If you’re on time you’re already late
I arrive at work 20 minutes before a shift. Whether it’s a production kitchen in the suburbs or an event on the 82 floor of a Columbus Circle high-rise, I need to transform my real persona into my work persona. Yes there is quite a bit of overlap there, but the professional in me knows that I need to be ready for anything. When you work with fire and knives, mental preparedness costs nothing and goes a long way.
I change the hiking boots for rubber non-slip ventilated chef shoes, which are just about as utilitarian of a footwear style as they sound. I remove my outer layers and slide the crisp white chef jacket out of its protective plastic sheeting fresh from the linen service. Buttoning up the jacket, first the right side, then the left, takes a precise amount of dexterity that I have become accustomed to. I corral my thick hair into a tight knot that fits through the open space in the back of my hat.
Now that I’m physically dressed, I run through an equipment check. My knife bag with all the essentials is ready to go. Chef’s knives, thermometer, microplane, and peeler are nestled happily in their respective slots. Various pens, markers, and highlighters are easily accessible in the pen pockets on my left jacket sleeve. My clipboard is there, smiling at me, with all of the pertinent paperwork for that day’s shift neatly clipped to the front.
