I have only worked in a few professional kitchens but in every one there was the same problem. Things disappear! You put down the scissors, turn your back and pouf! Gone! It seems we spend a lot of time yelling back and forth to each other in search of some prescious implement. You can always find the ice cream scoop that you don't like, but the good one with the zippy ratchet mechanism,-psfft! Nowhere to be found! Does everybody have this problem, or is it something that follows me around?

By Matt (Matt) on Saturday, January 29, 2000 - 11:16 pm: Edit

Yes every GD night. This drives me crazy. I want to take all my tools, inscrib my name on them and when I'm not there lock them away. I loose more time looking for bench knives and measuring pitchers. I find thoose all over the place, once someonce made Ice tea in the 1 gal pitcher, the I I use most when I'm mixing dough. I wasted 1/2 hr looking for it. I got even. I filled the guilty parties shoes with rye sour. A very sticy gooy mess :-)

Don't mess with the mixer.

MAtt

By pam on Saturday, January 29, 2000 - 11:49 pm: Edit

i have learned to have my stuff marked & keep it close to me at all times. i have hardly lost anything because i go around looking at what
everyone else is using & take my stuff back . they may laugh at me but i don't have to use all the bent & beat up stuff.i have my knife roll bag
& keep my knives in there or else the dishwashers use them to chip ice or something like that. i have 3 rubbermaid containers with the rest of my utensils. that's the only way. also you have to hide the measuring containers!its immature but so is everyone else!

By Matt (Matt) on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 01:19 am: Edit

Pam-

Don't hate having to work like that. I have to do the exact some thing. The dishwashers are the main suspects. They always put things in different spots. They are not supposed to. Them and it only take one who doesn't give a damn.

Matt

By W.DeBord on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 10:19 am: Edit

Dishwashers that are new and don't care can really shut things down. Good dishwashers are so important!

My head chef has a FIT if any of the guys so much as uses my counter space. IT'S GREAT !!!!! BUT...They ask me if they can use "my" pastry bags, "my" mixer, etc.... It's actually embarassing sometimes as if I personally own all the baking items. It really causes resentment and seperates me from them. If the chef notices I can't find something he stops whatever he's doing and finds the object for me. Isn't that weird? It's been like that from day one. It's good and bad!

By Mikeh (Mikeh) on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 11:20 am: Edit

W. DeBord,

From all your previous posts it sounds like your relationship with your head chef alternates between heaven and hell.

Cheers, Mike

By Morgane on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 12:32 pm: Edit

Loosing equipement in the kitchen must be the equivalent of all those socks who mysteriously disappear from the dryer...


Morgane

By d. on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 12:42 pm: Edit

Everything that can be labled is labled "pastry" on my side. Al the important stuff like tips, mini spatulas, cookie cutters, etc. are close at hand so when the guys need them they come meekly to me and ask me. They know I get really pissed off when I find things miising in our department. Since we are only 2, it's easy to keep track. But I've learned that you really have to be ticked off(plus the fact that I speak Spanish, so I gave them a good tongue-lashing) and make yourself heard and understood in order for that to work. My exec. chef had the attitude of "if it's missing order more", until he saw his guys taking the stuff and not returning it. Now he values the fact that I take good care of our tools and equipment.

By tj on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 09:48 pm: Edit

when i was young and did my obligatory military service, i served in the french air force.in the mechanical department.every morning and every night ,befor and after the shifts,every thing ,from nuts and bolts to screwdrivers and rachets was counted one by one by the department heads,for safty issues ofcourse.this was almost like a holly seramony...
i adopted this idea for my kitchen work.every evening befor the staff goes home. we put every thing in place.the dishwasher has the personal responsebility to return it all from washing,and the staff must not misplace the utensils, or they will suffer my rath...with a baseball bat....

By tj on Sunday, January 30, 2000 - 09:59 pm: Edit

no ,seriously,
in the army it was a matter of life and death, so the pilots did not take off until a screwdriver was found,that meens the whole department will stay in base for the end of times ,until they find the lost screw driver.
in the kitchen, how ever , establishing a strict routine will ensure little loses and theft.sometime you have no other choices.the cost of missing stuff can pile up very fast.i keep the more expensive things in my cabinet ,locked safley,things like my thermometers, refractometers,expensive knifes, and some of my personal decorating toys.