Anyone here ever been a chef?

[SZLiao214]

Currently im a sophmore doing accounting but have had no desire to do it for quite some time. After talking with professors i have gotten the idea that if you do not like what you do, accounting will kill you. I've tried to think of another major but there is nothing that i can think of that interest me. I talked to friends from each major.

Cooking has always been something ive loved to do for people. Doing this for a living is something that has been on my mind for about a year and a half. I could either try my hand at cullinary school which Dallas has a decent one, or i could try to become a sushi chef at family friend's place. He is the owner of Azuma in Houston and has already agreed that if i am serious about this, he will let me start training there during the summer.

Im hoping to gain insight about the business and am currently doing more research about it. No idea what im going to do yet, have only just begun talks with the parents. Thank you.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

I've been a line cook at a steakhouse and can tell you this:
Unless you're VERY high end, there's no money in the food service industry.

 

[DAGTA]

I'm not a chef but I dated one a few years ago. She was a professional chef with a culinary degree from Denmark. Even with the degree and many years of experience, she didn't make much money. I felt she was underpaid but that's the food industry. Unless you make it into a big time restaurant or club, you're not going to be paid well. If you really enjoy it and can see yourself in a kitchen working 40 to 60 hours a week, go for it, but don't expect to make it big time.

 

[SZLiao214]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
I've been a line cook at a steakhouse and can tell you this:
Unless you're VERY high end, there's no money in the food service industry.

The place where i have been offered training is a high end sushi place. I am not sure yet how they do the tips there but i do know the chefs recieve tips. Azuma was top 3 in houston.

 

[Mayfriday0529]

I once Considered going to the CIA (Culinary Institute of America) in Poughkeepsy, NY. Its one the best schools for chefs. I know 4 people that went there. One is a Executive Chef at a country club making over 100g's. Two others work in small restaurants and make out good.

Like i said i considered, but decided not to. After working 5 years in a country club kissing members ass, i decided that i wanted my ass kissed instead of doing that all my life.

 

[Miramonti]

I like the reality show Top Chef on Bravo. The perspectives as well as the 'culture' are interesting imo and it might be insightful. It looks like it can be a very stressful job.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

I'm an accountant and wish I was a chef. Cooking is a lot of fun and I've always had a flair for creating good eats.

You need to put your prioorities in perspective:

Do you want money, wealth, and material objects?

Do you want a job where you willbe in the service industry working nights and weekends?

Accoutning is good because it is primarily a M-F 8-5 job and you are in demand for a well paying job directly out of school.

As a chef, you will struggle and the big money will not come until you own your own restaruant.


Decision was easy for me as I had a family in college, I needed a job with benefits, and weekends/nights off so I could see my family plus money out the gate was impressive with huge payraises every year in the 10+% range.

If your single, your priorites may be different.

 

[Homerboy]

its hard, physcial work and the hours are very long and very many. Pay CAN be good, if you're good.
not a profession for the weak. Just because you like to cook, doens't mean you will like being a chef.

 

[Juno]

i'd love to be chef but i already have a goal to become an industrial designer. maybe i'd go back to school to earn a degree in cooking.

 

[SZLiao214]

Originally posted by: Fmr12B
I'm an accountant and wish I was a chef. Cooking is a lot of fun and I've always had a flair for creating good eats.

You need to put your prioorities in perspective:

Do you want money, wealth, and material objects?

Do you want a job where you willbe in the service industry working nights and weekends?

Accoutning is good because it is primarily a M-F 8-5 job and you are in demand for a well paying job directly out of school.

As a chef, you will struggle and the big money will not come until you own your own restaruant.


Decision was easy for me as I had a family in college, I needed a job with benefits, and weekends/nights off so I could see my family plus money out the gate was impressive with huge payraises every year in the 10+% range.

If your single, your priorites may be different.

The money is a very important aspect to me. If i was gurantted a chef job that payed more then accounting it would not even be a choice. One plane for me was to be an accountant for 10-15 years then go become a chef. Im not a big spender on anything so i would hope to save quite a bit by then.

I am 20 now, so do not desire a family yet. Cousin of mine didnt have their first kid till he was 30, that is kinda the thing i would like to do first. (more stability before kid)

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: DAGTA
I'm not a chef but I dated one a few years ago. She was a professional chef with a culinary degree from Denmark. Even with the degree and many years of experience, she didn't make much money. I felt she was underpaid but that's the food industry. Unless you make it into a big time restaurant or club, you're not going to be paid well. If you really enjoy it and can see yourself in a kitchen working 40 to 60 hours a week, go for it, but don't expect to make it big time.

Yea!!! At a lot of places the waiters make more then even the TOP chef.

Yea there will be the big people, but most chefs are not there and never will be.

Restraunt Mgt? Do a finace degree and open a place, etc...???

 

[Koing]

Parents own a Chinese takeaway and we make an okay living. Dad gets praise from everyone in his family and parents for his cooking skills. He was a panel beater and worked in a garage for 12yrs before!

Koing

 

[Jawo]

SZLiao214,

Don't know if your school has a hospitality/tourism management program, but I would check that out. It kind of blends the business aspects into the food aspects. I have a few friends in the program at my school, and they seem to enjoy it. I am a business major myself, and I like to cook (and watch the Food Network)....but would never want to cook full time. Accounting is probably one of the toughest busniess majors, I could not do it even as a fellow business major. Finance could be a helpful degree as well, for you could run a future business.

 

[everman]

If anything, finish your finance degree or possibly move over to finance, then go to culinary school. This will give you a good business background if you're good enough to open a place of your own, and provide something to fall back on.
The resaurant industry is very tough, what area are you interested in?

 

[SZLiao214]

Originally posted by: everman
If anything, finish your finance degree or possibly move over to finance, then go to culinary school. This will give you a good business background if you're good enough to open a place of your own, and provide something to fall back on.
The resaurant industry is very tough, what area are you interested in?

That is what i am thinking of doing. My parents also own a restraunt but its more of a fast food place in the ghetto. I am now considering of doing the management stuff over becoming a chef.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Iron Chef Canada - my Baby Seal Club sandwich is internationally famous

- M4H

 

[rx8]

i've been cooking for about 4 years now. to give you some perspective, alot of people love to cook, but to do it as a living...you have to have a passion for it beyond anything you can imagine.

i could tell you everything bad about getting into this career. but if don't know these thing already going into it, then i don't think you thought about it enough. there's a lot of glamour being shown by the media, but the reality of it day to day is far from what you see and hear. only way to know is to be in a real kitchen and see it for yourself.

my advice would be to go check out your family's friends place. ask to "trail" or "stage" for a day and you'll get to see what it's like. if you think it's something you can do, then work there during the summer. you can consider your options after the summer.

basically before you even serisouly think about spending money for cooking school, make sure you actually see a real kitchen for at least a full day. i have seen far too many people coming straight out of cooking school and i know they just wasted all that time and money. (out of my 12 cooking classmates, i think there are only 3 or 4 of us still cooking.)

not to sound so negative but i do want people who consider coming into this industry to be fully aware. i will say though, that if this is the right career for you, it's quite an amazing experience!