The Life of a Existential Chef

Hello there! this is a sort of blog/shit posting in regards to my own personal fucked up thoughts, feelings and experiences as a chef, an Existential Chef. I created this weird Blog for a place where i can let it all out. And hopefully help others let it out too. I'm not too sure where i see this all going nut hopefully it's something people come to enjoy.

[thelifeofaexistentialchef-blog]

Work Vs Life (Work Wins) Part 2

Right now we live in a world where chefs are used like slaves. you sign a contract for a minimum salary based on 38 hours per week plus “additional overtime” where required, but that salary is completely a lie.

its a salary where you get 38 hours pay or on average 42 hours pay for double that amount of hours or even more work most times.

It’s a disgusting reality everyone steers away from or avoids bringing up, Sure the conditions and rights are slowly improving, but the salary never really does; it doesn't change for the extreme working environment chefs endure, the slavery (long hours), the work lifestyle chefs adopt due to long hours (eat, sleep, work, repeat), the brutality chefs go through (no breaks), mental stress from serve heat and working conditions.

It’s an ugly agreement which i don’t see improving.

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Work Vs Life (Work Wins) Part 1

Long Hours, High Heat, Yelling, Cuts, Burns, Stress (a lot!), Little Sleep, Abuse, Metal Illness, Alcoholism, the list goes on.

Mix all that up with a working class salary and you have yourself an Existential Chef; What do i mean by this? What am i trying to say?

I’m not really sure what i am trying to put forward with this post, but i can say this:

You come to ask yourself “What is the Point?” “Why do i keep going through all this for nothing?” Will i ever be happy?” “is the minimal wage/Salary worth the ridiculous amount of hours?”

As a chef fighting depression, it does get hard, extremely hard. And when you look at your job which your passionate about, but can’t seem to ever accept because your barely surviving. it just becomes too much.

[thelifeofaexistentialchef-blog]

How i see it (sort of)

Growing up, i always admired the fanatic devotion and commitment a chef dedicates towards his profession, like a god, creating something beautiful, pushing it towards the peak perfectionism one could best achieve or only dream of and always going one step beyond.

Because the fascinating thing you learn as a chef is there is always something better, something you can improve on, just something else... something more!

There is never really a limit or boundary, you learn that a good chef will always ask themselves or tell themselves that “it can always be better” “what can be improved?” “what can i do next that will give even a bigger WOW factor?”.

its these questions that push us to strive to improve ourselves constantly towards a never reachable goal f perfection or fulfillment. because there is always something else or something better which can be done.

Perfection does not really exist...Does it?