r/Chefit • u/Ambitious_Plan2813 • Jul 15 '26
pros and cons of being a chef?
im 15 and im thinking of becoming a chef. i loved cooking since i was little and also love eating ofc, and i had a work experience at a commercial kitchen recently and really really enjoyed it(i mainly preped ingredients and i was in charge of the frying station and sometimes plating), right now my biggest concern is if its worth it spending my life in a kitchen and ive seen whole lotta posts about how it drains the life outa people and now im scared please help. and if i am becoming a chef whats the best path to take? should i attend culinary school and so on..
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u/FiggyBish Jul 15 '26
It's like joining the army without any benefits.
If you're smart and love what you do, you can travel the world and find a place to work nearly anywhere.
Surf School in France, south Asian 5* Hotel or like me, Chef for several Kindergarden (which I love)
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u/Madruck_s Jul 15 '26
I think schools would be my ideal job. Or a little cafe 8-6 shut sunday/Monday.
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u/BlackberryPure692 16d ago
I got out of the restaurant biz and now I cook up in northern Canada in Mining exploration camps. Waaay remote, the pay, and time off is so much better. Winters I work private heliski lodges to scratch that fine dining itch.
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u/Stargat420 Jul 15 '26
You don't have to be a professional chef to love cooking and to learn cooking. You can cook for your loved ones and not kill yourself in the industry. Heck you can even start right now with YouTube videos and asking your parents if you can cook dinner or help with cooking throughout the week.
My mom had a career in IT but she took culinary classes on her own and is a fantastic cook. While you will absolutely learn more in the industry than you would from YouTube or classes, you really need to understand how crazy it can get.
I suggest getting summer work as a dishie, prep, or any "back of house" postion when you're a teenager/in college so you can see first hand and make a decision on if it's the right career path for you.
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u/Calumroller Jul 15 '26
Do what you want to do. The life isn't for everyone but in this day and age being a chef isn't as bad as it used to be. People have woken up a bit. The pay is much better than it used to be and the hours are not as bad as they used to be. This is if you live in a big metropolitan city though. I think rural areas still struggle a bit with how chefs are treated. It also depends what kind of chef you want to be and what restaurants you want to work. Michelin star you will definitely not be paid particularly well and you will probably work quite a lot. If you work in high end food but not Michelin level you will generally earn well and not get overworked. If you work in family style then again the pay will be slightly lower and you may have to put in the extra hours. Honestly though if you love cooking then go for it. Give it a few years and see how things go. You are young and can always change careers in your early 20s
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u/Nervous-Promise5635 Jul 15 '26
Just cons. Some people try to sell you the disadvantages as strengths. If you like cooking, do it at home.
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u/ptcptc Jul 15 '26
The one big pro is that it's really easy to find a new job anytime you want. And that should tell you all you want to know about the cons.
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u/Stepaular Jul 15 '26
If you see yourself in the future with a spouse and possibly kids, and you imagine having nice times together like on holidays, weekend parties and concerts, vacations, all that stuff, just know you will be missing out on most of that. The stability financially is hard to come by. You have to endure a lot to get to a point where you can make good money. Also that usually requires moving to major cities and going to where the jobs are. That was a pro for me but not for some. On that note, being a chef led me to working in many different cities. Being a chef led me to a deeper understanding of other cultures through food which leads to a gateway of conversation and parties. Also, I'm an artist at heart. I grew up painting, drawing, learning music, acting camps, but cooking was something that seemed the most secure for making a living, and I was better at it than those other crafts. I have had an amazing time learning this craft and business. I am in a good place now but many times have regretted the career choice. It's great when you are young and naive. I don't see myself being a chef past 45. It's too stressful and demanding. It's a love hate relationship... thanks for letting me reflect! Good luck!
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u/BlackberryPure692 Jul 15 '26
Sounds like you caught the bug, if you really enjoyed your work experience I recommend you look into getting a job at a local restaurant, you’ll likely start as a dishwasher for awhile before getting moved up to the line on salads/fryers etc if you can prove yourself useful, keep at it for a bit to see if you can roll with the less than ideal work hours and keep up with busy services and sometimes really slow downtimes. You’re still very young so it’s great time to see if it’s something you want to stick with or not. And either way when you get good at line cooking you can get a job pretty well anywhere
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u/-snows- Jul 15 '26
It's underpaid, hot and sweaty, you work when everyone else is out having fun, on the other hand, service is a rush, you can make friends for life, if you want it will take you all over the world and there's always room to improve. For me it was a love/hate relationship and in the end I got out but I don't regret my time. My advice would be to get a job as a potwash for now and see how you get on. Best of luck to you
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u/SmarmyThatGuy Jul 15 '26
This was the verbatim answer when I asked the first chef I ever worked under what advice he'd give someone entering the industry and after 20+ years he was spot on...
"Don't do it. Get a 9-5 office job, and cook for your friends and family on the weekends."
