100 Differences Between Being A Real Chef And Being One On TV

Secret: It’s not nearly the same as it looks on TV.

Have you ever watched a show like MasterChef and considered becoming a Chef? Looks easy, no?

News flash. It's not.

So where do you start? What steps are involved?

Here are nearly 100 hundred tips that you would need to make it as a chef.

It’s not nearly the same as it looks on TV.

Finding help

1. Funding. As you grow you are going to need twice the amount of money you think you’ll need. The very moment you think you have everything in place someone will tell you the things you don’t have, and it’ll be up to you to make hard decisions on where to find the funds needed. I’ve had to learn to research and ask questions. The most important thing is building relationships. It is hard to ask about money, however; when you are trying to build the company of your dreams, then questions related to obtaining funding should not come as hesitations but rather is this a need or a want, so when you do come across financial resources, you are very clear in your request and why the money is needed.

2. Keep your focus on one product. Most start-ups have an incredible vision and a fantastic idea: ‘It’s going to be phenomenal, and we have a plethora of ideas and features that are going to be in this start-up.’ Focus only on the core product or business, the Most Viable Product, get that up and running! It’s essential to have a big picture of where to go, but then start to take away each feature or service one by one until you’re down to the minimum core product. For me focusing on too many products at one time was overwhelming and it made it difficult to relay my brand message to my audience.

3. The constant loneliness. As a former social worker, I had worked with many clients to understand and get past loneliness, but being on the other side of the table became almost unbearable. I had to learn to acknowledge my feelings, process them, and develop tools to get past them. I would suggest to other startup founders to give some thought about all the jobs you’ve held down in the past. Whether it was a janitor in a school or as a doctor at a large hospital, there was a sense of community since you and your co-workers were all in it together. That’s not the case when you start your own business. It’s just you and you alone. Every decision and responsibility falls totally on your shoulders. And that’s a heavy, difficult and so very lonesome burden to carry. Having a co-founder or business partner can lessen that burden and make the journey not as lonely, but oftentimes you’re not in that position then it is a good idea you should build a safety net. It could be your spouse, family, best friend, or other business owners who are going through the same experience as you. You’re going to need them for advice, emotional support, and the more than often occasional venting session.

4. Finding help is difficult. When you first start your company, everyone is excited and ready to help. Then when it comes time to rely on them or get an introduction, things start to take longer, and you don’t hear back from certain people. It’s easy to give vocal support, but when the rubber meets the road, you will easily find who can and can’t help in business. Hopefully, this won’t discourage you. I learned quickly when people say that will help that it was more lip service than action. So I stopped internalizing the rejections and found ways to farm out services to grow Emily’s Foods.

5. Own your mistakes. I am sure there are many people like me who follow many relevant business people, so you frequently see tweets like ‘5 things to avoid when starting your business’ or similar posts. Sometimes, you probably take the time to read them. But here’s the thing: None of that matters. Every individual’s journey is different. No two things work exactly the same. You will make many mistakes. Take ownership that you made the mistake, learn from it, move on, and work to not repeat it. As someone who takes great joy in providing an accurate and professional service, it was not easy for me to accept mistakes in the beginning. Nevertheless, I quickly learned that mistakes don’t mean failure but growth. At the end of every week, I evaluate my mistakes and develop strategies to correct them and move on. -Chef Emily D. Edwards

I Wish

1. I wish someone would have told me how physically and mentally demanding this career would be. I leave work every day drenched in sweat, reeking of every food imaginable. But what makes me happy is knowing that I get to pass on positive energy through my food to hundreds of strangers every day.

2. I wish someone told me that my likelihood of being rich and famous being a chef is slim to none. I grew up watching Emeril Legassi, Bobby Flay and others, and wanted to be as big of a household name as them. And while it’s technically possible, the chances are probably even slimmer than a high school baller making it to the NBA.

3. I wish someone told me that servers that work 4-hour shifts would make the same or more than me after tips.. I might have rethought my career path! Nah just kidding, I love what I do and I can’t see myself doing anything else.

4. I wish that someone would have told me early on that sometimes you are going to come across guests that no matter what you do they will never be satisfied and you have to accept that; don’t beat yourself up about it.

