17th July 2020
Out and Almost about
A live out commis chef job in the Scottish Borders is getting no applicants. Wow!
What does that indicate?
As we come out of lockdown and some, very much some, hotels and restaurants open up; the industry problems of an aging demographic of chefs quite possibly remains the same as it was pre lockdown.
Lockdown: have a job in the public sector and get furloughed and get your job back, for now as lockdown eases.
Lockdown: have a job in Scottish Hospitality and maybe get furloughed, but just as maybe get no furlough and made redundant. Not a criticism of private industry which has to play with the cards dealt.
The demographics may be worse as many may have managed to find work in other industries such as care or online retail.
Jobs, there are some and after 12 weeks of inactivity CIS made our first relief placement since lockdown on Thursday the 9th of July.
There were two more relief placements made yesterday.
There are permanent jobs out there as well to apply for and I expect that there will be some more in the
next few weeks .
I took my car over to the garage in Beattock this morning after posting an early morning song and walking back there was a steady flow of campervans leaving Moffat. When popping out for a couple of pints on Wednesday night there were quite a few tourists about, mainly middle aged and early retirement ages and possibly with quite a bit of disposable income.
One of the phone calls yesterday came from down in Tigh Na Bruich and the report was busy in rural Scotland as the tourist season started up again.
Not a big fan of the sound of the word staycation, but what I am seeing and hearing is that many people from England are holidaying in Scotland.
How long will the season last and how much demand will there be for chefs?
Not sure, but there are chef jobs out there for now and why not apply for the job on north Skye for 3 months at 13 pounds an hour live in
Next week we will be open longer hours, not quite back to 9 to 5pm and will see how work pans out up until the end of July.
26th May 2020 Newspage
That is over two months now since the call to lockdown came, the call to shut the hotels, restaurants and pubs in Scotland and the rest of the UK.
The Coronavirus Pandemic seems to have passed over much of the world in its first flush and we will see if there is the much vaunted second wave or not.
Sadly, many people have lost their lives to Covid-19; the UK death toll sits at 36,914 with 121 new fatalities.
“Stay home, protect the NHS, save lives”
In the main, the population seems to have done that.
“Stay alert, control the virus, save lives” has been a little bit more confusing with a UK / Scottish divide adding some confusion to the less obvious phrasing.
“Stay home” is quite clear “Stay alert” not quite so clear.
Thoughts are now turning to reopening, with much of Europe having opened up restaurants and bars or in the case of Sweden, never having shut them down.
What will the rest of the 2020 season bring? Difficult to try and say. No doubt, there will be some life and some businesses will strike up, pitch up their stall and trade. Others may choose not to. That is everyone’s prerogative.
At CIS, an office has been kept open at Sunnybrae in Moffat where I live and where CIS worked out of from 2009 upon leaving Wentworth Street in Portree and before the day to day business moved into the shop on Well Street in Moffat.
There are reduced opening hours for now.
Monday to Friday 9am to 3pm and shut 1pm on the Wednesday. No doubt, these hours will change. If you get an answer machine please leave a message and I will get back to you. As the jobs pick up, I will spend more time on the phones, a bit like the early days in Glenmhor on Skye, I have one landline and one fancyish mobile which will be used when the time comes.
The three ladies who worked at CIS have all started their notice periods of redundancy as of yesterday the 25th of May.
The main issues getting the CIS office back up and running Well Street would be BT and Caterer.com who are chasing CIS for full payments whilst there is no activity. I am loathe to pay them off.
CIS Prices for hoteliers and restaurateurs have been reduced, and CIS is keenly priced to go.
Initially, the rates for relief chefs will be down a couple of pounds also to reflect the expected supply and demand for chefs.
After 20 good years of trading, one bad year is maybe to be expected.
Hopefully, for all the decent, honest, hard-working and skilled chefs who are keen to get back to work, the work will come back.
Some- time in July?
Many of us will be ready.
