Day 7: Chef's Day Off

Chef had the morning off today turning over the class to the Director of the school who focused the day on developing our resumes and what to expect in a job interviewed. The class listed about 20 different types of career choices for the director to give us the lowdown on the good, the bad and the ugly.

If you are looking for a starting job that pays well, the military is a good place to start. However, you do need to know that you will be hired in the same way that anyone wanting a job in the military is hired by passing all requirements. If hired, you will be committing to serving for three years. The starting pay is very good and you may have the opportunity to work overseas.

We were told that working for a hotel is also a great opportunity. The kitchens in hotel are large and are 24/7 operations. The work is varied so you will surely be required to work in all different areas of the kitchen and for different types of events. You will gain experience making prepared to ordered to mass for large events. It would be nice to work in a hotel in the Bahamas. Blue skies, sunny days, warm breezes...

It was interesting to learn that interviews in the food service industry are very different than say an interview for an office job. Chefs who hire do not have a lot of time to read a two to three page resume nor do they necessarily want to. In this industry, they are more concerned about your cooking and knife skills and if you know how to make stocks and sauces properly. During an interview the Chef may ask you to prepare a dish, or show your knife skills by slicing and dicing a few vegetables. In this profession it's all about how well you know your stuff, how quickly you can get the job done right and how well you interact with your co-workers.

Even though today was about careers, resumes, cover letters and interviews we all still had food on our mind. Especially when one of chefs brought in rolls that had been brush with a light sugar wash and topped with sesame seeds for us to sample. They tasted just like the rolls my uncle made in his cafe in Saskatchewan. My uncle made these rolls once a day and when they were gone you would have to wait until the next morning. My uncle has since passed away but my sister was lucky enough to get the recipe from him and often makes these buns as a treat for family gatherings.

Homework. Same as the day before because I didn't get around to doing much of it. It's hard being a student again...