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AB:
I was lucky to first learn cooking in Berkeley, it being such a
food haven. I cooked more and more at Pacific School of Religion
and a few other theological schools. I stumbled into meeting
Alice Waters and ended up doing childcare and cooking for her
child, both in California and in France. That really cemented my
passion for cooking. When I was 18 I bought a one-way ticket to
Paris and lived there for a year, cooking and eating everything
in sight. Then I came back to go to the Culinary Institute of
America in Hyde Park, NY.
Credit for that move actually goes to my father--I was having too
much fun in Paris and I wasn't sure I wanted to go to the CIA
anymore. Dad really put up a fight and I'll always owe him for
that!
Like many culinary school students, my externship from the CIA
had a profound effect on me. It was at a classic french
restaurant in San Francisco called Amelio's. The chef and owner
was Jacky Roberts. I learned so much in those six months, a lot
of which I still use even though I don't cook animals anymore.
After attending the CIA I cooked in New Orleans (too hot for my
Alaskan blood, but a good experience in a high-volume restaurant
which every cook should do at least once) and then moved back to
Alaska. I had two good learning experiences as Sous Chef, at a
big restaurant on a golf course and a small, expensive place
downtown (yes, Alaska has golf courses and downtowns!). At this
time I had become a vegetarian but was still cooking flesh. I
didn't think I had an option.
Then I got a great job as a private chef for a small family.
Excellent pay and hours, total freedom and creativity with the
menu--except they also ate animals. I worked there for three
years, loving the family and the job but growing more and more
uncomfortable with serving flesh.
Finally I quit and decided that I would only cook vegan, even if
that meant I had to choose a new career (this was an agonizing
decision, believe me). I could no longer justify my role in
encouraging the cruelty of slaughterhouses, the environmental
destruction of the meat industries, and giving my clients heart
attacks.
To my amazement, my career started to explode! I started a
catering and dinner delivery service in Anchorage, which was
growing at leaps and bounds when I moved to California. Here in
gorgeous Sonoma County, I've been honored to start teaching at
the Institute of Educational Therapy, a whole foods cooking
school. I've also found a strong demand for vegan food through
catering and private chef work, and now I'm excited to be in the
process of opening a vegan and organic restaurant in downtown
Cotati (The Inn of the Beginning).
CookingSchools.com: Who were the biggest
inspirations for your career?
AB:
My first chef, at Pacific School of Religion, Michael Henderson.
Alice Waters. MFK Fisher. Jean Donnelly, my mentor at Amelio's
(my extern job).
CookingSchools.com: What do you enjoy most about
being a chef?
AB:
I love how it uses my whole being. It's physically demanding, of
course, but it also takes great mental concentration and stamina
as well as emotional feeling and all your creative juices. And I
love feeding people. People are always happy to receive good
food, and I'm thrilled I can do that for my friends and family.
CookingSchools.com: What was your greatest success
and biggest setback?
AB: My greatest success was a job I'm just leaving, sadly.
I was the private chef for a group home of six foster teenage
girls, all of whom have had a rough time. I cooked their
dinners, vegan only. When I started these girls, and the house
parents, had really unhealthy diets. McDonald's every day, that
sort of thing. I certainly didn't convert everyone to strict
veganism (that was never my goal), but I was very excited to see
their diets start to improve and to see them start to taste and
appreciate real food. Four of the eight are now vegan, one's
vegetarian, and I have a whole new section of my heart mind and
my heart reserved for teenagers.
My biggest setback was fighting against my ethics for so long. I
sometimes wish I could go back in time and start my vegan cooking
earlier.
CookingSchools.com: Do you have a culinary
specialty?
AB:
Desserts. I didn't really ask for this, or think about focusing
on desserts. Many people are skeptical about vegan desserts, so
I would always make a rich chocolate cake or melt-in-your-mouth
apple tart to "show off" how good vegan can be. Vegetarian food
is still fighting a bad rep from the 70's, when it was all brown
rice and raw broccoli. Desserts seem to work best in these
situations, so they've become a specialty. It doesn't hurt that
my partner and I both have a big sweet tooth!
