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If you’ve ever wondered why professional chefs get decked out in what seems to be layers upon layers of hot clothing in a hot kitchen, the answer is simple: it’s due to safety and hygiene reasons. Each part of a chef’s uniform has a purpose, whether it’s got a cool urban design or it’s a stark white chef’s jacket paired with black pants.
Cooking is becoming much more cool and hip than it used to be, and with a variety of restaurants, cuisines, and chefs on the market today, not everyone is satisfied with the classic uniform mostly associated with classically trained chefs. Every piece of clothing is an important part of the uniform, from the apron, to jacket, to hat. It can’t be made of just anything, so it’s taken some innovation on the part of manufacturers to come up with designs that are trendy, yet still fit the bill as far as safety and cleanliness are concerned.
There are many ways urban chefs today are trying to keep their style while also adhering to the safety standards working in a hot kitchen requires. Read on for a few ways to stay stylish and trendy while also being safe.
Cool Fabrics
One of the most important parts of a chef’s uniform is the fabric it’s made from. Your typical chef’s jacket and pants are not made from the same materials street clothes are made of. Instead they are made of heavy-duty materials that are treated to be wrinkle free, fire resistant, and free flowing.
Unfortunately, in the past, this meant coats, aprons, and pants in the same old boring fabrics, which could be a turn off for those looking to be stylish in the kitchen. Luckily, there are many new materials on the market that are still safe, yet also trendy. Materials like denim allow urban chefs to keep their cool in the kitchen while not having to worry that if their sleeve gets too close to the burner (always a possibility, especially in smaller kitchens), that they’ll go up in flames and not be able to finish the dinner shift.
These new denim fabrics are being used for all parts of the chef’s uniform, from jackets, to pants, to aprons, hats, and neckties. Some are available in various colors or prints, allowing the stylish chef to choose a combination that makes him stand out amongst his peers, not only for his cooking style, but his clothing style as well.
Unique Hats
The hat is one of the most important parts of a chef’s uniform. It performs two specific and very important duties in a busy kitchen: it keeps hair out of the food (even short hair can get into a dish without a chef even knowing), and it keeps longer hair from getting caught in doors and equipment, or worse, catching fire. Long hair can also get in your eyes and impair your vision, which could be a safety hazard as well. Needless to say, professional chefs everywhere know that they have to wear something on their head in the kitchen, and for centuries, their options were pretty limited.
When you think of a chef’s hat, one of two things probably comes to mind: the tall, paper hats often worn by classically trained chefs, or the cloud like hats that are often associated with cooking in general. Chefs everywhere have worn these hats, from five star restaurants to small town diners, only because they were always the easiest and most readily available option that got the job done.
Neither of these hats is particularly stylish, but urban cooks everywhere understand the point of a hat and that one must be worn in the kitchen. While working in a classic French restaurant, you may have to succumb to one of these options, but if not, why not try something a little more stylish?
Hats in different shapes and sizes, as well as cooler materials like denim are available these days. Many restaurants will even allow chefs to wear head wraps or bandanas as long as the primary functions — safety and hygiene — are met.
Whether you get something in a unique design, fabric, or print, make sure you get it from someone that specializes in chef ware. Otherwise, you may miss out on key features — fire resistance, for example — that make these hats safe for professional kitchen use.
Wacky Colors and Prints
If you’re new in the culinary industry or fresh out of school, you may think all uniforms are standard, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Many chefs new in their careers tend to wear a classic chef’s uniform in the kitchen, which consists of black chef pants and a white jacket, apron, and hat. While this is fine and standard, if you have the option of being unique, why not take it?
These days, you’ll be amazed at the variety of clothing made available to chefs across the board. Brightly colored pants and jackets are a starting point, but you’ll find chef pants with prints ranging from stripes and checks, to fruits and vegetables. Veteran chefs embrace these trends, but if your employer allows you to wear them, why not try something different?
You can start out with a different color and then work your way up to a more outlandish style, but what better way to show off your unique cooking skills than a unique look to go with it? Of course, you should make sure your employer is okay with this before investing a lot into clothing that you can’t wear.
Comfortable and Stylish Footwear
Until you’ve worked long hours in a hot kitchen, you can’t possibly understand the need for proper footwear. In general, if you cook in a restaurant, you’re going to be on your feet your entire shift. Since the average shift of a chef is way more than a typical eight-hour day, this can mean being on your feet for 12-16 hours a day. Do that a few times a week, and your feet will be sorry if you try to get by wearing hip tennis shoes or cool street shoes.
In addition to being comfortable, your kitchen shoes have to protect your feet from kitchen mishaps such as dropping a heavy pot on your foot or spilling hot oil. It can be hard to combine all these features into a cool, stylish shoe that urban chefs aren’t embarrassed to wear, but many companies have now done just that.
These days, you’ll find everything from cool clogs, to boots, to even shoes you could wear on the street on your way to work. If you look hard enough, you can even find them in cooler colors beyond basic black that will go nicely with your cool denim chef’s jacket.
Conclusion
Whether you are a new chef looking to show off your unique style, or a veteran that is tired of the black and white combo in chef’s uniforms, you can find amazing pieces that will surely ramp up your style while still keeping you safe. Whether you get a denim apron or chef’s jacket, or a pair of stylish, yet comfy shoes, you are sure to stand out in the kitchen.