Cooking

Chef Derrick

As Melissa looked around at Tom's Winter Party, she noticed that Tom, William and Meriko (from her own website) looked elegant in their chef's uniforms, while my "fancy kitchen dress" was a black apron.

So she came up with an idea for a Christmas present. You can guess what it was from the picture above. She consulted with Tom and Meriko for the features she should look for (sleeve pockets for thermometers are key) and the critical components (the little half-apron? Crucial. Where else are you going to hang your side towel?). Of course the coolest part is my name embroidered on the breast.

What do professional chefs think of amateurs who buy chef's outfits? Do they roll their eyes at them, the way I do when someone who only knows HTML tells me they're a programmer? I don't know. I'm probably more passionate about cooking than many of the people who wear the outfit, since—let's face it—most cooks are just doing a job, like 90% of the people in any occupation. But on the other hand, it isn't my job, and wearing the outfit feels a bit like playing dress-up.

Still, I like it. I admit that even I, normally unconcerned with my appearance, noticed how nice all the cheffies looked at the Winter Party (I'll note that they changed into their whites about an hour before the guests showed up).

The charter issue of Gastronomica had an article about the history of the chef's outfit, and now seemed like a good time to refresh my memory about it. Here are some highlights:

the cuffs on my jacket have a split that allows "the cuffs to be turned back, giving the chef a neat and professional appearance that would be lost through rolled-up sleeves"
"the double-breasted [jacket] design offers a quick fix for hiding soiled areas"
"the pants legs are straight, not cuffed or rolled, so that hot liquids can not be trapped at the ankle"

Want your own chef's uniform? Check out chefworks.com. Thanks Melissa and Tom and Meriko!

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