THE ACTUAL WORK
CookingSchools.com: What exactly do chefs do?
AB: A chef is sometimes that last person cooking--ironic,
isn't it? Working on opening the restaurant right now, I'm
cooking a lot to test and perfect the recipes. But then I'll
train staff and get out of the way, because the chef also has to
source all the ingredients for the kitchen (more of a challenge
here since we're going to be organic), keep track of food cost,
make sure the staff is working smoothly and reliably, price out
dishes, work on new dishes, etc.
CookingSchools.com: How much are chefs generally
paid? Are they generally
paid by the hour or by salary?
AB:
A private chef is usually (but not always) paid by the hour. A
restaurant chef is usually paid salary.
CookingSchools.com: Tell us about where you work.
What do you like most,
least?
AB:
IET (The Institute for Educational Therapy) is a brilliant place
to work. I'm enjoying it more each month. At first I was
terrified of teaching, but now I'm hooked. It's wonderful to
work at a place with some ethics. IET strives to create a very
warm and healthy work environment--very different from your
average restaurant kitchen! The Executive Director and the
Administrative Director are both such supportive and positive
people--the best bosses a person could ask for. They really care
about both the chef-instructors and the students. The students
are fantastic--all of our students at IET are here because they
really want to be, so I've never had to deal with a "slacker."
What do I like the least? The two days in the program that we
teach how to cook dead animals!
CookingSchools.com: What are the tools of the trade
you use most?
AB:
My knives. Without a doubt, my knives. I would miss my food
processor and Kitchenaid, and our monstrous old Wolf oven at the
restaurant, but they could be replaced or even not used. My
knives, though, I use every day all through the day. They're
sharp and reliable and long-lasting. A great investment every
new cook needs to make.
You also want to make sure and have a good calculator on hand!
CookingSchools.com: What are your favorite kitchen
gadgets?
AB:
Citrus zester. Strong tongs. The Japanese sesame seed toaster I
just found for $5.
CookingSchools.com: How much of your work is done
outside of the kitchen?
AB:
Quite a bit right now. For IET, I spend hours at home in front
of the computer getting ready for each class. For the
restaurant, there's a lot of computer time, running around and
shopping and searching time, meeting time, etc.
CookingSchools.com: What are some common myths
about chefs?
AB:
We're all fat. A vegan chef isn't going to be overweight, of
course, but even chefs who still eat and cook meat aren't that
likely to be grossly overweight--when you work 10-12 hours on
your feet, moving and sweating, who needs an aerobics class?
Another myth is that we eat rich, 5-course meals all the time and
are hard to please. It's no fun being a chef when your friends
are scared to cook for you. Most chefs I know eat pretty simple
on their days off: salads, soups, pizza. We love to be cooked
for, too!
CAREER / JOB INFORMATION & ADVICE
CookingSchools.com: What are the best ways to find
a job as a chef?
AB: Meet people. Go eat at restaurants and talk to the
chef. Attend a culinary school and stay in contact with the
people you meet there. A resume is great, and you should
definitely put some time into yours. But a piece of paper can't
tell a prospective employer about your people skills or personal
dedication.
CookingSchools.com: How can graduating culinary
arts students gain an
advantage in their job search?
AB:
Most culinary schools have some sort of job placement program.
Use it! Work really hard on your basic skills, speed, and
organization. Make sure you get references mentioning those
things. Volunteer whenever you can: as an intern at your alma
mater, at benefits, anywhere you might meet people and/or get a
good reference.
CookingSchools.com: What are some of the skills that
help all chefs
succeed?
AB:
Organization. More than any sense of creativity or skill with
the sauté pan, if we aren't very organized we won't go far.
Cleanliness.
The ability to stay mentally and physically healthy, to avoid
early burn-out.
A solid base of the basic cooking skills. You can be as artistic
and creative as you want, but if you can't dice, julienne, sauté
and grill then your great ideas will stay ideas.