5. I wish someone would have told me while some might be impressed with my background as a CIA graduate, in the grand scope of my career no one really cares where I went to school. It’s hard work that matters most. -Chef Kyle Brown

Wishful Thinking

1. I wish someone would have told me to not sweat the small stuff. I took everything personally in the beginning of my career and instead of looking at it as feedback, I took it to heart. I remember when I was cooking for a director and his family and he just didn’t eat my food…ever. I was so upset because I thought it was me, but it turned out he just didn’t eat much. I would go home crying because I was so nervous I was going to be fired every day, but it all worked out.

2. I wish someone would have told me that baking would one day be fun. I wasn’t a fan of baking when I first started my career. It was always such a slow process for me, and I enjoyed the fast pace of cooking on the line in the restaurant kitchen. However, as I got older and had kids, it has really become part of my daily life. I get to bake cakes, cookies, pies, and share my grandmother’s recipes with my kids.

3. I wish someone would have told me to experience cooking in other countries sooner. Although I traveled for work as a chef, I didn’t experience working side by side with other chefs in other countries until later in my career. I believe that experience is gold and a beautiful way to see the world through food.

4. I wish someone would have told me to try everything three times. This was something else I didn’t do until I was much further in my career. I had a love hate relationship with liver as a child because my mother would tell us it was steak, and well, it wasn’t. I didn’t like it as a child and so when I was a young chef I would always pass on it. As I became more mature I began trying liver everywhere I went and although it is still not my favorite, I have enjoyed it in wonderful dishes by allowing myself to be open to trying it.

5. I wish someone would have told me that cheese and wine are a bad mix. I am a lover of cheese and wine. It has been my guilty pleasure for years. Perhaps if someone would have told me they don’t pair well together I would have avoided it and not been so obsessed. This probably wouldn’t have happened, but it’s just my wishful thinking. -Chef Crystal Blanchette

Be flexible

This business is hard work. Don’t go into it for glamour. It is about making good food and making people happy. Be flexible.

In Madison Connecticut, due to a hurricane, I had to cater a big wedding from a garage. The kitchen was out of commission. My goal was to make bribe happy and make it memorable for all who attended the special day. This reception represented optimism after the devastating hurricane. The mother of the bride became a friend for life. That is what being a chef is for me. Make good food, and make the customer happy. -Chef François Kwaku-Dongo

Keep It Simple

Get ready for the long haul. Profitability in hospitality does not happen overnight, within six months or within two years. Be ready to be in the game for the long run.

If you don’t love everything about it, don’t do it. Days turn into nights, which turn into weeks and months of constantly working. The phone never stops ringing, texts are constant, and there is always a fire to put out. But seeing the smiles on people’s faces when they walk through your doors, celebrate milestones with you, post photos of enjoyment on social media and become a part of your family make it all worth it.

You CANNOT make everyone happy! You have to stick to what is true to your concept and your vision. Some will love it and some won’t, and that’s okay. Take constructive criticism to perfect your craft, but know that you will never please everyone, and do not beat yourself up over it!

Keep it simple! You don’t need to overdo it with your offerings. It’s so important to have new items, but rotate them strategically. Focus on quality, not quantity. Less is more.

Invest in your staff. Take time to vet, hire and properly train your team. Turnover will kill you. You need people who believe in you as much as you believe in them.- Lin Jerome

Breathe

1. Find your path. Find the right path for you. Know that every path is not the right path and just because someone went to culinary school or went to college does not mean that you must do things that way. Some people just have a knack for things, so they don’t necessarily need to follow the same path as everyone else, meaning culinary school might be necessary for some people but not others.

2. Make sure that you take time to breathe and smell the roses. Look back at how far you have come and remember the things you have accomplished. That will keep you centered and hopefully not frustrated.

3. Do not be afraid to take risks. You are going to fail. Starting a business and being a chef and restaurateur are very scary things. It is an unknown territory for everyone when they start off, so don’t be afraid to take risks.

4. Always believe in yourself. Do not let anyone tell you that you cannot do something or that you need to do something else. You know yourself better than anyone.

