What is the difference?
Recently I had a conversation with my lovely wife - What makes someone a "Chef?” Someone like a me, a self-taught man, or a culinary graduate? What does, in fact, make a chef a chef and does it matter?
I bring to your attention a number of people I consider Chefs. (I won't go into everyone I know and I apologize in advance for those that are left out.) First, there is Chef Rustin, classically trained somewhere that I don’t recall and it just so happens that he is the one who took a chance on me. I give him his credit and I still see him from time to time when I travel back to Durango. Then there is his Sous Chef, Scott, who has spent more time in the kitchen than some of my friends have been alive. He is also someone I call a Chef. Scott, like myself, is from the school of culinary hard knocks. He’s the one who saw my potential and seriously showed me how a grill works and how to treat my workspace. Scott also speaks fluent Spanish, which is always more than helpful in a kitchen and a language I am still trying to master. Scott can make you whatever you want at anytime or at least something damn close and just as tasty with what is available. After Scott, there’s Gunter, his right hand man at the time. He was trained in Austria and is a damn good line cook, but his interests are definitely somewhere else, thus not a Chef in my eyes.
There is a kid at work now who is also from a culinary program; he’s talented but lacks finesse. He is young, works fast and is a little too cocky and to be honest, I call him "The Tornado.” The name says it all: Fast, Destructively Messy and Inconsistent. Not a "chef" yet.
There is one more person who I wouldn’t really call a Chef but was really a great Kitchen Manager, Darryl. He gave me my first job (with a little help from my friend Jeremy). Darryl made the most amazing chicken cheese and green chile soup. I swear to you that it would not last a day when it was around, mostly because the whole staff would take a bowl before it was all gone. Darryl also cooked breakfast mostly by himself and would do about a grand every day and his crew was pretty happy too. So, Darryl was a great Kitchen Operations Manager, but again, not a Chef.
Okay, so.... am I a Chef? I am sure some out there would say no and for a lot of the right reasons. I am not classically trained. I do not know all the French cooking terms. Hell, I haven't even cooked a lot of the items from the CIA Cook Book. My management style is still evolving. I am not a screamer that's for sure. However, I do know a lot of traditional terms. I love to cook; so much so that I even cook at home on the one day a week I have off. I am still learning new techniques, one of which is "sous vide" style. I can make hollandaise from scratch in about eight minutes. I know the difference between "pave" and "pate.” I know that Caesar dressing was invented in Mexico not Italy. I can make you corned beef from a brisket if you have a few days. Making pasta, pizza dough and a Demi are all in a days work. Am I a Chef… some days and some days I am just Rachel Ray.
Food for thought. Cheers.