Good people skills. Too many of us food folks get big heads and
hot tempers (although this, too, may be fading into myth-dom as
our profession gets more respected and professional). If you
foster the reputation of being easy to work with, able to listen
and take advice, reliable and pleasant to be around your career
will benefit. There are a few real jerks that are famous chefs,
but for the most part, the cooks with faulty or missing people
skills get left behind.
CookingSchools.com: How is the job market right now
for culinary
professionals? How do you think it will be in the next
five years? 10
years?
AB: Here in Northern California, the job market for cooks
is going crazy. There's a real shortage of good, experienced
cooks. I think this is going to continue well into the next
decade because American people are really starting to care about
the food they eat.
CookingSchools.com: How important is it to create &
maintain relationships
within the culinary profession? If it is, how do you do
it?
AB:
The culinary world is a small world, and almost everyone moves
around a lot. It is of the utmost importance to maintain
relationships in a positive way. You never know when somebody
from a past job will suddenly pop up in your current place of
employment! Or you may need a reference for something you used
to do, or you may find yourself teaming up with old faces for a
new project or benefit. It's a challenging career for all of us,
and the more support we give each other the better. One of my
last restaurant jobs at a place here in Sonoma County ended in
such a way that the owner is still ordering food for my catering
and even giving advice for the new restaurant, even though we'll
be a competitor. I make sure to do what I can in exchange: A
free ad for his place in our animal rights newsletter, I buy his
pizza at least once a week, and I encourage my students to eat
there. This has become a very important local relationship for
me and I am indebted to him.
Joining culinary guilds and organizations is also very
important. It's a good way to meet people and stay involved.
EDUCATION INFORMATION & ADVICE
CookingSchools.com: What is your degree in?
AB: An A.O.S. degree in the Culinary Arts from CIA in New
York.
CookingSchools.com: What did you like and dislike
about your culinary
education?
AB:
At the time, I disliked the tough discipline and all the rules.
Now I'm very thankful for them because I'm a strong, organized
chef thanks to the CIA. I appreciate the focus on basic skills,
management skills, and seriousness of the CIA. I sometimes wish
I had waited a couple of years, because I missed some of the
great things they're doing now with local produce, organics,
vegetarianism, etc. I would love to find the time to attend some
continuing ed classes at the CIA in Napa Valley.
CookingSchools.com: What factors did you consider
when choosing a school of
culinary arts or culinary department?
AB:
I was determined to go to the CIA. My first chef told me it was
the best cooking school in the world, and I believed him. Now I
tell people that. I knew they focused more on "real" food (i.e.,
making stock from scratch rather than opening a can) than the
other schools. Their Chef-Instructors are incredible: Lots of
Executive Chefs, Certified Master Chefs, cookbook authors, etc.
And of course I wanted to live near New York City!
CookingSchools.com: What factors should all
prospective culinary arts
students consider when choosing their school?
AB:
What is the school known for? What are YOUR goals and focus, and
does the school match them? How well do they help and stay in
touch with their alumni? How experienced are their instructors?
I knew several CIA alumni who convinced me that the CIA was what
I wanted. Call the school(s) your interested in and ask to talk
to an alumni.
CookingSchools.com: Was your culinary education
worth it for you? Why?
AB:
Absolutely. Even though I was paying back those student loans
for years, and I went vegan 4 years after graduating from a
school where I paid to learn about butchering, I still think it
was worth it.
You can learn how to cook without a cooking school. The three
chefs I respect the most--Michael Henderson, Jean Donnelly and
Alice Waters--never went to school. But culinary school will
give you a jump start to your career. It can take 15 years of
experience and learning and condense it into two years.
The discipline and contacts you make are also invaluable.
CookingSchools.com: For those who have the talent
already, should they go
to culinary school and why?
AB:
Some of my students are already accomplished cooks. But now they
will have a certificate to put on their resume and a stronger
base to stand on.
CookingSchools.com: What advice can you give to
prospective students
thinking about an education and career in the culinary
arts?
AB:
Try it! Get a job in a restaurant. Work for a caterer. Visit
the schools you're considering and watch the students in action.
CookingSchools.com: What are the 5 most valuable
courses that aspiring chefs should take?
