This article was originally published in March 2019, but we felt it was still relevant for International Women's Day 2020
Women can stand the heat – so why aren't more of them in the professional kitchen?
In the UK, just 17 per cent of chef positions are currently held by women. Last year, celebrated chef Clare Smyth was awarded the “Best Female Chef” gong at the World’s 50 Best Restaurants Awards – but then her restaurant failed to be named among the top 100 restaurants in the world. In London, there are 69 Michelin-starred restaurants, but you can count on your fingers the number that have women in charge of the food.
None of this quite adds up. While the headcount of women working in the restaurant industry seems to be going up, there are still big questions to be answered around what's preventing women getting involved in food and what can be done to strike the balance.
Here, nine of the most prominent female chefs, sommeliers and restaurateurs in London explain how the restaurant industry has changed for women during their lifetimes – as well as what more needs to be done, and what advice they have for young women who want to follow in their footsteps.
On being the only women on the team
"My thing was that I always wanted to work in the best and the toughest environments so that I could learn the most – I was often the only women in those kitchens, and therefore automatically I was different and felt I had to prove myself. I think it is maybe a female trait; I think lots of women always make sure they can do a job before they apply for it." Clare Smyth, chef patron of two Michelin-starred Core and former chef patron of Restaurant Gordon Ramsay
"It was quite intimidating for me to enter in this way [Pic joined the kitchen in her father’s Michelin-starred restaurant shortly before he passed away] because I knew it a little bit but they knew more – and because there were only men in the kitchen. I was the only woman, I was very young, my father was no longer around to protect me... and I was the owner, so it was very difficult to learn from the people who were working for me." Anne-Sophie Pic, multi Michelin-starred chef whose restaurants include Maison Pic in Paris and La Dame de Pic in London
"I was the only woman at the time in the kitchen but it was really okay for me. It was very natural, and I think it was not a problem for me, so it was not a problem for the others. Maybe I’m a bit optimistic I don’t know. [Alain Ducasse, her mentor] trusted me, he was the one who pushed me – so the rest had to accept that." Hélène Darroze, chef at two Michelin-starred Hélène Darroze at the Connaught, and two more restaurants in Paris
On long hours and motherhood
"In Sabor, we work three and a half days and have three and a half days off. We try to change this industry in a good way and look after the staff and make sure everyone is happy. For that, they need to have time off." Nieves Barragan Mohacho, chef owner of Michelin-starred Sabor
"I was in a two Michelin restaurant, I wanted to be a mum and have my career in restaurants – and the way for me to do that was going part-time. I was quite fortunate that I had a boss [Michel Roux Jr at Le Gavroche] who could let me do that. I don’t know many Michelin restaurants that employ part-time mothers. At the top end you have to give everything… something’s gotta give." Monica Galetti, chef proprietor of Mere, former senior sous chef of Le Gavroche
On aggression in the kitchen
"With so much anger and hatred and a toxic environment, how do these people get the food out? How does it taste right when there’s so much anger? For me, food is always about love. It’s not about an ego, it’s not an ego trip." Asma Khan, chef owner of Darjeeling Express
"It is about how are you going to get the best out of [people in the kitchen] – is it by screaming and shouting at them, is it by belittling them? No. At the end of the day, what we do is about food – if there’s all this negative energy and lots of aggression, you’re not actually going to get the best product." Chantelle Nicholson, chef owner of Tredwells and group operations director at Marcus Wareing Restaurants
"I run my kitchen in the way I like to run it, and I like it to be a quite quiet and peaceful place. I don’t like unnecessary stress, I like everyone to be really professional and organised and then it’s just a nicer environment for everyone to work in." Clare Smyth
On why more women means better restaurants
"Kitchens need to wake up to the fact that women are not a liability, they are an asset. Women have skills that kitchens need. We bring compassion, we bring laughter and joy. Women who come in are not just a box that you tick; we should be celebrated, not tolerated." Asma Khan
