Culture, identity, and belonging in the “culinary underbelly”

Abstract

_____________________________________________________________________________________________Further research should focus on issues of gender and ethnicity, and on chefs working in different types of establishment and at different levels/ status to those interviewed here. Originality/valueThe findings and the analysis of them provide valuable insights into chef identity. This analysis is important because the significance of concepts such as culture and identity for understanding specific job roles is still under explored within a hospitality context. Managers need to be able to understand and work with the cultural dynamics inherent in job roles because these impinge upon key issues such as recruitment, retention and team building of all staff, not just chefs.

Craft, tangibility and affect at work in the microbrewery

“…Such accounts seek to broaden the scope with which knowledge and forms of knowing are conceived of in the action and practice of work and, ultimately, to enliven our understandings of the tacit aspects of work. While, as noted, very few studies of brewery work exist, there are some interesting parallels to be made with the more sizable body of literature addressing the occupational identity of chefs and professional cooks (Fine 1996;Gunders 2008;Palmer et al 2010;Robinson and Beesley 2010). Indeed, as is explored below, several participants of the current study drew their own parallels between the work of brewers and that of chefs.…”

“…Indeed, as is explored below, several participants of the current study drew their own parallels between the work of brewers and that of chefs. Professional chefs, therefore, are seen to develop and perform a specific identity which draws on concepts of skill and competency, of the material and affective environment of the kitchen, and of the output of their labour in the form of food which is acknowledged and appreciated by others (Palmer, Cooper and Burns 2010). Professional chefs prioritise creativity in both a sense of innovation in creating something new and unique but also in a more everyday sense of 'creating' something through the skilled selection, preparation and combinations of ingredients and materials (Robinson and Beesley 2010).…”

Occupational identity and culture: the case of Michelin-starred chefs

“…The world of 'haute cusine' chefs has traditionally remained secluded, until the emergence of the recent phenomenon of celebrity chefs and their 'open kitchens' (Palmer et al, 2010), revealing the previously secret 'backstage' (Goffman, 1959) of professional cooking. Haute cuisine is defined as the high-end of professional cooking (Balazs, 2001;Pearsall, 2001), whilst being generally associated with critical acclamation, as embodied in the institution of the 'Michelin Guide' and its star rating system (Surlemont & Johnson, 2005).…”

“…It is not surprising therefore that little methodical analysis has been carried out about the work of chefs (Alexander et al, 2012;Wood, 1997) and, in particular, the social structures and processes (i.e. the kitchen 'ideology', symbols, rituals, rites and myths) which underpin the creation and maintenance of the occupational identity (Palmer et al, 2010) and culture of chefs (Cameron, 2009). A notable exception, however, can be found in the work of Fine (1996a) which demonstrates how chefs and cooks in the United States (US) see their status within categories of self-concept and perceptual images held within society.…”

“…Their occupational identity is formed through the dialectic of internal-external identification, as conceptualised by Jenkins (2004). Their identity is therefore influenced both by their occupational peer group, who constitute 'significant others', and by the views and attitudes of 'others' (nonchefs), towards them in the 'outside world' (Cameron et al, 1999;Goffman, 1959;Kang et al, 2010;Palmer et al, 2010;Saunders, 1981a). The outside world is the wider audience of society at large, all of whom look upon the world of chefs through the window provided by the media.…”