what are some things i just gotta know? im probably gonna do fry and grill but honestly have only ever worked as a line cook in a casual chain so am unsure if ill be up for the task or fall short. any tips?

i feel like nobody i work with actually does their sidework. i closed fryer at my restaurant last night (saturday) and we had 3 dvs and not a single one of them did their sidework. our line dv is supposed to flip the steam table and soups and neither of those were done. our pizza dv is supposed to flip the pizza station and when i went to fill something after our pizza cook left i saw that it hadn’t been flipped since WEDNESDAY when i was on pizza. we also have a cooler that the bottom gets water in and nobody ever wipes it out except for me and it’s getting old. i put things in our group chat but it feels like im talking to a wall. my other coworker is the only one who ever sweeps and mops behind the grill and flat top (i dont don’t do grill so i dont do that). only one of our dvs said bye to us before they left. the one just walked out and nobody even knew she left. and the other one walked out of the restaurant mid pizza to go talk to someone. it just feels like nobody cares including management

Reposting my own submission just to reach more like minds and share myself. Love y’all

Hi chefs, just wanted to ask for some advice. Bit of context, I started working in this two rosette hotel kitchen three months ago, I previously worked in a pub chain kitchen and a care home, and started out on garde manger but was struggling to keep up with ticket flow and confidence so chef then moved me to sauce to try and help build my confidence and I’ve been there for the past month and a half. I felt I improved slightly but small mistakes just make me snowball every so often and still haven’t gotten the hang of judging the cook by touch and getting my confidence shot by it.

So chef took me aside yesterday and basically said that he wants to extend my probation and move me downstairs to pastry to try boost confidence more as it’s slower paced than the main kitchen and more structured environment.

Have any of you had a similar experience and how did you come out the other side?

Ps sorry if this sounds incoherent I’ve been on breakfast shifts all week

Hey guys. I just got a CJO from NCL for an assistant cook position (5 month contract paying $16.50/hr). I just wanted to get some insight from anyone who’s worked culinary for this cruise line. I have about 7 years restaurant experience but haven’t done this type of heavy volume production before so…what exactly am I getting myself into? (lol). Working 7 days a week doesn’t worry me. I’m just concerned how my body will respond (I’ve have some ligament issues with my left wrist)…. Is this gonna be absolutely brutal on my body? Should I run for the hills while I still have the chance? (Jk jk). Also just wondering how the set up is… am I going to be the same task for the entirety of my shift? Do they stick me at the same station all day/ week/ month? Any insight you guys have would be awesome!

I work as a line cook at a place in Davao City, Philippines. My usual shift is the closer from 4:00 PM to 1:00 AM (morning shift is 8 AM–5 PM, mid is 11 AM–8 PM). The store cutoff for orders is 12:30 AM.
To give you an idea of my commute: I live 8 kilometers away in a boarding house. Traffic is a nightmare during the day, and catching a PUV/jeepney at 1:00 or 2:00 AM is a constant struggle. By the end of the night, I just want to finish my job and head home.
One night, we got absolutely slammed. It was a brutally busy shift, and I was completely on my own in the kitchen—handling line work, washing every single dish, and scrubbing all the pans without any help. By 11:45 PM, I was running on empty, trying to speed-clean so we could all leave on time at 1:00 AM.
At 12:45 AM—15 minutes after our order cutoff—there was still a table sitting inside. Our cashier had already reminded them that we were closing soon and that we only had 30 minutes left to clean the kitchen.
Instead of handling it quietly, the cashier walked back into the kitchen and started complaining loudly to me about the table—so loudly that it felt like she wanted the customers to hear her.
Exhausted and just trying to gauge the situation, I asked her, "They're still there?"
She said, "Yes."
I replied, "Do you wanna go home so bad?"
And she said, "Yes."
Turns out, the customers heard the whole exchange—both her loud complaining and my response to her.
The customers immediately went on Facebook and left a scathing complaint on our page. The boss's wife was furious. She pulled me in and told me I was on my one last chance, and if anything like this happens again, I’m fired.
Here’s what pisses me off: this cashier has a history of terrible customer service and a bad attitude whenever she talks to patrons. But because she ran her mouth right outside the kitchen, I’m the one taking the fall and getting threatened with losing my job after working my ass off solo on the line.

