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Edwards, HazelWorkdays. A Day in the Life of...the Chef.ISBN-1-875759-01-893

25p.; For related documents, see CE 072 595-603.Draw Publications, P.O. Box 643, Kew, Victoria 3101,Australia ($6 plus $3.50 postage and handling).Books (010) Guides Classroom Use InstructionalMaterials (For Learner) (051)

MFO1 /PCO1 Plus Postage.Adult Basic Education; *Adult Literacy; Adult ReadingPrograms; *Career Education; Career Exploration;*Cooks; Food Service; Foreign Countries; HighInterest Low Vocabulary Books; *Literacy Education;*Occupational Information; *Quality of Working Life;Reading Instruction

IDENTIFIERS *Australia

ABSTRACTOne of a series of work-based interviews about

occupations in Australia, this booklet presents a personal interviewwith a chef about her job. The following questions are answered: whatthe chef does, why the person chose the field of employment, how theperson found out about the job, what she does and doesn't like aboutit, what kind of training was needed, what the chef does during aworking week, her co-workers, the hours, and how the work contributesto society. Cartoons are used to enliven the material, and a glossaryof 33 words is included. Although designed to be used in literacyclasses with adult new readers, the booklets are also appropriate foruse with elementary and secondary students in career exploration andcareer education. (KC)

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Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be madefrom the original document.

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Hazel Edwards'

Workdays(Mc:Educatoonei Research and Improvement

S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

EDU ATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)

0 hos document has been reproduced asreceived from the Person or organizationoriginating it.

O ?Amor changes have been made to improvereproduction Ouildy.

Points of view ov opulionS stated m Pus docu-ment do not necesseniy represent &haatOERI positron or policy

a day in the life of ...

PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE ANDDISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL

HAS BEEN GRANTED BY

TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCESINFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)

the ChefBEST COPY MAL BLE 1-

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Workdaysa day in the life of ...

the Chef

Name Joan Beredimas

Aged 27

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Workdays

Workdaysa day in the life of...the Chef

Copyright Hazel Edwards 1993

Draw PublicationsP.O. Box 643 Kew Vic 3101

ISBN 1 875759 01 8

Illustrations by Will GoodwinDesign and layout by Draw PublicationsPrinted by D&D Printing Pty LtdPublished and distributed by DrawPublications

4

2

Workdays

WHAT KIND OF WORK DO YOU DO?

In the role of second chef, I am responsible fora la carte, function work and the general dayto day running of the kitchen under the chef.It's a 'hands on' environment.

A chef is in control of the kitchen, doing theordering and overseeing the staff and runningof the kitchen. It's a management position.Most of the executive chefs are male, notbecause there aren't females capable of the jobbut because most have families which they putfirst.

WHAT DOES WORK MEAN TO YOU?

Works means providing a product or a serviceand to me, it's enjoyable. Apart from themoney, I'm rewarded by the feedback, withgood criticism from customers and in thepress.

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WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS JOB?

I've always enjoyed working with food andlook at it from a creative angle. Being a chefwas my first choice. At home I did a lot ofcooking. We went out to restaurants when Iwas very young, and I loved the presentationof food.

Then I enjoyed going to the markets with mymother and experimenting with new foods. Atschool I had a great home economics teacherwho suggested looking at the career in a littlemore depth. There were no chefs in ourfamily, but my father usually did the cooking.

WHAT SKILLS OR TRAINING DID YOUNEED?

At Emily McPherson College, I did a threeyear Applied Science diploma in HomeEconomics but now, I think I should havedone a Food Services course.

5

Workdays

The Home Economics course took me intosocial welfare and things to do with the home,whereas the Food Services course was more'hands on', quantity cooking and hotelmanagement. But I learnt to combine the twobecause I worked in restaurants while I wasstudying.

After that, I worked with Jenny Craig's WeightLoss Centres for two years to delve more intothe nutritional and social side of food. Then Imoved to Adelaide as a partner in an Indianrestaurant. I learnt a new cuisine and adifferent way of preparing and presentingfood. Mainly, it's 'on the job' training.

In school you learn the basics of foodpreparation and the theory of what happensand why it happens. In the kitchen you learnthe short cuts. You compromise with the foodsyou do have and the number of people withwhom you work. So if you're short handed,you can do things a little bit faster and stillachieve the same results.

8 6

Workdays

WHAT WOULD YOU DO DURING AWEEK?

