Food jobs: 'There’s no stereotypical chef - there are roles for everyone in this sector'

The Chef Network is aiming to change the narrative on people’s perception of kitchen careers, and in doing so, recruiting more people into the industry, Jonathan deBurca Butler writes

Cook decorating a plate and putting the ultimate touches - focus on foreground

Aspiring chefs or wannabe bakers will soon have the chance to find out if a future in the culinary arts is their cup of tea or simply pie in the sky. Chef Network has enlisted restaurants, bakeries, hotels, and chocolatiers from around Ireland to offer guest slots in kitchens for Open Kitchen Week running from November 6-12. With over 300 guest slots available, those who sign up will be invited to go behind the pass in professional kitchens to find out if they really can stand the heat.

“The network was set up in 2016 to allow chefs across the country to communicate and collaborate,” says Ruth Hegarty of Egg & Chicken Food Consultancy. “We have over 5,000 members now at all different levels and as well as helping with professional development and education, we try to promote the profession as a career. There has been quite a shortage of people in the profession and we want to show people how great it is.” Promoting the industry can often be a challenge, helped little by TV dramas like (the utterly brilliant) The Bear or even something more mundane like the The Great British Bake Off or Masterchef where one of the essential ingredients is pressure.

“We have this ongoing discussion about how the profession is portrayed,” says Ruth. “It can often be quite negative and there are lots of stereotypes. Up to now, Chef Network has been quite industry-facing. We haven’t really tried to communicate what we do and how we do it with the public. At the same time, we weren’t responding to those negative stereotypes and telling the other side of it.”

This came to a head one Saturday morning when a member of the network was getting something of a grilling on the ins and outs of the industry on national radio. The network’s WhatsApp group came to something of a simmer as participants began to express their displeasure with the same old line of questioning around long hours and high pressure.

“I suggested the only way to tackle this was to invite people in to see what we do,” says Ruth. “We have worked so hard to create these great places of work, so let’s show people what we do in the most honest way possible. This has to be about what it is like to work in a kitchen.”

The network jumped at the idea. So far over 50 restaurants across 14 counties have signed up for what Ruth says is essentially a pilot put together through word of mouth.

“We can’t believe how positively it has been received by the sector,” she says. “Almost every chef we have approached about being involved has jumped at the opportunity.”

In most cases, available slots will cater for one person at a time and usually for a specific service, either breakfast, lunch or dinner. Some kitchens are offering longer days and one or two will allow more than one person at a time. Whatever way you cut it, it’s all about seeing what’s cooking in the kitchen and how they run.

So what can people expect?

“You will get to meet the team, get a tour of the kitchen, get to understand the different roles in the kitchen, shadow those people and get to partake in some of the smaller tasks involved,” says Ruth. “We’re encouraging kitchens to give people some hands-on tasks but obviously nothing too high risk. That said, if people have previous experience they can let us know that when they’re applying. This is open to everyone: People who want to get into the industry with no experience, people who maybe left and want to come back, school leavers, transition-year students as long as they’re 16 or anyone who is looking at a career change or is looking at returning to the workforce. It doesn’t matter.”

It's a family affair at Elbow Lane Restaurant in Cork as brothers Harrison and Ronan Sharpe take the top jobs at this iconic Cork eaterie. Pic: Clare Keogh

Participating businesses include some high-profile names such as Elbow Lane Brew and Smokehouse in Cork, The Hungry Donkey Food Truck in Kerry and the Michelin-starred Aniar in Galway. There are also opportunities to work behind the scenes in castles and lodges such as Inchydoney Lodge and Spa and at some of Ireland’s largest companies.

Catering group Gather & Gather Ireland is offering places in the kitchens of four of its largest clients including Airbnb and Sky Ireland.

“This is a fantastic and unique opportunity for people to see inside the kitchen and how good and positive kitchens work daily,” says Gather & Gather Ireland’s Culinary Director Mark Anderson.

“It’s a chance to get behind the pass and see how professional kitchens and chefs operate in a fast-paced exciting environment that will hopefully highlight the positive industry that I love to work in every day.” This is the first year of this brand-new initiative and given how popular the uptake from kitchens has been, it’s no surprise that plans are already in place for an expanded annual ‘Open Kitchen Week’ in 2024 and beyond.

“We want to tell a more positive story about the industry and show people kitchens as workplaces,” says Ruth. “There is huge flexibility in the industry and all sorts of different jobs in kitchens that would suit people from different backgrounds and with different lives. There’s no stereotypical chef. It’s not a personality type. There are roles for everyone in this sector.”

• Registration for Open Kitchen Week can be found at chefnetwork.ie and will open from today, September 12. Places are limited to 300.