5. You need to learn business. If you are going to be a restaurateur or entrepreneur, you need to learn business. You need to learn accounting and understand how taxes work. It will save you a lot of trouble. The worst thing would be to start a business where you have a great idea and you didn’t take time to learn what it means to run a business or what certifications and permits you would need. It can cost you a lot of money and your business in the long run.-Michael & Kwini Reed

Be Creative

1. How difficult it is to acquire funding. Funding is one of those weird but most important factors for an aspiring owner. Banks are not open to start-ups, kitchen spaces and built-out kitchen spaces are night and day, it can be difficult to navigate and I wish I had a better understanding of how to achieve what I needed.

2. Finding and keeping reliable team members. You have to take care of your team and they will take care of you. It seems basic, but much easier said than done and doing it on a tight budget means being very creative at times.

3. Developing time to dedicate to being creative. There have been many moments where I haven’t felt inspired on a culinary level like I constantly did when I was a cook. Becoming a chef meant a completely different shift in responsibilities and it was exhausting to keep up. Now I try to designate time to simply have fun with food, it is liberating to not have to worry about ticket times, or payroll, or the hustle. I still love to just cook and it keeps me grounded.

4. Being social media savvy. Who would have thought that being a great chef in today’s industry equally means being a great photographer and a savvy marketer? Now, I give extensive props to marketing firms or social media professionals because this aspect of the restaurant business is evolving constantly, and especially in the age of COVID, it is crucial to keep future and past guests engaged.

5. Bieng multi-lingual. Boy, do I wish I paid much more attention in Spanish class. My partner is somewhat fluent in Spanish and this a skill that I wish I had. While having a business in a culturally diverse city I can see the massive advantages to being multilingual. -Akino West

Lesson For Us

Probably the biggest thing I wish someone told me when we first started is to build more storage for our ice cream, but I already said that.

I wish someone had encouraged us to buy an inexpensive property outside of the city that we could use to produce ice cream and drive it into the city. This would have allowed for us to have a real estate asset on our books instead of pouring money and forcing appreciation on someone else’s property. The SBA has the 504 loan program that helps with this — small businesses can build equity and preserve their working capital.

I wish someone would have encouraged us to hire an HR consultant sooner. Managing and nurturing employee performance is its own job and when you’re working in the fast-paced environment of the food industry, your life becomes less stressful when you have established systems for employee appreciation, performance review, and onboarding. An HR consultant can help you do that without you having to budget a full-time role for them if you don’t have the capital for it. Ideally, they help you execute your vision of making your company an amazing place to work, which results in your company’s growth.

I really wish someone would have emphasized our need for storage. Can you tell that has been a big lesson for us?

The last thing I wish someone told me when I first started is that working with your life partner isn’t actually so bad. We have become so much closer as a result of this little adventure we’re calling Sugar Hill Creamery. -Petrushka Bazin Larsen

The Grind

1: Before you start off on your own business you have to work and learn from the best in the business.

2: No business opens and is successful from day 1 — the grind takes time.

3: You will go farther faster if your product is superior.

4: The team you build, and your ability to lead and inspire them will make or break you.

5: Don’t be too hard on yourself — everyone running a business is dealing with the same stress. That large business down the block that you’re envious of could be mismanaged and bleeding money every day. A busy business is not necessarily a profitable one, looks can be deceiving. - Chef Jason Fullilove

Cut Your Losses

1. I wish someone had told me that FOOD COST A LOT — Try to find great prices on foods that you’re going to prepare, When I first started out, I was going to the regular grocery store paying retail prices, and really not making a big profit but as I grew I began to purchase in bulk, look for sale items, invested in a freezer, so that when I find these things on sale I could freeze those items. The freezer has become my new friend I wish someone had told me

2. I wish someone had told me that it’s going to always be that one customer who’s going to complain no matter what and you can’t let one person spoil the lot. I had a particular customer who always complained something either “the cornbread was too cold” or “the drink was too hot” I finally realized it was in both of our best interest to no longer continue on — sometimes you have to cut your losses and this turned into a gain because I gained several other customers have letting go of that one.