From 7 o'clock in the morning, I do the mis-enplus which is the pre-preparation, until about10 o'clock which is the first break. From thenon, it's getting the little bits tidied up ready forthe a la carte. Small orders for morning teacome in all the time. Then the lunch period.

Early in the week, for the first couple of days,it's slower. Later in the week is busier.Afternoon tea is served. At least half a dozenmeetings are catered for with home madebiscuits and cakes. There's a lot of practicalcooking. Being a retail store, we have to caterfor functions such as boardroom meetings.There might be only ten minutes notice, soeverything must be prepared beforehand.

The General Manager likes to entertain here inthe store, so we have a lot of V.I.P. lunches.There might also be larger cocktail parties ofup to 500 in the store. Recently we've hadabout one a month. A cocktail party mighttake you up to midnight, so it's a long day. Therestaurant is not open at weekends.

9 7

Workdays

WHAT'S THE WORK LIKE?

People assume that chefs cook beautiful mealsand everything always comes out right. Butyou have a lot of failures. In this kitchen if itdoesn't look right, you throw the food outimmediately and start again.

It's a high pressure job with time constraints. Ifsomeone is ill, you take on their job, so youmust be versatile.

Lots of people think that being a chef is onlycooking, but you wash dishes and there's a lotof hard, heavy labour.

Suppliers can let you down at times. Youmight be really good at what you do, but if thefood isn't there, you have to learn tocompromise. They might have sent the wrongthings, deliveries are late, or the quality isn'tthere. You have to cope and produce highquality food.

1 08

Workdays

HOW IMPORTANT ARE YOURCO-WORKERS?

Teamwork is vital. Once we step throughthese doors, we forget about our outsideproblems. Otherwise you lag behind, and youmust be alert at all times. A kitchen is adangerous environment and accidents canhappen. You must get along with everybody ina kitchen. There's no room for contradictionsor jealousy.

This kitchen has very good teamwork. Splitshifts for a chef can mean strain on marriagesand friendships. My husband works eveningsand I work during the day, but we have anunderstanding because we work in the samefield.

A shift might start at 4 p.m. and go through tomidnight and if a spouse doesn't work thosehours, it can create pressures.

119

Workdays

12 10

Workdays

We also need to wind down after work, and sotend to go out at 1 a.m. with the same peopleto another restaurant and do our socialisingthen. Due to working hours in the hospitalitytrade, most or our friends are involved in theindustry.

WHAT DEVELOPMENTS IN YOURWORKPLACE HAVE AFFECTED YOUSO FAR?

Equipment, such as the plate storage stand thatcan carry about 100 plates at a time. Forfunctions when there's a limited space in akitchen, this is very helpful. Chemicals forcleaning. These reduce cleaning time by halfMicrowaves were a great invention. So wereprepared mixes, and blenders. These are thingswhich reduce preparation time.

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HOW WILL CHANGES IN THEFUTURE AFFECT YOUROCCUPATION?

With too much technological involvement,people might lose the basic skills if they don'tkeep up. New foods and new styles ofpresentation are increasing rapidly. Customersare making higher demands about what theywant. Hospitality is the word and that's whatyou're giving. Standards are becoming higherand higher and more demand is placed onthose providing the services.

Blending of cuisine is another development.Now there's Asian cuisine mixing withexisting cuisines. New methods of preparation.Lots more spices and lots more colour.

People want something new in food. Healthconsciousness is another trend. More grilledfood. More variety in oils and fats from thedistributors. Everything must be fresh.

Legally you've got to be careful. People aremore inclined to sue your company these days.So hygiene is very important.

1513

Workdays

DO YOU LIKE TO WORK IN THE DAYOR THE EVENING?

Although I'm happy with my hours, I'd like toget back into the evening work as lunches aredifferent from dinners. People who go out atdifferent times of the day eat differently. A lotmore happens at night.

For the hours that chefs work and the pressure,the award is too general and doesn't takeenough into account. But a really good chefcan negotiate his own salary.

Young apprentices get very little for longhours, when they do as much as others in thekitchen. Wages range from about $180 a weekfor a beginning apprentice up to an executivechef in a five star hotel with perhaps $1,400per week.

16 14

Workdays

WHAT ARE THE GOOD THINGSABOUT YOUR WORK?

Hearing the comments that people make.'Compliments to the chef or 'Table 8 loved themeal' is very satisfying. Or somebody comesin from a V.I.P. luncheon to compliment us.Sometimes the General Manager gives us anunexpected gift in appreciation of long, hardwork. And he says 'I really appreciate yourefforts.' That's very rewarding.

