselves, draw blood and an irritating pain that will last a few days. Avoid doing any form of cutting In front of a chef unless you would like a long lecture on why you shouldn’t hold a knife like that, followed with a knife holding lesson with an added comment of “your knives are blunt” , “a blunt knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife” or “ a blunt knife hurts more than a sharp one”

10.  There is no stronger bond than a chefs bond

Chefs spend a lot of time together and all have the same experiences. Someone yelling at them at work, a rude guest and impossible dietary requirements that need to be catered for. Chefs spend more time with their colleges than they do with their own family and bonding between two chefs is a love story that is written in the stars. What is now so clear to most of us is that chefs will do anything for one another at whatever time of the day, no questions asked. Chefs are exposed to an opportunity to choose their new family which they will love and remember for the rest of their lives even when it comes to a chef packing their knives and stepping into the normal world. A chef will always hold their bonds created during their time in a restaurant.