Becoming A Chef

I just finished reading Becoming A Chef by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page. This book is filled with advice from leading American chefs on how to succeed as a chef, restauranteur, and person. Chefs interviewed include Mario Batali, Alice Waters, Todd English, Emeril Lagasse, Charlie Trotter, and Jaques Torres, among many others. The book presents how becoming a chef can be a different road for everyone. Mario Batali and Charlie Trotter, for example, never went to culinary school but had an intense work ethic, great management skills, and a passion for food. Others, like English and Lagasse, went to culinary school and worked their way through the ranks in the kitchen. All their stories shared common characteristics needed to become an excellent and successful chef. One was restaurant experience. The world’s best chefs worked in many kitchen, some for years and some for a matter of weeks (according to Dornenburg and Page, Trotter worked in 40 different restaurants in 3 years before opening his own). Secondly, the chefs all had an intense passion for food and a creative flare that they insisted you must never let become stagnant (even if it means leaving a high paying job that has deflated your creative abilities). This includes dining out, cooking, and reading about food in your free time. Chef Lydia Shire writes, “I see to many cooks who stop thinking about food when their eight hours are done.”
This book has inspired me to write letters to the chef’s at some of Chicago’s top restaurants when I begin school in the fall, asking if I could work in their kitchens, even for free for a while (this is what’s called “trailing” in the business). Although one of my quarters will be spent interning at a restaurant, I think the extra experience and long hours will train me well for a future as a chef.









55 comments
Your writing really has improved a great deal since you started at Michigan.
You blog will be a big help in making connections with restaurant owners going forward. It demonstrates your creativity and seriousness.
I’m amazed at how much reading you are doing. I would think the passion for food and the work ethic are two components that make for a successful chef or restaurant owner. The other ingredient is magic. That is the one that can’t be taught or learned. It is inherent.
Hi Garrett,
We’re delighted to know that you found our book BECOMING A CHEF inspirational! Many thanks for sharing such kind words on your Web site. We wish you all the best with your pursuits both in and out of the kitchen!
Delicious wishes,
Karen & Andrew
Co-Authors, BECOMING A CHEF, CULINARY ARTISTRY, DINING OUT, CHEF’S NIGHT OUT, THE NEW AMERICAN CHEF, WHAT TO DRINK WITH WHAT YOU EAT and THE FLAVOR BIBLE (forthcoming in Fall 2008)
I’m very honored that you took the time to visit my site and share your good wished Mrs. Page and Mr. Dornenburg. Your book was a joy and an inspiration to read and I look forward to reading your other books. I already have Culinary Artistry waiting on my bookshelf.
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