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Raw Chef-ism

Hey, guys!

I was wondering if anyone knows what goes into becoming a raw chef... and if anyone knows where the best places are to live for a raw lifestyle (I've heard Portland, most places west coast...) I'm interested in hearing about those, as well as on the east coast! Also, does anyone have any passionate opinions about what areas are in dire need of a raw food restaurant/business...?

Thanks, as always,

R

Comments

  • graceinyafacegraceinyaface Raw Newbie

    I don't personally know of an official culinary school of raw food that is recognized as anything reputable. There are lots of places that will "certify" you as a raw food chef, but what does that mean? nothing, really. I believe what really makes one a chef is originality and creativity when it comes to food and combining flavors which is really what raw food is all about. School of any kind is good if you learn something you didn't know before, but don't get sucked in to paying tons of money for a meaningless certification. unless that's what you want to do ;)

  • great point, Grace-- I'll keep that in mind.. I'm just so new to all of this, that it's a little intimidating, just how inspired/inspiring all these people seem! Also, figuring out all the raw food must be time consuming.

  • I'd start off with saying that graceinyaface is right on with creativity being important. Besides, you can get hired as a raw chef in many places without having to take a course on it. My friend chefs in a raw restaurant in LA and his only experience was him fooling around with recipes at home and with friends, so I'd say as long as you're familiar with the appliances and are eager to learn new things then go ahead and apply somewhere.

    But, if you are interested in taking a course, going to the tree of life in arizona, or the living light institute in norcal seems to be top notch in the raw world. They both offer nutrition along with uncooking.

    Oh and if you want to start your own raw joint then please hire me! haha, no really.

  • bittbitt Raw Newbie

    I think alissa cohen has a program.

  • WinonaWinona Raw Newbie

    someone posted to goneraw who had gone to living light. they suggested that instead of spending money on that, buy every raw cookbook and watch videos on uncooking and practice practice. That's how i've gotten good!

  • Good professional cooking schools teach you things like knife skills (especially in a raw restaurant, this is absolutely essential), plating, portion sizes, health department regulations, finances, along with how to put together interesting meals.

    One of my friends went to the Natural Gourmet cooking school in NYC (4 month full-time program, 5 days a week/almost 8 hours per day) and interned at Greens in San Francisco. She was a superb home vegetarian cook before the program. She said that what she learned there prepared her to work professionally in a restaurant. Making good raw meals at home for friends and family is a lot different than what goes on in a restaurant--the stress level is very high in restaurants because profit margins in restaurants are paper-thin and customers get cranky if their meal is long in coming or is not prepared properly. (At least this customer does! ;-) )

    I think that if a raw cooking school does not teach the skills I mentioned above, it isn't worth the money. I've seen 'raw chef programs' that certify you in a weekend! That's absurd, and a real disservice to the people who are working in raw restaurants who have years if not decades of professional cooking/food prep experience. Training is key, and If a raw cooking school is beyond someone's means, apprenticing might be an alternative way to go.

  • RawLibrarian, I think that's really solid advice!!

  • Sounds like someone around here (goneraw.com) may have to bring to fruition what could be a million $ idea - creating a raw-food culinary school... since apparently one does not exist yet. There may be a way to do it online...

    But I actually work at an "average" culinary school -

    http://www.artinstitutes.edu/AreasOfStudy/TheInternationalCulinarySchool.aspx?ID=8

    (not teaching but auxiliary) and as far as I know the closest they teach to just vegan - let alone raw - is the history of tofu and how to make a pretty good salad. Besides that, it's basically all that RawLibrarian mentioned.

    I've also heard that Portland is THE place to be for vegan and/or raw lifestyles so if anyone wanted to proceed with a raw culinary school it would probably be best fit here.

  • I learned what I learned by...being a chef in a raw restaurant lol!

    Which basically means I got paid to learn. I actually started off working for free; I would just go there and shadow their current chef, just for my own knowledge. After a while, I started working there.

    I did have culinary skills already under my belt; int he past I've done basic food prep in restaurants and I was a pastry chef and cake decorator and a bakery in downtown Chicago. All of those skills help.

    Personally, I wouldn't reccomend spending a dime on a raw chef certificate; if anything, as rawlibrarian said, take some basic knife skills classes at your local community college, and that will be sufficient. Even Alissa Cohen and Jennifer Cornbleet, that's basically what they teach is knife skills 101 and how to use a dehydrator. Knifing classes at a community college would be sooo much cheaper, and dehydrating you can learn on your own.

    That's the best part; raw food is so new, everyone is kind of just making stuff up; this isn't a time honored art quite yet. So just experiment, see fi there are any raw restaurants around you you can shadow or work at, and buy a lot of uncook books!

  • SuasoriaSuasoria Raw Newbie

    Most good raw restaurants seem to offer some form of training/internship - which means you work for free and they give you a pretty certifimicate. If I were doing this, I would sign up with Juliano in a heartbeat, then probably Alissa Cohen.

    My take, for what it's worth, is you can't survive as a restaurant if you're only chasing a raw clientele. You'd need to serve raw dishes that appeal to cooked vegans, vegetarians, and even gourmet omnivores who just like your food and have the cash to pay for it. Juliano and Alissa seem to have been the most successful at building their businesses on mainstream customers. Another local raw place seems to survive on smoothies for the after-yoga housewife crowd - go figure.

    To answer your third question about underserved areas (which is a GREAT question not yet addressed), I think a good-sized city in Florida would be a hot spot. The climate is great year-round so you probably have access to local produce, there is a big tourist economy of people who will try something new for the thrill of it, plus retirees who are hearing about raw veganism for diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc. There is also a burgeoning New Age community in FL.

    Jenna Norwood is out there in Sarasota - maybe she'd be willing to talk to a newbie about opportunities elsewhere in FL that wouldn't be competitive.

  • Hello,

    I teach children and adult raw food classes in Calgary Alberta. We also have support raw food potlucks. Please go to www.rawsoulchef.com to see classes. One advice I always give new comers to raw or vegan lifestyle is get or find support networks close to you. Support is vital to staying on any new health diet.

    About culinary schools, I think Living Light culinary school looks cool. I learned all I know from eating raw for 6 years and going to every class I could find. I did the Alissa Cohen classes and took courses online.

    Good luck to everyone!!

    Kathryn

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