Yep, best of luck! I love to cook; to be honest, I'd probably rather do that for a living, but I can't afford the "down time" to change careers at this point. I did work fast food for 5 years (not the same as where you're heading, of course) and spent a few months at a full-service restaurant doing what they called "Pantry" duty (salads, appetizers, deserts), so be prepared for a fast-paced environment.

You'll do wonderfully, just concentrate on the food and get 'er done! Let us know what you make.

Quote from: Werekoala;239903Yep, best of luck! I love to cook; to be honest, I'd probably rather do that for a living, but I can't afford the "down time" to change careers at this point. I did work fast food for 5 years (not the same as where you're heading, of course) and spent a few months at a full-service restaurant doing what they called "Pantry" duty (salads, appetizers, deserts), so be prepared for a fast-paced environment.

You'll do wonderfully, just concentrate on the food and get 'er done! Let us know what you make.

Don't do it man!  You don't know whence you go once you start down that path.  

Seriously, you pretty much have to love food almost more than sex to survive in the business, because it sure as hell doesn't pay enough, and the stress and the heat and the heavy drinking do bad things to your sanity.  

I love it of course, but that's because I'm insane.  

Oh, and the interview turned out to be a total cakewalk.  The restaurant was stone dead, only 7 reservations and all of them already in by 6pm, so it was pretty much me standing around, chatting up the other cook, watching him make a few things, tasting a few things.

This was pretty much a "do I want to work there" sort of experience, not a "do they want me to work there" sort of thing.  To which my answer to the chef was, of course, Yes, please, I would love to work there.  The food is great, the people are great, I'm just very impressed and excited by the whole experience.

He's apparently got some scheduling and such to hash out with the upper part of the management, and I'll find out on Thursday if I've got the job.

Well congrabulations! Glad it went well. What'd you guys make?

Quote from: Werekoala;239928Well congrabulations! Glad it went well. What'd you guys make?

Mostly tempura and the "river rock".

They serve a "cook your own" sort of thing, thin sliced beef, and a big hot rock to lay it on.

I think there was also a creme brulee at some point.  

It was really pretty dead, didn't actually make that much.

Quote from: J Arcane;239926Don't do it man!  You don't know whence you go once you start down that path.  

Seriously, you pretty much have to love food almost more than sex to survive in the business, because it sure as hell doesn't pay enough, and the stress and the heat and the heavy drinking do bad things to your sanity.  

I did it for years (Catered my own wedding, in fact) and you are 100% correct. I was well off the sauce by the time I got into it, but most of the guys i worked with partied so hard they gave me a hangover. Nobody parties like people who work in food. The heat would get so bad in the summer (I was in TX) that I'd keep a sink full of ice water, into which I'd dunk the entire upper half of my body every so often.

Congrats. I frickin hate working food service, though that seems to be the only line of work I can break into, due to the fact that I look like a thug.

Well, the sushi place fell through, the guy they thought was leaving decided not to leave after all or some shit.

But I did a stage at The Blacksmith Saturday night that went pretty well, and I should hear about that sometime in the next few days (and if I don't I'll just go in or call).  

I'm especially excited about that one because the Blacksmith is a pretty famous, nationally reknowned restaurant.  It's a very good place to be getting my foot in the door on career-wise, and could easily lead to even bigger and better things later if I work hard and acquit myself well.

Too bad about the last job, that had to suck.

Good luck on the new one though, I mean, I'd eat your food.

Hey, this one didn't pan out, but you've got another lined up...awesome!

Best of luck at the Blacksmith.

Best of luck there, mate. Fingers crossed here.