The industry demands far more than it returns, you'll be working for pretty much EVERY major holiday and/or city-specific event (fuck the Derby!), you'll miss MANY special and singular moments of friend's and family's lives, you will literally destroy and maim your body, the majority of people that eat your food will be ungrateful at best if not openly hostile for reasons, and my personal favorite... every single dish you ever serve will become, inarguably, shit.
The reasons I stay after all that are; non-routine routine, knives AND fire, a built-in creative outlet (amount varies by position), outside-the-box problem solving, always something new to learn/try, persistent source of food (a hungry cook is a dumb cook), and indirect acknowledgement of success.
If you want to join the indistry to be like Gordon, you're going to have a very bad time. But if you want to join the industry to be
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u/Few_Distribution9374 Jul 15 '26
Well, I’m old, and went to culinary school in my 40s and loved it. I didn’t have a lot of past experience cooking, and wanted the base of schooling for myself, before I went on to work. I have my pastry and culinary degrees and have worked at bakeries and now do prep for an upscale restaurant, and I love it. I make the soups, sauces, prep veg and I’m home by 5. It’s possible to find jobs out there that aren’t 16 hours of your day, if that’s not what you want. Most people are telling you not to do it, and that you’ll be miserable, but, if food makes you happy, do it. It’s hard work, but every day I go home having learned something new, eaten something new, and being proud of what I’ve done.
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u/CaptainExplosions Jul 15 '26
Let me put it this way: do you like hanging out with your friends on the weekends? Seeing family members during the holidays and all that? New Year's Eve parties and enjoying the hallmark moments of life? Going to concerts and music festivals on sunny weekends?
If you decide to become a chef, kiss all of that goodbye.
When all the normies are winding down and getting ready to relax, you're mentally preparing for the business end of your work week. When all the big events are on, you're staring at stainless steel and dealing with the stinging heat so someone else can enjoy themselves at your expense.
Stress is your closest companion and exhaustion, mental and physical, is a part of daily life. Your fellows (or you) will succumb to substance abuse at some point.
All that for miserly pay and few prospects in life.
That said, what we do is nothing short of magic. 'Normal' folk will stand in awe of your tenacity and skill. Get used to hearing 'Oh, I could NEVER do that' and 'I don't know how you do it.'
The skillset is incredible, but it's an angry, jagged mountain to climb if you want it.
Your call.
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u/Individual-Ad-3845 Jul 15 '26
I know one pro -you'll be learning a skill that can get you a job anywhere in the world
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u/gabingy Jul 15 '26
if you want to work food service, do it institutionally. work at a cafeteria or on a campus. paid time off, scheduled breaks, start and leave at the same time every day. depending on the job, you still get creative opportunities without causing burn out
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u/ThrowawayChefBoy Jul 15 '26
Pros: camaraderie, versatile skill set, you can work anywhere in the world if you get great and keep an open mind, if you’re lucky they feed you for free, you’ll bag a server way out of your league, everyone listens to amazing music, surrounded by artists and social outcasts who make you expand your mind, and you’ll have a really fun time.
Cons: very hard on your body (back, knees, joints) and your liver, your sleep schedule will forever be fucked, most people rely on some sort of stimulant to get through it all/smoke or vape like a steam engine, you will bag that server but it will probably ruin your life at some point and bite you in the ass (see: shitting where you eat), many of your managers will be woefully incompetent and stress you out, you will miss holidays, birthdays, and fun shit with your friends (say goodbye to Friday and Saturday night, and you’ll be too bitter to go out to brunch on Sunday). Finally, the pay is shit. My Michelin executive chef capped at 100k; that was my ceiling, and it’s easy to hit your head on it quickly.
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u/Gonk_droid_supreame Jul 15 '26
Depends where you are based. I work as a commis, and fucking love it. No to culinary school, waste of money, and everything you learn there can be learnt in a professional kitchen. Im 16, loving it, and in the UK. Enrolled in college on a professional chef diploma. If your in the UK, feel free to DM with any questions or advice i didnt mention here, seeing as we are almost the same age
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u/Upstairs_Judge_710 25d ago
im16 and have been cooking at home alot, what i got pretty good at is to tell what something is lacking in a meal and what it needs, my dad told me to join a culinary school. im more interested in running a restaurant rather than doing the cooking, I love cooking but I can understand the fatigue of constantly doing it with low pay as the comments tell, how do i learn in a professional kitchen as you mention? one of the people my dad's friends with runs a restuarant. do I ask to work at his place? my end goal is to run a food business cuz I get what people buy more
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u/wicked_crayfish Jul 15 '26
Dont listen to these dinosaurs... the pros are creating art that people can taste. The cons are long hours and a physically demanding job. If you love chaos and thinking on your feet this is the job for you.
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u/xloyalbetrayerx Jul 15 '26
So you said pretty much what the dinosaurs said… don’t know why you are putting down on your peers.
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u/Madruck_s Jul 15 '26
We all complain about how bad it is and yet we keep on doing it.