female chefs

I had the chance to speak with one of San Francisco's most prominent female chefs, Traci Des Jardins. You may be familiar with her, thanks to an appearance on the Food Network's Next Iron Chef competition. Now Des Jardins is happy to be out of the spotlight, "I don't like being that recognizable," and back in the kitchen. Her elegant eatery, Jardiniere, recently launched a Monday night themed price-fixe dinner and she's working on a signature restaurant at Tahoe's NorthStar resort, which will be mountainesque with a casual feel (think wood tables), great service, and sophisticated food.

Des Jardins believes the key to restaurant success during a tough economy is to "control costs and be really financially savvy." We talked about how this concept can translate to the everyday kitchen. To find out what she had to say and check out her advice for being a better home cook, read more

With female personalities like Padma Lakshmi, Giada De Laurentiis, and Cat Cora in the media spotlight, one would think that sexism in the kitchen is a non-issue. However, a provocative article in Time Out magazine argues that even if sex discrimination isn't overt, it's still prevalent. While "Mad Men-style ass-pinching" is no longer de rigueur, Rebecca Flint Marx points out that sex discrimination is clear when you notice (or don't) the amount of recognition that women chefs receive in comparison to their male counterparts.

Only 10 percent of the nation's executive chefs are female, and men vastly outnumber women when it comes to receiving accolades, such as a nomination for Food & Wine's Best New Chef, or a James Beard Foundation Award.

Donatella Arpaia attributes the disparity in the kitchen to women not getting enough publicity. Others blame it on the fact that women tend to work for smaller restaurant groups. Prominent female chefs have certainly complained of getting "passed over and not let into the club."

Yet, many in the industry remain hopeful: In recent years, women have gained ground in sommelier and maître d' positions and resources such as the New York Women's Culinary Alliance and Women Chefs and Restaurateurs exist to promote the advancement of women in the food industry.

Are you surprised to learn that women are still hitting a glass ceiling in a place as merit-based as the kitchen?

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In our Best of 2008 coverage, we asked you who your favorite cheftestant was this year. Between Top Chef, Next Food Network Star, and Hell's Kitchen, there was plenty of heat in the kitchen, but the results were clear: Stephanie Izard, the winner of Top Chef 4, won 29 percent of the vote! Yum is right with you: Stephanie was our favorite this year, too.

From the start, we loved Stephanie for being a great chef who kept it real. Despite her modesty, as the show progressed, she blew us away with her stunning dishes. We were thrilled when she became Top Chef's first ever female winner!

What are your reasons for loving her?

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Since its debut in March 2006, the culinary reality competition Top Chef has taken the food industry by storm. It's widely respected as an informative and exciting television program. This year the fourth season really made headlines when the first female cheftestant, Stephanie Izard, was crowned Top Chef.

She blew the competitors away with her composure and culinary expertise. We knew Stephanie was a force to be reckoned with after the first episode. We had the pleasure of speaking with her before the competition and learned that although Izard was from Chicago, where the show was filmed, she didn't have an advantage. We admired her straightforward approach, nice girl persona, and get-the-job-done mentality. We even wanted to jump into our screens and devour her bite-sized banana bread. Obviously we weren't the only ones who enjoyed Izard: In the reunion special, she was declared the fan favorite.

After she was named Top Chef, Stephanie explained why she won, "I don’t have a big ego, and I have a way of earning the respect of my peers and my employees without screaming. Being a perfectionist, it’s my detriment that I’m just never happy with anything. But I'm always pushing myself to get better and better."

The chef is currently working on her next project: a gastropub-style restaurant set to launch next Spring in Chicago. Only time will tell if this establishment, which will have an open kitchen and her Top Chef friends as guest chefs, makes headlines in 2009.

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Let me introduce you to Anne Burrell. Anne's a multi-tasker with many roles in the food industry. First and foremost, she's the executive chef of a restaurant, Centro Vinoteca, in New York City. She works at the restaurant six days a week and isn't much of a home cook. In her downtime Anne competes as Mario Batali's sous chef on Iron Chef America. However, her latest role is as a hostess of Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, a new show on Food Network. This Sunday (at 9:30 a.m.) Anne's coming to a kitchen near you and she's teaching you how to cook like she does in her Centro Vinoteca. Earlier this week I chatted with the former Culinary Institute of America instructor, to see what she had to say, read more

As part of our Best of 2007 coverage we asked you who your favorite female-celebrity chef was. Many of you had very strong feelings for or against Rachael Ray and Sandra Lee, but in the end Giada De Laurentiis was your favorite female chef.

While we have nothing but love for Giada, our favorite female-celebrity chef this year was Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa. Her recipes continue to be delicious, simple, and stunning. Her long-lasting love for her husband is inspirational. Plus, we got the chance to speak with her earlier this year. She gave us some wonderful tips and we learned first hand how fabulous she really is.

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In what seems to be an appalling piece of journalism, a British writer declares that, generally speaking, women cannot cook. I don't know about you, but reading this makes me want to grab my knives and give this man a piece of my mind. What do you think?— Daily Mail

For most of history, women played a large role in the kitchen, and now in 2007, the majority of chefs that dominate restaurant kitchens are male. All three winners of Bravo's Top Chef were males. The final contestants on the Next Iron Chef are male. So where are the female chefs?

Star Chefs recently sought to answer this question by speaking with nine of the nation's top female chefs. They asked the chefs about having a family, prioritizing, the strength it takes to last in the kitchen, cooking with soul, and experimental techniques. Here's a snippet from their interview with San Francisco's Traci DesJardins:

"You never hear men talk or get asked about their kids as an issue — it’s because they probably have a wife who takes care of the kids. I have my son only two days a week and I’m not available to the restaurant on the days that I take care of my son. So if a critic walks in that day, I’m not going to be there, I’m going to be with my son. Period.

It's a sad truth that having children doesn't affect male chefs as much as it will female chefs, but this is something all female professionals have to deal with, not just chefs. What do you think? Will the role of females in the culinary work force change or will men continue to be in control?

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