by Anthony Cosenza II

Created on: December 14, 2008

I do not think that industry approved uniforms are necessary for television chefs. The need for industry approved uniforms in an industrial kitchen is usually for reasons of hygiene and to denote "rank" among the kitchen staff. Checks and chef whites are common place in some industrial restaurants, but is really not an across the board standard. Having worked in a kitchen and being on the catering staff, the caterer never wore a uniform even though he was a chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America, arguably one of the best schools in the United States. Whenever he was cooking and in the kitchen he, as did all of us, wear a hair net and slip safe shoes as well as gloves when handling food, but that was the extent of it.

When discussing chefs on television we must remember that some of the most loved chefs are actually not chefs at all. Paula Deen as well as Rachel Ray both admit that they have not been classically trained and they will be the first to tell you thay consider themselves cooks and not chefs. Paula Deen owns one of the most popular restaurants in the South without being a chef, and it is doubtful that she wears anything more than an apron. What should be done about non-classically trained individuals who are technically not chefs at all? Would those individuals not be required to then wear a uniform on their show?

Typically I enjoy watching cooking shows because I can relate to them. Common cooking shows have a setting that feels more like home than industrial kitchens, and the fact that the chefs and cooks wear what I would wear in my own kitchen allows me to relate to them and gives me a sense that I too can accomplish the same types of dishes. Some cooking shows are actually set in the home of the respective chef and cook, while others are set outside. I believe the show would lose appeal if a chef was cooking in a very relaxed environment but was forced to wear a stiff, stuffy uniform. As an example when I watch a show such as Iron Chef on the food network, they wear an industry type uniform and I never watch with the intent to learn something, it is a competition and I have no delusions of being able to prepare those meals. The competition aspect of the show makes it a suitable place for a uniform, but if I am trying to learn from a cooking show the "everyday" clothing makes me feel much more comfortable.

As far as hygiene is concerned I do believe it important that television chefs and cooks stress this part of the process and demonstrate proper food preparation and hygienics. As models of how to prepare quality meals they must also make sure that the meals are prepared safely, but with or without a uniform, a chef or cook can demonstrate proper food handling techniques.

A required industry approved uniform would do nothing to enhance a television program, but would certainly take something away, and perhaps some people, who would have otherwise learned something valuable from a television cooking program, would feel intimidated by the official looking figure cooking a fabulous meal and never discover that they too can cook wonderful meals.

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