Generally when the team has had a long, hardday and we sit down at the end to talk it allover, that's satisfying. The presentation wasgood. The customers were enjoying the food.There were no problems.

WHAT KIND OF OPPORTUNITIES ARETHERE FOR CHEFS?

Getting into my own business. That is anopportunity. Formerly I was in a partnership,but a close friend wanted to join the restaurantand there wasn't room for three.

17 15

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Workdays

I'd like to go overseas and bring back some ofthe trends in food. To bring in something newto Australia would be a challenge.

IN WHAT WAY DOES YOUR WORKCONTRIBUTE TO SOCIETY?

It keeps people fed and not bored. Eatingdoesn't have to be routine, it can be enjoyable.The more you go out to eat, the more ideasyou collect and apply at home.

Whereas if you ate the same thing day in andday out, you'd be bored. Housewives oranyone who cooks regularly at home enjoygoing out to a restaurant and being waitedupon.

IF YOU COULD START AGAIN WOULDYOU CHOOSE THIS JOB?

Yes. But the line to get there would have beendifferent. An apprenticeship would have givenmore experience working under good chefs.

1917

Workdays

Being an airline hostess was anotherpossibility.

A creative job, perhaps outdoors appeals tome. Maybe a salesperson because workingwith food you are constantly selling ideas.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU OFFERFOR THOSE ENTERING YOUR AREAOF WORK?

Think seriously. There's a lot of timedemanded from you. If you like a social life,split shifts can ruin this. If you're doing anapprenticeship get ready to be broke for quitea few years. If you want to achieve somethingduring your apprenticeship, try to workoverseas. Or work under good chefs in a fivestar hotel. Be versatile.

The work is physically hard, and you need tobe creative. A natural skill is needed.Presentation can't be learnt. It's got to comefrom within you. Whether on the floor or inthe kitchen, regarding it as a means to the endof going overseas to study doesn't work. Youmust give your best.

20 18

Workdays

WHAT KIND OF TRAINING IS THEREFOR APPRENTICES?

A four year apprenticeship during which theycan move around. They can go to school oneday a week or in block releases. There theylearn the theory. Alternatively, they can gothrough T.A.F.E. colleges where the coursesdiffer in emphasis: social welfare, hotelcatering or food service itself

Once the apprenticeship is finished, you canremain in the same restaurant or start as a cookelsewhere. Your salary depends upon yourskills. There are different specialties within thekitchen.

Pastries and sweets, cold larder and the front -a la carte. Much depends upon the size of thekitchen, the number of staff and what the headchef sees you doing. Working in the kitchensyou tend to move around in order to learn newskills and new flair.

2119

Workdays

WHO DO YOU THINK CONTRIBUTESMOST IN OUR SOCIETY?

The small person contributes the most. They'rethe ones that we're catering for at all times andthe ones who make the demands. They're theones who go out to work and put in theiramount of productivity, and the ones forwhom the politicians are running the country.

2220

Workdays

GLOSSARY

a la carteenvironmentexecutive

feedbackhome economicsdelvenutritionalcuisinetheorycompromise

versatile

contradictionsspouse

socialising

hospitality

technological

top class foodsurroundingsperson who has the powerto manageinformation passed ondomestic managementinquire or searchwholesome, nourishingstyle of cookingidea or explanationagreeing by giving way alittleable to do a range ofthingsrefusal, denialhusband or wife ordefacto

mixing with and talkingwith peoplefriendly treatment offriends or strangersmechanical processes ormachinery

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Workdays

GLOSSARY CONTINUED

varietydistributorhygienenegotiateapprenticefive starcomplimentsV.I.P.luncheonGeneral Manager

appreciationopportunityoccupationblock releasesalternativelyemphasisflair

differencesupplier of foodcleanlinessto discuss and bargainone learning a tradethe best class hotelpraisevery important person/smidday mealperson who manages thewhole organisationthinking well of youchance or openingwork or businessmore than one daya choicespecial attentionnew style

24 22

Workdays is based on real people in realjobs. The aim of the series is to providesimply written, interesting and relevantmaterial for new readers.

Author Hazel Edwards' method ofresearching is by interview and visiting theworkplace.

Her previous one hundred books haveincluded adult literacy, scripts, non-fiction,crime and childrens books. Currently she isresearching other workplaces for morebooks in the ' day in a life of ' series.

Gardner : franchisee Policethe Chef Customs OfficerVet Nurse Family Garage OwnerComputer Salesman FruitererOffshore Platform Worker Plumber(current series) (in production)

25

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