Out of the kitchen!

[Mikeb19]

Well, it was finally time for me to leave the kitchen. I was a pastry chef, I was making more money than anyone in the restaurant save the executive chef, and could still barely pay my bills working 50+ hour weeks... (gotta love the economy in Calgary)

It's not as if I was a failed cook, I worked in the top restaurants in the city, in some of the top positions. But it still wasn't enough - high stress, low pay, and the economy just added to those pains. Cooks were no longer applying for work because of the lack of money (most going to construction jobs), so that increased our stress, and our wages were reduced to pocket change as rents went from 500 to 1500 dollars...

Now, I'm working a random manual labour job, doing some easy construction type work. Without any training, as the new guy, I'm making more money than I ever did cooking, and only working 9-5. It's also much less stressful, and I actually enjoy my evenings instead of trying to ease the pain with alcohol and drugs... Should I get certified in a trade, the money making potential is definitely there...

Anyhow, thought I'd share a short story about leaving cooking, as I've seen plenty about leaving other jobs to come into cooking.

[K8memphis]

The beauty here is that you can still cook. Y'know like if you left a teaching or a power broker type position, you cannot as readily find eager students or generate big deals in your spare time. But you can still cook and make lots of people happy. I'm glad you got a raise anyway! Best of the best to you.

Ever consider staging in other areas or anything like that?

[Marky Marc]

You'll always be able to use those skills from cooking. No matter what you do in life you're always going to have eat.

[jumanggy]

It's also much less stressful, and I actually enjoy my evenings instead of trying to ease the pain

Well, that's a good reason to leave as any. I wish you luck in your new direction.

[Brian B]

A good decision Mike, could sense the anger in some of your previous posts and am glad you made a positive choice.

When I finished my apprenticeship i went to Austrailia for a year and while waiting for my knives to be sent over landed a job as a demolition labourer,was working 7-4 mon-fri and earning $A1500 a week.Weekends free money, in my pocket and a summer in Syndney,it was perfect.

After 4 months I went to Melbourne knives in hand and got a job in one of the best restaurants in the city,working 9am-close 5 days a week but had found a new appreciation of what I was cooking for and what is important, namely your own happiness.

Good luck mate.