Written by Mary Beth Johnson
I am approaching another year employed as a professional yacht chef, and I want to impart my reflections, from the professional chef’s standpoint, on what has happened over the past twenty years in an industry which has seen remarkable change and growth. When asked how the phrase, “yachting for dollars” reflects this diverse industry, let me profess that this is indeed my description of how yachting has evolved over two decades, especially for yacht chefs.
Not only have yachts gotten much bigger, crews, including chefs, now command much more respect. They are either highly trained or certified beyond belief and their salaries reflect that point. There are now more vessels being built than there are professionals to run them, including chefs. Salaries for crew in general and chefs in particular are now at a premium. Consequently, extremely young professionals are now the standard found in yachting, especially among chefs.
When I first started working on boats, chefs did not come from culinary schools. Their credentials told of their experience and hands on cooking, and some came from the yacht owners’ homes. In the mid-nineties, you started to see job application forms asking whether or not you had been to culinary school. If you hadn’t, there was really nothing to worry about if you signed up for at least a week of cooking courses, you would be hired. Not so today. Most yacht crew agencies and the larger yachts need qualified Chefs who have professional training from a culinary institute. No longer do we see “home cooks” onboard. Most yacht chefs today have graduated from such prestigious schools as the CIA, the French Culinary Institute or Le Cordon Bleu. Alternately they may have apprenticed under a famous chef as under the European system
Not only has the caliber of chefs changed, so have their salaries. Some command six figures annually, a trend which is getting more common. This brings another problem to the arena: EGO. But I must add in defense of seemingly egotistical chefs that neither yacht owners nor charter guests would pay thousands of dollars for a week of bad food, and yacht chefs have always recognized that if the charter or planned trip goes badly due to inclement weather, the food has to be great. A great Chef can save a whole itinerary with fantastic food and the Chef knows that everyone depends on them to produce five star meals on a continual basis without fail. These same Chefs may demand help in the galley but neglect to reciprocate outside the galley. But I would remind their detractors that this is due to the chef’s heavy work schedules, sometimes spending 12-18 hours in the galley at one stretch. In may respects, the Chef’s job is as important as the Engineer’s or the Captain’s.
Other changes in recent years for yacht chefs include the implementation of safety procedures ensuring that not only can the chef cook, he or she can right a flipped life raft, save a drowning passenger or put out a fire thanks to their STCW Basic Safety Training. STCW training is a prerequisite for all crew on non-USA flagged vessels. And while it is not required within USA waters on a USA flagged vessel, insurance companies are in effect insisting that all professional yacht crew are now STCW Basic Safety Training Certified - at a minimum. Depending on the size of the vessel and the number of passengers it can carry, further training may be required.
Some super yachts allow the chef to live in one of the staterooms, which is real luxury compared with the rest of the crew who have to bunk in communal crew quarters. Chefs often travel with the yacht owners cooking for them all over the world. Many of these same chefs are now designing their own galleys and bringing in professional cookware and appliances. The yacht “Princess Marianna”, owned by the wealthiest man in the world, Carlos Slim of Mexico, has its galley outfitted with combi-ovens. These combination ovens allow steaming, and are at the cutting edge in appliances today. You wouldn’t have found this cutting edge technology on a yacht twenty years ago.
Today’s yacht chef is expected to be extremely creative in the cuisine served, and should have a good knowledge of special diets, different preparations of native cuisines and must have a thorough understanding of sanitation and nutrition. Today’s yacht chef is worldly in foreign culture and cuisine, and knows more than the standard haute French gastronomique fare.
In retrospect, in an industry that has seen so many changes, being a yacht chef today can still offer a multitude of employment opportunities for the right candidate; One who is willing to pay for a culinary education and to work long hours in search of culinary perfection.
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