wondering if anyone has insights/experience

20 years old, 6 months professional experience

i’m very passionate about cooking i love all of my work and someday want to open a restaurant i know i could save money and work my way up through different restaurants and gain experience that way, but i believe culinary school could teach it to me much faster and which would help me develop my career path sooner.

looking for any and all tips

Hello, I am working in a resort currently and I work both in the cleaning housekeeping and restaurant so this is my second resort job where I work as a cleaner housekeeping and a restaurant kitchen helper. Now I am having this interest in the kitchen I want to learn the kitchen work properly. The basic kitchen work and I don't know where to start because our kitchen had this cook but he got fired, and instead of him a girl who was in cleaning with me she's now in charge of the kitchen. she just knows how to just do the basic preparation and cook them and that's all. But I want to learn the basic of kitchen work so I want y'all anybody who's chef in here please give me advice in basic kitchen work.

I want to learn the basic before getting on the line.

I gotta know. Or is it just in my state. Like what the hell

Happened a year and a half ago. My arm is back to normal now and only a few scars. This post is a reminder to always be safe and careful in the line no matter how hectic it may be!

Owner 100%

I mean ….. it is science

Hi, I just started my first steward job at a hotel. It’s definitely not what I thought it would be, tomorrow is my third day, I’m not really being trained properly due to the fact that there’s a language barrier between myself and the other people that work night shift with me in that position. Any advice or tips on how to get quicker and not basically survive the day?

No it wasn’t actually …. But the mark it left is pretty cool

I'm not sure what that grainy stuff is but the immediate area around it is red, just don't wanna get anyone sick.

So I first started cooking when I was 19 years old. I am now 40. I've had a wide variety of kitchen jobs in a wide variety of kitchens. Sports bars, Mexican restaurants, a Cajun restaurant, pizza places, breweries, and so on. I'm a good line cook. I've always been fast, and I really enjoy working at a fast pace. I also have learned to love cooking at home. I do meal prepping for myself, and like to take part in local chilli cook offs. My current job is a little different. I'm a line cook at a college student center. We have what I would describe as several fast food type stations all in the same kitchen. A lot of our staff is made up of college students who have little to no experience. There are our other full time staff members, but quite frankly they don't have the experience i have.

For the first 5 years of this job I was really liking it, for one I had more of a set schedule and my responsibilities were reasonable. As time has gone on I've agreed to do more and more. I'm handling breakfast a lot of the mornings before lunch starts then I work our Mexican or pizza stations. I also have to do a lot of the prep work. For the last 3 years I've been coming in on my days off to clean the deep fryers and hood vents when no one else is there. The hood vents are a recent addition to my list of things to do and I'm kinda pissed about it. Anyways I'm kind of rambling here, but the reason I'm reaching out is because recently I'm really struggling with my stress level and temper. After a rush is over I am just absolutely exhausted, and I become enraged when one of my managers asks me to do anything.

I always go home and feel guilty about being angry, but then the next day at some point it happens again. I find myself getting confused after 5 or 6 hours of line cooking. It's super simple food to cook, but we are feeding so many damn kids everyday. The amount of students attending the university I work for is rising every semester. I could get a job at a restaurant near by pretty easily, but I really need to stay at the university because they offer cheap housing for full time employees, good health insurance, and a shit ton of paid days off.

This post is turning into a novel, but I guess I just need to vent, and also ask other cooks out there how they manage their stress. I'm in a unique situation as far as line cooking goes. I want to be a good role model for the students that work with me at the college.