So, here in lies the dilemma. For at least 100 years, the way that kitchens have operated has pretty much remained the same. The structure is the same as it was during the days of Escoffier; albeit the names of positions may be different but the chain of command is intact. The way we cook and the principles adhered to remain, for the most part, the same. The uniform we proudly wear remains the same. And, the way that cooks interact (the good, bad, and ugly) remain the same. Those of us who got our sea legs in the kitchen over the last 50 years were conditioned to accept certain parameters of the job and even succumb to, in many cases, some pretty harsh realities.

The dilemma is that things are different today. Young cooks are different and their priorities are different. Cooking is beginning to change at some level. The business model for restaurants is facing many new challenges. Many cooks who walk into a kitchen career are doing so after two or four years in a culinary school. The position of cook and chef is no longer hidden from public view. Things are different now. Should it push us (the ones who worked our way up to positions of chef, manager, educator, owner) to think differently about expectations and the parameters that surround the positions of cook, sous chef, and chef?

At a time when restaurants are opening at an increasing rate, dining out has become a way of life in America, and the position of chef has reached a level of respect that stretches far beyond our own expectations – the level of interest in becoming part of the cooking profession is beginning to wane.

In the first article in this series, I questioned whether or not we (educators) have lost something in the translation of skill to success and if we are failing to set the stage for a student’s future success. Looking at this now from a different perspective, I wonder whether or not we (educators and chefs) are in tune with the need for change in the restaurant business and the needs of a different cadre of students who are entertaining a career in the kitchen? Chefs may have viewed a kitchen career as a “way of life” in the past, but is that true for the next generation of culinarians?

The role models we continue to use: Escoffier, Pointe, Careme, Bocuse, Boulud, Batali, Waters, Adria, Ripert, Bloomfield, Samuelsson, Izard, and Robuchon made their choices and felt the need to invest everything without question. This is what they felt - what we may have felt – about what was needed. So, keeping an open mind – let’s look at the list stated in Part One from the perspective of the student and the young cook just beginning his or her career next to a range.

• Acceptance
  Students and young cooks beginning their careers are passionate about cooking – this is why they chose to invest their time and substantial money in pursuit of a career in the kitchen. On the other hand, they have far less desire to commit to endless hours, unpredictable schedules, socially isolating shift work, and no chance of spending traditional family holidays at home as part of the deal. Sure, they understand that this is not a 9-5/40-hour work week career, but the 70- or 80-hour work week, without any chance at a life outside of the kitchen, is not what they bargained for. No matter how many times educators tell them about the commitment, it doesn’t really sink in until they see their name on an ever-changing kitchen schedule. They are willing to dedicate more time than other professions might, but they are not “all in” like the previous few generations of chefs.

• Buying into the Tradition
  Young cooks do respond to the stories of tradition in the kitchen and the history behind the uniform, process, structure, discipline, and the attitude of subservience. But in the back of their mind, many do not actually buy into it. They want to help to define an industry that is a bit more contemporary. They want to define their own traditions with uniform, appearance, structure, process and discipline and are not at all inclined to accept an attitude of subservience. They still respect the position of chef, but draw the line at “Yes Chef” during the heat of service.

• The Career Becomes Your Identity
  Many of today’s students and young cooks are not so enamored with the title of chef as an extension of who they are as a person. Where other generations might never have dreamed of calling a chef by his or her given name, this generation has a stronger connection to the uniqueness of a person’s individuality.

• Join the Club
  Today’s students certainly enjoy the thought of being part of something that unifies those who wear the uniform. They are, however, less inclined to “pass the test” for acceptance. Furthermore, there is very little interest in paid membership in organizations simply to state that they are members.

• No Pain, No Gain
  The younger generation is willing to pay a price, but there are limits. They are less inclined to agree that they must suffer to get ahead. Students understand there are dues to pay, but in their case they tend to feel that they did much of this through the burden of tuition. They believe their education should jumpstart them past others once they tie on an apron. This is one of the most frustrating realities to both the student who graduates and the chef who hired them.

• Where Would You Rather Be?
  Many of today’s student graduates and young cooks could recite a long list of places that are equally as important as the kitchen to them. Once in the kitchen, they are committed. But to answer this question they would need to think twice about it.

• Anything Worth Doing is Worth Doing at 100 Percent
  My experience is that most students and young cooks get this. They know the connection between great work and business success, great work and a feeling of accomplishment. The question is whether or not they are all willing to invest in the work required to get to great. Personally, I think that grades in school tend to limit a student’s commitment to excellence. If “D” is passing, and “C” is acceptable, then where is the understanding that anything less than excellent is not worth doing?

• Choices
  Students do exhibit a high level of commitment, investment in constant improvement and pursuit of excellence. Sometimes, however, the choices that previous generations made are too limiting to them. As troubling as it is to struggle with finding young talent to work in kitchens, it is even more troubling when they choose to leave the profession because the choices are just too hard to make.

Please understand that I am not taking sides with these issues, but rather putting on the table what is part of today’s work climate. Yes, there still are young cooks and students willing to follow in the footsteps of the role models that previous generations have tried to emulate. But, there seem to be fewer and fewer every year. The restaurant industry is facing a dilemma, one that will take all of us to problem solve.

My food for thought is simple: Are we addressing the issues as they play out? Are we helping students become problem solvers and leaders of an industry that will be different than it is now? Different and great can still coexist – let’s put this on our meeting agendas throughout the school year and let’s develop a solid line of communication with chefs on the front lines. Educators should be facilitators in the process of defining the parameters and methods for effective change.

PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER

Paul Sorgule, MS, AAC, president of Harvest America Ventures, a mobile restaurant incubator based in Saranac Lake, N.Y., is the former vice president of New England Culinary Institute and a former dean at Paul Smith’s College. Contact him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..