What is the significance of the chef's hat? Why is it so tall? Does anyone have a brief history of the chef's hat? If anyone has a culinary background and would like to expound on this subject, I'm listenin'... rH ------------------ The Psychedelic Groove House of Rockets Basketball Love! Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find that money cannot be eaten. -Cree Indian Prophecy *** THIS SPACE FOR LEASE ***
I know what a chefs hat is. ------------------ Ceo of the Walt Williams fan club. Web site coming soon atheistalliance.org
A quick search found this: Can anyone help?chef hats are worn for a few reasons. one,the tallest chef hat distinguishes who the chef was.this is for the true european kitchens. second, is for hygiene.third, the tall round chef hats were worn to allow the heat to rise above the head versus abaseball hat that would ONLY ALLOW THE HEAT TO STOP AT THE FOREHEAD, WE MUST REMEMBER THAT HVAC HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING WERE NOT POPULAR AT THAT TIME. GOOD LUCK,WRITE IF YOU HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS. CHEF BRUNELLO More: I'm all for headgear in the kitchen -- after all, one hair in your soup can ruin your whole day. But it's hard to picture the cook who first decided that what he was missing in his hot, crowded, busy kitchen was not just a hat, but the biggest, tallest hat he could find. Sounds about as practical as doing brain surgery with a pair of mittens on. Chefs started out wearing simple skull caps, with each level of chef represented by different colors. The cap gained some height not as a stylish statement, but simply to allow more ventilation around the chef's head. Functionalism was ultimately overtaken by fashion as caps gradually grew higher and higher. Viennese chef Antonin Careme set the ultimate standard by propping his cap up with a piece of cardboard, and chefs have followed suit for centuries, though the cardboard has since been replaced by starch. : ------------------ Behad Sergeant at Arms of the Clutch BBS [This message has been edited by Behad (edited January 15, 2001).]
I can tell you it is the stupidest idea in the world. My wife is a cook (actually, now a cake designer) and when she was working at the Ritz-Carlton she had to wear those hats. Everyone wore the same tall chef hat even though most were not chefs. And it would always fall off or bump into stuff. Of course, the Ritz used it to impress guests, but for functionality, it is worse than nothing -- not only won't it keep hair from falling into food, it threatens to fall into food itself! ------------------ RealGM Rockets Draft Obligations Summary Gafford Art Artisan