3. I wish someone told me is to have financial cushion. There’s been a lot of unexpected things that I’ve needed such as

insurance, ongoing supplies, operational cost, you really need to take that into account even when starting off small. I need forks, containers, foil, seasoning, onions, little things that you don’t always think about initially are all important.

4. I wish someone had told me that good help is hard to find, you have to always remember the vision of your business and when someone doesn’t work out you keep an available amount of people that you can call on for assistance.

5. Never be afraid to ask for referrals. I used to be a little shy about asking people to refer me to others because I was just loving the fact the people enjoy my food, but I realized that I had to ask people who were happy with my service to refer me to other people in order for my business to grow and thrive. - Chef Michelle Roberts

Stay Away

1. It can be challenging to work with your own people within the Black community. White people will make you angry. Black people will make you mad.

2. Avoid partnerships at all costs.

3. Never loan your employees more money than you cannot afford to get paid back.

4. Stay away from people who are negative and toxic.

5. Do not listen to someone who gives you advice about the restaurant business if they’ve never been in it. They do not know what they are talking about. - Dan Gasby

Turnover is Inevitable

1. You can’t make everybody happy — Sometimes, no matter what hoops you’ve jumped through to please a customer, some people are just set in their ways.

2. Don’t take your food truck home — In 2017, my food truck was set on fire right in front of my home.

3. You won’t be able to get a business loan — Despite having a credit score of 720, without collateral, no bank would give me a loan.

4. Turnover is inevitable — People will eventually leave but it’s never personal.

5. When you start your own business, your chef friends will not come to work for you — I know so many chefs and cooks that I thought would love to come work for the company — but boy was I wrong. - Chef Dominique Leach

Be Prepared

To be completely honest I entered into this career very well researched and was pretty clear on the challenges and pitfalls from the beginning. Don’t forget that before going to the Culinary Institute of America I had already served in the military as a cook for close to decade. And going back to my upbringing and my family, we were all very hard workers and everyone worked. Growing up in a rural part of North Carolina I did a lot of farm work — tobacco and potatoes — and learned early on the responsibilities of what having a job ment.

So when I knew that I wanted to be a professional chef outside of the military I did my research into the behavior and mechanics of what it would mean to spend my life in the food service business. I can say, pretty unequivocally, that I went into it with my eyes wide open. So trying to list five things is pretty hard…but here are two:

1. I wish someone told me that contractors don’t get things done when they said they would. And when you hire contractors to do work, they may not know what they are doing, but you still have to pay them. When I opened my second location I had some major issues with my contractor. If I had known these things in advance, I would have been an extreme micromanage instead of trusting them to do their job because I thought they were the expert.

2. I wish I had known that my wife was going to change in the process of my career. She was totally on board with me being a chef from the beginning, meaning she was understanding of the long hours and time away from home but that tolerance waned over the years. Don’t get me wrong, we are still together, 30 years strong with two beautiful children. But I wish I would have known how to approach that better and what I could have done to adjust myself and my priorities.

And here are five things that might offer some guidance to anyone looking to make a career in the food service business:

1. Have a strong work ethic, don’t be afraid of hard work and be prepared to be on your feet for long hours.

2. Be prepared to work in a team environment and be patient with people who might not have your skill level — it’s the team not the individual. The military really taught me that.

3. Make sure to have a multitude of different skill sets — you have to understand how to juggle, be disciplined and have an understanding of the different aspects of the business. There are tons of great cooks, but if you want to be a restaurateur you need to be creative about the business, it’s not just about being a great cook. You need to know how to take care of the three most important parts of your business: your customers, your employees and investors.

4. Be prepared for all of the physical and mental sharpness required to succeed. It’s a tough business and you have to take care of yourself. Someone early on told me this and boy am I glad I listened.

5. Don’t get caught up in the trappings of the TV chef. - Chef Ricky Moore

Find Your Niche

1. Pick a specialty- then people know exactly what you are all about.

2. Crawl before you walk- I’m an overachiever and want to do it all and I have poured a lot of money in trying to expand before I even took off the ground. So, this is a hard one for me!

