Line Cook Diaries

My partner and I are a strange age gap couple that have always worked together in the same places, with the exception of a few years. We have been together for sixteen years.

Eight years ago we worked as line cooks in a popular steakhouse chain in a tourist area in Montreal. We worked there for over five years. I was not only the only woman on the line but I was also the oldest person working there. Marc and I became part of what they called the dream team and the waiters were always happy to see us on the days we were working . They knew they would get the food on time with few to no problems.

It was a high stress position where you would be running in your cage "the line" sweating from the heat of the three ovens, fryer, heat pass, grill, potato warmer, ban Marie, steamer and salamander all of which was in a small space shared with three to five cooks.

We got used to the heat for the most part but the stress increased as the management changed for newbies that tried too hard to shine at the expense of the workers. The summer we quit, eight others quit all of which had been there between four and fifteen years.

The two of us took a break for a month with the bit of savings that we had from the last few checks. We finally ran out of money and the bills were due so we had no choice but to ask a friend to ask his friend who owns a popular vegan restaurant if he needed workers, and we were officially vegan by then so it would be perfect.

They had just started a large kitchen for production of vegan foods to be distributed and also bought a tempeh factory. The large kitchen wasn't quite open so they gave us positions in the tempeh factory until the new kitchen was complete. We worked in total of almost two years for them.

At the end we were unhappy with a new operations manager who was intimidating and insisted that we, as supervisors should not touch the work but instead walk around all day with our hands behind our backs which is what she did, and scrutinize every move the workers made.

We were not willing to do that, whether it was part of our job description or not. We made a decision to save our money and go to Mexico in hopes of never returning. We imagined finding a way to survive somehow without working for the "man"

Unfortunately we were fooled by our own dreams. We enjoyed living free in a country that was hot and relaxed. Crypto went sky high and the money we had turned to more. Then by the time we had to renew our visas, we realize we are officially broke. We had no choice but to borrow the plane fare back to Canada and stay at the only place we could which is Marc's senior parents apartment. We vowed we would not do that again. It's always tough. We had recently run out of borrowed money, so a job in a restaurant would be the only source of income in this city. This is the most popular industry for Anglophones.

We had thrown away all of our clothes, and most of everything we owned and were starting new all over again. The thought of going to a job and facing new challenges and people was scary. We also wondered if we could work together again, doubting highly that it would be at all possible.

I sent out several resumes and didn't get a response until one day I looked up a popular vegetarian restaurant and sent them a resume. They called within minutes. I had an interview the next day.

The manager said that they are opening a new location in the area where they have the big festivals such as the jazz festival which is one of the most popular in Canada. The restaurant is located right there. He said it would be open in a few days.

He mentioned that he just had to get a couple more people to cook, so I asked if he would consider my boyfriend who has almost an identical resume to myself. After Marc sent the resume, he was interviewed and hired.

The first day we arrived the place was not open or even finished with construction. He toured us around and said it should be open in a couple of days. We were asked to come for a tasting that day and to further look around.

We got there and they were testing out everything but it was only a couple of hours, doing nothing in an unfinished restaurant.

Two days ago they finally invited guests for a trial run. It was a little hands on but mostly watching others work. We were there quite late cleaning the kitchen the way we would if it was a regular shift. It was still pretty tiring especially because we have to walk ten kilometers to get there and another ten to get back. We have no change left for the bus.

Yesterday we went to do another trial with more people and this time it was more hands on. I was left by myself in a station to do all of the orders and Marc in another station. It was pretty rough especially because it is vegan vegetarian so everything is either real cheese or fake cheese and you have to be careful. I made a few mistakes. They were very thankful for our work. The place was not properly ventilated so they may not be open to the public until it is.

Last night as we walked home, I didn't think I could make it. We had been on our feet for fourteen hours walking and working. It was nice to give my feet a break.

We were asked if one of us would help at another location in the morning on Friday. I didn't want to say no so I volunteered. We are waiting until the end of next week for our pay. Right now I can't help but be kind of depressed at the state of our lives. As nice as everyone is at this place, we are back to the same old grind that we wanted to get away from.

We said a couple of years ago that we wouldn't be line cooks anymore. Now we are right back but the good thing is that we have a goal in mind this time. We will do what it takes to save money instead of living paycheck to paycheck as we always have done, and no matter how long it takes we will try to escape with a better plan in mind.

Next time we are going to Thailand!