"It does change the ambience definitely, in a good way. I think even the guys mostly love more women in the kitchen. When it is all men the conversation can obviously be very macho, but when there are more women you cover more things, so that makes it more relaxed and happier." Nieves Barragan Mohacho
On how kitchens have changed for the better
"There’s definitely more women coming through. I’ve had my restaurant nearly two years and seven out of 11 [of the chefs I employ] are women. That’s not intentional; I don’t go out to employ women. I attract women into my kitchen and that’s a great thing, and I think hopefully that’s how the rest of the industry will start to grow." Monica Galetti
"I think the kitchens now have changed so much in a good way, in a very good way. Kitchens now are more open, there’s a new mix of cultures, it’s a lot of fun… I think we need to speak loud that the kitchen is not like it was years ago, working six days a week and working 18 hours. It is not that any more." Nieves Barragan Mohacho
"The clientele now are younger, the people who go out to eat are younger, well-travelled and they’re not so stuck in the past. They’re more open to having a female presence in the dining room." Sandia Chang, sommelier and general manager of Bubbledogs and two Michelin-starred Kitchen Table at Bubbledogs
"It was a lot to understand, for some people, for me to be in the kitchen, but fortunately today it has changed a lot, the mentality of people… The mind has opened a lot in 25 years." Anne-Sophie Pic
"There has definitely been a huge shift in the culture – not necessarily because people have wanted it but because it has had to. What has been happening with everything, with social media – things are a lot more open and out there, you can’t really hide behind things any more." Chantelle Nicholson
On having visible role models for budding women chefs
"I see articles or adverts with 15 male chefs and grey hair. I just don’t think that’s acceptable anymore. You have to have diversity, you have to be conscious of it. I’m very supportive of getting young women all the way through. If we get this next generation all the way through, then they’ll break it apart, which is what I’m hoping for." Clare Smyth
"If we succeed, we have a place now, we have a reputation. If that can help women to enter the industry then of course we have to be this model [Darroze was the inspiration for Mattel’s chef Barbie doll, released in 2018]. It’s a big responsibility, and of course we have to do that." Hélène Darroze
"For me it’s so important that I fly the flag for coloured female chefs as well... I think it should be something that empowers people, being different and coming from different backgrounds of food. They bring something unique, that I think can play to their strengths." Monica Galetti
On what the next generation of women in the industry need to know
"I would say: find a chef that you like working with and a style that you like to cook, and really work hard, learn your trade properly – there aren’t any shortcuts to anywhere worth going." Clare Smyth
"I think it’s a question of mentality, a question of adaptability also. When you are working with other people in a world with male domination, you have to adapt yourself, but you have to be yourself. You need to adapt of course, but not to act like a man because you think it’s easier to progress. Stay a woman with your strength and your weakness." Anne-Sophie Pic
"Don’t try to be a man, don’t act as a man, act as a woman. Keep your sensibility, keep your emotion, be a woman, don’t try to be someone else." Hélène Darroze
"In this industry, it’s all about results. Whether male or female, an employer just wants to see results, good work ethic and passion. I also think you shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help, just because you’re a woman – if you need help carrying a huge box of wine, ask for help." Sandia Chang
"We count, we matter and our time has come to be behind the pass, to be the driving force behind kitchens. It’s not that you just have us as pastry chefs – we can deal with fire, we can cook and we are bloody good at it." Asma Khan
"If you really love what you do, carry on. My advice is that it’s beautiful: you make friends around the world and I really wouldn’t want to be doing something else." Nieves Barragan Mohacho
"My biggest thing is: just don’t overthink it. Just get in there, take each day as it comes, do what you need to do and, as I say to my guys, as long as you’re learning something new every day, then that’s a good day." Chantelle Nicholson
"You need to want to learn more, you need to be hungry to learn more, because you can never stop learning." Sunaina Sethi, co-founder and wine buyer of JKS Restaurants
"I would say trust your instincts, work hard and learn as much as possible. Let the negatives of the day go, and come back with a fresh, positive mind the next day. You’re as good as anyone else in that kitchen – don’t let anyone make you feel otherwise. " Monica Galetti