3. Start with your community first! This is also a hard one, especially with social media. I spent too much time trying to reach out to people on the west coast of the US, Canada, and all over the world instead of reaching out to my local peeps first- Big Mistake!

4. Get into the habit of turning off your phone and computer periodically. Another hard one for me! The competition is brutal! Again, it goes back to finding your niche, doing you, and do it well!

5. Embrace the people that come your way and be grateful! I always think that I’m only as good as the people around me! Although, I am a one-woman show- I always have a friend or a peer that lends a hand and I am eternally grateful for them! - Chef Patty Ruiz

Never Stop Learning

1. I wish there was a way to have balanced ambition with the hard realities of business. I was so ambitious when I opened our Culver City location and thought, ‘Ahh I’ve made it!” And no soon as I opened the restaurant, we had an enormous fire that shut us down for months. I was devastated and had to face the reality that business isn’t a cakewalk.

2. I wish I listened to what people said about hard work, sacrifice, long hours, the need for capital, good records, and good credit. I had heard all of that but didn’t have the life experience to quite understand what that meant.

3. I learned the importance of having a strong support system around you. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to lean on family and friends to help me through this journey.

4. That being a business owner truly means your business sometimes comes before everything in your life, including yourself at times. I can’t tell you how many failed vacations or important moments I’ve had to skip out on, but through it all, the pleasure of seeing what you have built is just priceless. 5. Never stop learning and evolving your craft. It’s no one size fits all type of mentality with business. You will have to continue to adapt and introduce new things to your business. - Vincent Williams

Work-Life Balance

As an executive chef of a catering company that caters large events, including weddings, corporate parties, and birthday celebrations, I must rely on a large team to run the company. Initially I was not prepared for the hard work it takes to lead and manage so many people. Everyone depends on you to keep the company moving forward and as a leader you also have to take the time to get to know your team on a personal level to some extent. It’s a lot to balance, however I live by the motto, “If you take care of your people, they’ll take care of your business.”

I wish someone would have told me that it would be difficult to be taken seriously as a woman chef in the culinary industry and that I’d have to work twice as hard as some of my male counterparts to be taken seriously. I’ve had many male cooks and chefs work under me and in most cases, I can sense the moment when the switch is flipped in their minds. They realize quickly that I’m a triple treat. Not only can cook, I can also sell, and run the company.

In growing Low Country Quisine, I knew it would take a large investment of time. However, in the early days I would work 70 plus hours per week regularly. It was really rough on my young family. My husband had to step up and handle a lot of the responsibility in the household that a wife or mother would typically handle. It was not easy to balance everything in the beginning and I don’t think my husband, or I were prepared for the amount of time I spent away from home. Now that I have a great team that has been with me for several years, I’ve created more work-life balance that enables me to spend more time with my family, and that’s a blessing.

Nobody told me it would take me 8+ years to get back to the same salary I had when I left corporate America. There were two things that kept me from throwing in the towel during the beginning stages of my career: Faith and Passion. I knew I had come too far to give up and I believed that the best was yet to come. As hard as it was, I still loved what I did so I kept moving forward. My mother always said, “If you find something that you love doing and find a way to make a living at it, you’ll never “work” a day in your life.” For the most part this is true. The one thing to keep in mind is that on your journey of building your company there will be many things that you’ll have to do that feel like work. However, they are necessary to complete the big picture. The key is to keep growing your company and team to the point where you can delegate the parts that feel too much like work. You still need to have knowledge of how everything works within your company. However, you want to get to the point where you don’t have to physically manage every moving piece.

I also didn’t realize how much my daughter would look up to me as a business owner and chef. If I’m being completely transparent, I don’t ever want to let her down. She is one of my biggest cheerleaders and she’s so proud of me. It’s a very rewarding feeling to know that I’m building this legacy for her and my family. I always knew that I wanted to be a legacy builder for future generations. I’m just pleasantly surprised at how my daughter is so dialed in to the business at only 10 years old. She’s going be moving me out the way sooner rather than later! - Chef Jolie Oree-Bailey

You Get What You Pay

1. You aren’t truly in the restaurant business; you are in the people business. You are only as strong as the people you employ. If you don’t have a strong team around you, you will not succeed. Surround yourself with people who embody your brand and your goals for the future and invest in them.