On Monday I returned to the office after 2 full weeks off. It was the most time off I have had off in a while and it was nice to come back to work with a fresh pair of eyes feeling very refreshed. I was visiting family in New Jersey. While I was there, I was keen to see some of the sights in Manhattan. For a foodie like me a trip to New York wouldn’t be anything without visiting Carlos’ Bakery in New York and the original one in Hobboken also. The cabinets are full of cannoli’s, cookies, biscuits, huge cakes of all colours and flavours and the staff were very friendly. It was quite an experience.
On the second day I visited the Empire State Building and we went up to the 102nd floor. The sights from here were astounding but the height is not for the faint hearted. It was interesting seeing the whole of New York from the very top, it was just dusk, and the sun had set by the time we got to the top. The best time to go I would say.
During the time going in and out of the city I found most people to be very nice and friendly which seems to be contrary to popular belief. There is a very severe homeless situation in the city and its very sad to see so many people who must sleep rough every night especially in the bitter cold.
I have a new love for bagels since returning home, while I enjoyed the sweet ones I preferred the savoury ones. Quick breakfast or lunch on the go and very filling. If you are visiting the city be prepared to walk as there is so much to see and do. I ticked nearly everything off my list including the Empire State Building, seeing a basketball game, Statue of Liberty, 9/11 memorial. The 9/11 memorial for me was beautiful but very sad. The names of everyone who lost their lives on that day are written all around the water.
We also went to Carlos’ bakery, saw a Broadway show, ate a traditional New York pizza, shopped at Macy’s, visited the Rockefeller centre and the iconic Christmas tree, drank in Oscar Wilde’s bar, drove past Grand Central Station and ate a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner.
Food recommendations are:
Cheesecake factory for amazing Raspberry and lemon cheesecake, Mexicue which is just a couple of blocks from the Empire State Building and they make a great Margarita! Blue Smoke (great traditional BBQ style meats), John’s Pizza place. There are about 5 pizza ovens all over the restaurant and the atmosphere is great. Oscar Wilde’s is a great bar for cocktails and is beautifully decorated for Christmas too. Shake shack for burgers and Chick-Fil-A for the best chicken sandwiches. We ate a lot in and around New Jersey including The Huntley Taverne (unfortunately not actually owned by my family!)
All in all, a great trip and I would highly recommend the city for anyone who is looking for an action-packed holiday, not one for too much relaxing!
Fancy learning some interesting facts on Moffat?
It’s hard to believe that I have been with Chefs In Scotland for a year now. It has gone by like a flash. Looking back on my first day in the office I often laugh at how nervous I was because it feels now as if I have always been here. From starting off with doing general references and calling chefs to where I am now is crazy. I found it easy to settle into the office as Johanna and Jessica made me feel very welcome and have supported me daily since then. I continue to have meetings with Michael every so often and it’s good to catch up and talk about how I am doing in the office and to talk of ways in which I can better myself and thrive.
After a full year in the office I feel like I have achieved a lot. The thought of trying to place a chef was very daunting when I first started but now it feels like second nature. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not always as smooth and plain sailing as I sometimes wish it would be but its all part and parcel of the job which is why enjoy it. You never know what you’re going to come in to daily which is why I love it, something new and challenging every day!
Over the last year I have managed to build relationships with many establishments and help when they are in need of a chef. It is such a rewarding feeling when you manage to help an establishment get a chef, it feels like a sense of relief knowing they are all sorted.
It has been a huge change in my life starting at Chefs In Scotland. I started working in a hotel for 5/6 years as a waitress to then working in retail for a year. I felt that after a year in college I had come to a standstill career wise and needed something to change it up a bit. I had spent a full year in college and decided that after qualifying in my course it wasn’t the right career choice for me. I noticed the job opportunity for Chefs In Scotland advertised on Facebook and sent my Cv across straight away. I was then invited for a 3-hour trial one afternoon and was given the task of doing some invoices and references. I must say, a year on and invoices are still my favourite. I then started on the 1st August 2018 after a family weekend spent in Blackpool. During my first week I was eased in and started to send some Cv’s out, but it wasn’t until the 13th September that I managed to successfully place a young chef at a high end hotel situated in the Lake District. It was a great feeling and felt like a huge achievement after only being with the company for just over a month.
Now here I am a year on, and I can happily say that I have finally found the career path in which I wish to continue in. Here’s to the next year…
Jade
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