I realize the original poster is long gone, but I did think of one more
observation that might help: The people who fare the best in
professional kitchens tend to be athletic. They're the ones with the
coordination and athletic ability to do several things at once. They
move fast and gracefully.


I once worked with a man who played football. (I'm not sure in exactly
what capacity, but it was pretty high up there. I'm tempted to say he
played for a pro team but can't say that definitely. Maybe he was
trying for pro sports-- something like that.) The man was great on the
line. It was the way he was so light on his feet. You knew he had
practice using his body. He was graceful. He knew what he was doing
with the way he could run down the line, operate several saute pans at
once; even the way he could flip the food in a pan over with a flip of
his wrist. It wasn't for show; he could just do it. I'm making him
sound effeminate when I say he was graceful, but it wasn't that; he just
knew what he was doing.


Cooks need endurance skills too. There's long hours and heat. There's
also a way of going from slow and steady to full speed in nothing flat,
then being able to go from full speed to full relaxation. I could never
switch gears fast enough.


Someone who is used to working long hours in a business capacity might
realize dreams to work in food service in the management end of it,
crunching numbers, ordering food, costing out meals, planning catered
parties, even designing menus. A hotel and restaurant school that
taught more of the business end would be better than the one that has
every student in the kitchen. A class or two in the kitchen is a good
idea for someone hoping for this sort of career so they have some idea
of what to expect from the management end.


--Lia