When we first acquired our Popeyes restaurants in Michigan, and acquired the personnel that came with the business, we didn’t realize how much we were in a deficit for human capital at that time. We quickly realized that the pool of talent we had was attracting more of the same type of talent instead of the talent we knew we needed for business to run smoothly. We were managing the business from five hours way but didn’t have the people in place to help us succeed. We learned really quick that the people you employ are a direct representation of you. I can’t be there shaking hands and welcoming guests at all of my restaurants. I need strong leaders at the foundation, so our message is never mismanaged.

2. You get what you pay for. Sometimes as business owners we cut corners and hire people for relatively low wages, but most of the time the price you are paying is going to be a reflection of the talent you will receive long term. That will be the standard that your brand is held to go forward; so spend a little more to put the right people in the right places and make the people you have in place feel valued. At the onset of our acquisition of our Michigan based Popeye restaurants, we hired a district manager who required less salary than two better qualified candidates. We felt this individual’s experience matched what we needed, and it came at a slightly lower cost to the business. Seemed like a win win, so we went with that candidate. That decision ended up costing us much more money in the long run. If I could do it over again, I’d pay more for one of the other candidates.

3. Do not allow too much creative control for your team when it comes to a menu. Absolutely trust your team and make sure your team is empowered, but I’ve been in positions with a couple of our brands where the team had too much control over the process and not enough oversight and it led us astray from who we were as a brand. In January of 2019, we had a plan to change the menu at Hen Quarter for spring. Our plan was to get it solidified by the end of February and ready for a March launch. The team was in charge of this menu development which led to deadlines getting continually pushed. We ended up with a menu tasting that wasn’t presented until April. Though the food was good, I wasn’t pleased with our direction. We put dishes on the menu that didn’t fit our vision. At the time, I wanted to give the latitude to the employees and staff. I took a leap of faith and bet on them, unfortunately it did more harm than it did good because the dishes were difficult to execute. When we reopened during COVID, we got rid of dishes that didn’t sell, changed some things up to ensure proper execution and consistency, and put more seafood on the menu which all seem to be positive changes for our customers.

4. Be prepared to find as many ways as you can to generate revenue independent of the actual restaurant. When you can drive revenue both inside your restaurant and outside those four walls, you are creating your own capital.

In late 2018, I sat with my creative director in our year-end review, and I told her I wanted to carve out a brand-new division called Jordan Creative Company. With our consulting division, we go in and do food photography, websites, and other marketing consulting. It’s become a whole new revenue stream for us that we can turn into $200,000 a year on the budget. Our margins our low. And it benefits us because not only did we create an in-house marketing department for ourselves, but we can also generate revenue creating marketing resources for other food and restaurant businesses.

5. Understand as much as you can tax law, and depreciation in your business income. When I first got more involved at Jordan Hospitality Group, my grandmother was still running the business which at the time consisted of just one Popeyes restaurant. For tax years 2011, 2012 and 2013, they used a tax accountant to prepare their business taxes. Though we thought these taxes for the businesses had been prepared correctly, in 2014 I went to the bank to get financing for our expansion, and I was laughed right out of there. The financials weren’t matching up with our returns. This was an embarrassing experience for me, and after that, I got to work learning and understanding business tax law. I work closely with our accountant now and due to my deep knowledge on the subject, I can double check the work and there are never any surprises. - Ron Jordan

No Regrets

I wish someone would’ve told me the 5 tough truths of the industry when I started out. They are you won’t get paid, you will be overworked, you will not have holidays, you will have to pay your own wages, and you will make mistakes.

To be honest, maybe I was told all these things, but I didn’t listen! As a kid my mom worked many different jobs, including some in restaurants. I remember her telling me often that I should think twice before going into the culinary industry because you spend all day on your feet; hers always hurt when she came home. She also didn’t like how it kept her from her family. I’m glad I didn’t heed her warnings though; I love what I do and don’t have any regrets. - Jamal Lake