Things my Chef says 'bout my knives

[TamanegiKin]

So the Chef I work for seems genuinely disgusted by my knives.
Chef has had to borrow my suisin 270 gyuto and konosuke 240.
-your knives are too thin.
-I can't rock these knives, the shape sucks.
-these are too light.
-The handle sucks.
-why is it turning colors?
I always get a chuckle out of this.
Anyone else out there experience anything similar?

 

[Citizen Snips]

every day and with every knife.

ignorance is bliss...i guess.

 

[Lefty]

My wife commented on how nicely my patinas were coming along, not too long ago. She also thinks wa handles are "really nice and cute".
In other words, I'd switch restaurants if I were you.

 

[TamanegiKin]

My fiancee has a greater knife knowledge than my chef.
Probably due to my non stop knife babble.
Maybe I'll get the chef a slap chop as a parting gift when I do move on hehe.

 

[Lefty]

in carbon steel, of course

 

[ThEoRy]

Miracle blade with the accugrip control ball...

 

[kool-aid]

My chef loves to tell us about his $1400 hattori hd. he also called my edge pro "training wheels". I chuckled the next day when he couldn't cut through a tomato and offered to bring my "training wheels" in for him

 

[Citizen Snips]

edge pro type machines are kinda like training wheels and there is nothing wrong with that. i cannot say ive personally used them but ive seen them and watched people. i learned the old fashion way but it is all about finding what works for you.

$1400 is a lot for one knife. after i read that i got to thinking about what i could get for that kind of money to broaden my current collection. i only use 3 knives and it was hard work to get it down from 9 or so but really im glad i did downsize...now i can daydream about knives i want to "need" again. i think this is the only place on earth in which that last sentence makes sense to everyone

 

[jaybett]

What is it about pro kitchens, that the concept of private property is thrown out the window? If your able to do your job, why should the chef, give a bleep, about the type of knives being used?

Jay

 

[El Pescador]

My chef loves to tell us about his $1400 hattori hd. he also called my edge pro "training wheels". I chuckled the next day when he couldn't cut through a tomato and offered to bring my "training wheels" in for him

Probably a hattori KD...

 

[MadMel]

ignorance is bliss...i guess.

I prolly think the opposite lol.. They just wanna be mediocre for the rest of their lives... No intent to learn something extra, like push-cutting etc... I've met chef's like that who actually thinks that push cutting is worse for your edges then push cutting.. Rock cutting tomatoes anyone?

 

[goodchef1]

So the Chef I work for seems genuinely disgusted by my knives.
Chef has had to borrow my suisin 270 gyuto and konosuke 240.
-your knives are too thin.
-I can't rock these knives, the shape sucks.
-these are too light.
-The handle sucks.
-why is it turning colors?
I always get a chuckle out of this.
Anyone else out there experience anything similar?

Sorry to say this, but if a chef has issues with your property, the underlying issues are more with you then your knives.

 

[Mattias504]

I disagree. Most chefs out there dont give a F about their knives. At least in my experience. No idea how to really sharpen them and full tang and balance are the most important aspects. I used a Watanabe at culinary school and my chef would always give me grief about it. "you can't use oriental knives until you master your french chef's knife first." Really? What about "oriental" chefs?

Truth is chef shouldn't care about your tools for the job, he should care about the product that you produce.

 

[JanusInTheGarden]

What kind of reaction do you suppose a culinary school teacher would have if you told him the culinary school knives were garbage...? (though admittedly I like Mercers better than Wusthof)

 

[mikemac]

... "you can't use oriental knives until you master your french chef's knife first."....

Kinda funny since the gyuto is more 'French' pattern than anything else....

 

[TamanegiKin]

Sorry to say this, but if a chef has issues with your property, the underlying issues are more with you then your knives.

It's more her opinion of my knives rather than a problem.
She doesn't take issue with my use of them.
These were her "observations" after borrowing my knives.
Also, it takes a modest level headed person to open themselves to new things.
That said, all other chefs I've worked for had a much greater appreciation for knives.
It was in fact a prior chef who got me started with j-knives.

 

[Eamon Burke]

Just work. When you out-do her work, she will see the point.

Not knowing why a carbon knife is growing patina is just downright ignorant. That kind of thing loses major respect to me.

 

[Mattias504]

What kind of reaction do you suppose a culinary school teacher would have if you told him the culinary school knives were garbage...? (though admittedly I like Mercers better than Wusthof)

These little remarks started a little debate about knives one day. I didn't really ever feel the need to back down from my chefs at school since I was paying them. Ya know?? Anyway, one of them was hassling me about using my knives at school and I told him I don't even know what happened to my knife kit knives. And it was the truth, I left them at work and they made their way into the line dogs rotation of work knives. Never to be used by me again. He was saying that the Mercer are better then the Forschner knives that were previously part of the kit. His ONLY argument was the full bolster or w/e and that it was forged. He also went on so say my Watanabe was unbalanced and wasn't forged. (I think he thinks that forged means Wusthof style with the one piece construction)

This pretty much ended the conversation for me. I told him it was hand made by a smith in Japan and that yes it was forged. I just didn't feel like taking the conversation any further at that point. You should of seen his face one day when I whipped out a Suien VC...

My point is that most chef's know the cr4p they read in textbooks about knives. Steel to sharpen, full tang, bolsters, balance, blah blah blah....
Not much else. Its a shame. I never have been able to understand a chef that doesn't care about his knives. They are all over the place and it really just baffles me.

 

[EdipisReks]

I never have been able to understand a chef that doesn't care about his knives. They are all over the place and it really just baffles me.

it's no different than professional clarinetists who started using a pair of Buffet R-13s (nothing wrong with R-13s, it's what i used in conservatory, but it's not what i would have continued to use if i hadn't decided that music wasn't for me, after my third year), a Selmer HS* mouthpiece, and some Vandoren V12 reeds at conservatory, and never gave it another thought afterwards. like any other profession, most people are interested only in whether they get the job done at the end of the day. give a pro clarinetist who has been using Buffet R-13s all their career a Selmer Signature or a Howarth and they might be blown away by the difference, but only if they have an open mind about the ease and quality of their work during the process, and not only the end result.

 

[kool-aid]

edge pro type machines are kinda like training wheels

I agree, I just laughed when he couldn't cut a tomato after that comment

$1400 is a lot for one knife.

Probably a hattori KD...

its definitely a $200 hd

 

[Vertigo]

Steel to sharpen, full tang, bolsters, balance, blah blah blah....

Ugh, no doubt. I'm at the point I just can't even participate in the discussions. I just smile and nod.

 

[Dubsy]

what really baffles me is how the Ex. Sous at worktreats his knives amazingly well (he turned me onto Misono's), like they were his babies, yet the executive chef managed to destroy his set of MACs in a week. and he doesnt even do any prep! i talked to him about it once and he assured me his knives were razor sharp. i snuck a look at em and the edge couldnt cut butter. it was terrible.

 

[Eamon Burke]

I daresay that the sous chef does the bulk of the hands-on work in most kitchens. Managing takes up a lot of time.

 

[Dubsy]

id agree with that. especially when the exec is also the company corporate chef, and has been reprimanded for "being out of town" when he was actually at his house. the dude says hes gonna go to new york for a couple weeks, and one of the sous's ran into him at the grocery store. real classy.