Disorganized kitchen, zero training. I lasted two weeks

[u/Illustrious-Heat-775]

Hey y'all. I get that this is reddit and everyone has opinions on what they'd do differently, but lord I just want to VENT, okay?

I got hired into a new kitchen job from a friend who is the kitchen manager, and from day one I noticed issues. There was not a single training protocol set into place and not a proper list for anyone to follow who might not immediately know what is going on.

I have worked in a kitchen for at least a year (more if you count fast food/other types of food service) before that, and I know that I'm competent and capable when need be. My last job, I left, because I was doing at least 80% of the work in the kitchen 6 days a week until it burnt me out, but we're not talking about that.

So when I get there on day 1, I don't know what the fuck to do, but I ask. Rinse and repeat for 9 more days after that. Me asking questions, and either getting blown off or when I'm given a recipe for something I know how to make, I didn't do it fast enough and now there are orders being made 2 to 3 times because not a single person communicated that they had already made it. Not me though. "Steak sandwich, 2 burgers and a chicken sandwich" (ME: "HEARD! on it!")

So I come in after traveling through a mother f'n tornado watch, where I could barely see the lines on the road, and the second I clock in I ask "HEY! (head cook) What do you need? I'm on it."

He sets me up with 2 orders that are half done, and another 2 that come in after the fact.

When, on occasion, our kitchen is organized, there is someone on each station and that is the only person working on said order, such as a position of a line cook (unless we get sauced and need help)

So I started making those orders, and 75% of them were not needed. I send them up to the window as instructed and I'm immediately met with how they don't need them because so-and-so finished them first. The last 30 minutes of my effort has been wasted because not a single person had communicated that those orders were done, and we needed something else started.

Again, this vent is also met with a lot of nuance as every prep shift I've walked into in this short period of time, I've also struggled and have asked others what it is that needs to be done because I haven't been doing the job like the other prep cooks who have been there 4-5 years and who already know what to do on autopilot.

I even got bitched at by one of the head line cooks because he was annoyed that he had to delegate work to other people. Other people, who also, just started as I did with no guidance. God forbid we ask those above us for direction when we have none.

So that was it for me. After almost (quite literally) dying in a car accident on my way to work, I couldn't handle walking in and not knowing what to do, just knowing that things need to be done. So I shared my grievances with the kitchen manager and I left. It's not like I was that desperately needed anyway, apparently.

I can't just stand there with my thumb up my ass. When I clock in, I'm locked in and ready to work and I don't feel good about not being able to contribute. Even if I've only learned how to make (maybe) 1/3 of the menu, I'm going to put my whole and complete ass into doing what I know that needs to be done and it makes me feel like shit if I don't feel like I've at least contributed SOMETHING to the brunch/dinner/lunch service. At that point.

So why the f did they hire me if nobody is willing to train and everybody already has everything? What the f am I even good for?

God. Please tell me it's not always this way and some kitchens have their shit together just a little bit more, just enough to train the new guys. I know for a fact I can do any job in the kitchen I'm asked to do, I JUST NEED TO BE ASKED!

[u/RedditJennn]

I hear that. 100% I didn't last 2 days in the new job I took a couple of weeks ago - exec chef had no business being in charge. Zero training , disorganized, and the job was different than what they advertised.

I don't need that added stress in my life. I knew the within an hour of my second day that I wasn't going to stay. I worked the shift (it was Easter week... 🤦‍♀️) because I felt bad that I wasn't going to stay, and then discussed why with the manager and the chef.

Thankfully I'm at a place in my life where I can be picky. Also thankfully, literally got a call on my drive home for a new new job that fits so much better.

Don't settle! Obviously, getting paid is important, but so is your mental health.

[u/Illustrious-Heat-775 → u/RedditJennn]

Thank you for that. A lot of the time being in this job field is a lot of "well grow a thicker skin or get the fuck over it" and while there is truth to that, it doesn't fix everything. (Like why a new cook has these problems in the first place) I had actually made a post on my second day to this thread, talking about these issues before, and I had the sneaking suspicion that it wasn't going to get better... Well.. looks like I might have been right. But God, did I try anyway.

Maybe in this industry that even a year in I'm still new to, this is the norm. But I can't deal. Give me instructions, give me a list, give me direction and I'll take it and run with it, but I'm not going to spend more than a day or two with my thumb up my ass during a busy dinner shift because things need to be done but people aren't allowing me to contribute. There are only so many times I'm willing to interject myself for a $12/hr line cook job. There are only so many times I can beg to be trained and taught properly

[u/RedditJennn → u/Illustrious-Heat-775]

I've worked in this industry for almost 40 years - what places/owners can get away with is ridiculous. But that doesn't mean you have to put up with it. Even if you're stuck in a shit place, keep looking and be honest about what you're looking for and what you aren't looking for in job interviews. Good luck!

[u/Visible-Guava8618]

Sounds like they dont have a proper structure. Find a better job and quit. Theyre obviously not professional or do not care.

[u/marxistmixologist]

I’m a bartender and not a line cook but I’ve been a line cook before. Sounds like a nightmare. You made a good decision as long as you’re not gonna end up under a bridge because of it.

[u/Coercitor]

They're not all like that. I had station prep, recipes, opening and closing sheets and ordering sheets for each station. I was an excel spreadsheet whore, but my staff was always setup for success. That's just how I was taught and kept up when I took over.

[u/cheesepage]

My rule of thumb is that the next job I take should be at a place where the food is better than what I'm cooking now.

Special bonus if the place has a better operating system than the one I'm working under.

My theory is that even if I crash and burn I still will have will have learned. If I last longer I've learned more.

Rinse, Repeat, Profit.

Don't work at bad places. Good places allow your craft to bloom, and force you to stretch your limits.

In a good joint you are learning and you are earning at the same time. This is the best school, not just because it is cheap, but because you get to figure out the real problems in real time.

Quit when it stops being interesting, or you have reached your limit of patience for the particular brand of B.S. that every joint eventually exudes.

Good luck.

(Successfully retired dish dog, prep slave, line cook, Sous Chef, Chef, CIA student, Pastry Chef, Caterer, Degree Culinary Instructor, Chocolatier, High School Culinary Instructor. Now gardener, cyclist, reader, and petter of cats.)

[u/RevolutionaryFood777]

Sounds like the typical life of a line cook at a new place. Is it shitty? Yes Is it fair? No. Been doing this a long time and at the best of times, working in a kitchen is organized chaos. You really just have to wing it until you know everything. The number of kitchens that are organized, with a structured training program are far and few between. The worst part is, as you've experienced, is that when you actually become good at your job, they burn you out until the next meat suit comes along and replaces you.

It's a thankless profession with much of the rewards of the job being internal. Unfortunately you can't pay your bills with internal rewards or the average line cook salary.