AB:
Knife skills
Sanitation
Stocks
Basic cooking methods: sauté, braise, roast, etc.
And at least one course on business and money management!
CookingSchools.com: Based on what you hear in the
industry, what do you
think are the 5 most respected and prestigious
culinary/cooking schools in
the world that really make a difference to students
who graduate from these
schools?
AB:
CookingSchools.com: Is there a major difference in
the industry between
graduating from a prestigious culinary school and
graduating from a college
with a culinary program?
AB:
There can be, but not necessarily. I don't think there should be
a difference. A reputation doesn't help you cook, good skills
help you cook. Our local Santa Rosa Junior College has a
culinary program. Nobody outside of our area has heard of the
SRJC, but it's a strong program that graduates good beginning
cooks. If I had an SRJC grad and a CIA grad applying, I wouldn't
automatically hire the CIA grad. I would want to meet them both,
see what their people skills are like, check the cleanliness of
their hands, and watch them chop an onion.
CookingSchools.com: What advice can you give to
prospective culinary arts
students before they begin their education?
AB:
Take it very seriously!! Take notes. Keep everything. You will
use your culinary education for the rest of your life--and don't
think that you'll remember it all, because you won't. I wasn't a
big pastry maker my first few years out of school, but I am now.
Because of that gap, my old notes and books from the CIA were
precious as I started baking more and more.
And remember, everyone you meet at culinary school is a
prospective employer, partner, or investor. Treat the school
like a job.
CookingSchools.com: What should culinary arts
students try to get out of
their school?
AB:
Strong basic skills.
Practice working well with a variety of people, many of whom will
be a challenge!
Good contacts.
INDUSTRY TRENDS
CookingSchools.com: What are some trends that you
see in the field of
culinary arts that might help prospective students?
AB:
My personal crusade: sanitation! I think that more and more of
our customers (private and restaurant) are starting to clue in to
cleanliness. They see more when they wander into our kitchens,
they read more, they're more concerned. E. coli and salmonella
are well-known words now. Hand-washing, bleach and an organized
mise en place are so important. As cooking and chefs become more
interesting to people, we're going to be watched closer. And I
think that's good. Cooking vegan is a little easier, because
we're not dealing with the decomposing flesh foods that carry 90%
of E. coli and salmonella. But it's still a very, very important
issue.
The other trend I see, of course, is a rising demand for
vegetarian, vegan and/or organic foods. Boca burgers and
Toffutti ice cream are in mainstream stores across the country.
There's vegetarian and vegan restaurants opening all over. As
people learn more about the cruelty to animals, the environmental
waste and the fatal effects of meat and junk foods, they're
asking for better alternatives.
I meet an endless stream of people who are in their 50's or 60's
and either just had a heart attack (or stroke, or impotence, or
cancer, or diabetes) or just discovered that they're heading that
way. All of a sudden they want to eat better. A lot of these
folks are at a financial time in their lives where they can
afford to hire a whole foods private cook, but many want to learn
for themselves. It's a huge, and growing, market.
There's also the young folks, who (contrary to popular opinion)
don't want to laze around on the couch for the rest of their
lives. They learn about what happens at a slaughterhouse or the
fecal waste of a factory farm, and boom, they're looking for
alternatives.
What all these people have in common is that they don't know how
to cook better. Most of us were raised with the standard
American diet, so things like tofu, unbleached sugar and millet
are new. That's why I think whole foods cooks and teachers are
going to really take off in the next few years.
CLOSING REMARKS
CookingSchools.com: Is there anything else you can
tell us about yourself,
your career, or the profession that would be
interesting or helpful to
others aspiring to enter and succeed as a chef?
AB:
Make sure your sense of humor is intact. Cooking is hard work.
The best people I have known in the business have had a sense of
humor.
The day you relax is the day your career stops. You will always
be a student, even 40 years after you graduate. The chefs who
are always trying new things, reading, learning, experimenting,
taking continuing ed courses--those are the ones who really
succeed.
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Chef Alex Bury first started cooking and learning about
cooking in the San Francisco Bay area in 1985. She is a 1991
graduate of the 